Muscari ... and some relatives 2010

[Michael J Campbell]

Muscari Gul armeniacum

[ChrisB]

A thing of beauty, Michael!

[Maggi Young]

Ooh, I've been thinking about that bulb all week or more since there were some other photos of it.... it is very nice!

[TheOnionMan]

Muscari Gul armeniacum

I see delicious pink Muscari here, Simon posted M. 'Early Rose', and Michael's M. armeniacum 'Gul', both are beautiful. What is the background or parentage of 'Early Rose'?  Does M. armeniacum 'Gul' represent a color selection of armeniacum , or possibly a hybrid of it with other species.  Are these "good doers" when grown outside? Are they fertile and produce seed?

[Maggi Young]

Some more discussion of Muscari Gul Delight, here.......



http://www.srgc.org.uk/smf/index.php?topic=5164.msg142727;topicseen#msg142727

[TheOnionMan]

Some more discussion of Mucari Gul Delight, here.......

http://www.srgc.org.uk/smf/index.php?topic=4969.msg138362#msg138362

http://www.srgc.org.uk/smf/index.php?topic=5164.msg142727;topicseen#msg142727

Thanks Maggi, first link useful for Muscari Gul Delight, hope to hear about 'Early Rose' too.

[Janis Ruksans]

'Tis the season for flowers of the Muscari ilk. Flowering here now are Hyacinthella dalmatica and one I have as Hyacinthella lazulina, but could be H.lineata. Also flowering is Muscari 'Early Rose'.

Superb color of EARLY ROSE. Never so completely pink and dark with me. The color intencity on it depends from temperature and soil pH. On more acid soils and at low temperatures pink is brighter.
Janis

[Afloden]

Mark,
 
 Gul (not Gul Delight as I have no experience with it) is a good grower outside. I had it for several years in Kansas in a harsh z5 (-15F) climate and here in Tennessee also. I have noticed that the color varies by soil and temperature. In Kansas it was a much clearer dark pink and here in the acidic Tennessee amended laterite-esqe soil it is a dirty pale pink. I posted images last year. It sets seed regularly and offsets slowly for me. I've sent some to friends in New England. Mine is still not showing any inflorescences so far.... a very late year. The Hepatica are just beginning.

 Where can I get "Early Rose"?

 Aaron

[TheOnionMan]

Mark,
 
Gul (not Gul Delight as I have no experience with it) is a good grower outside. I had it for several years in Kansas in a harsh z5 (-15F) climate and here in Tennessee also. I have noticed that the color varies by soil and temperature. In Kansas it was a much clearer dark pink and here in the acidic Tennessee amended laterite-esqe soil it is a dirty pale pink. I posted images last year. It sets seed regularly and offsets slowly for me. I've sent some to friends in New England. Mine is still not showing any inflorescences so far.... a very late year. The Hepatica are just beginning.

Where can I get "Early Rose"?
Aaron

That's good to hear that Gul (not Gul Delight) was hardy for you in Kansas in Zone 5, so if I can find it it should be okay in my zone 5 garden.  If you find a source for 'Early Rose', let us know.  Still would like to find out more about 'Early Rose'.

[Janis Ruksans]

Mark,
 
Gul (not Gul Delight as I have no experience with it) is a good grower outside. I had it for several years in Kansas in a harsh z5 (-15F) climate and here in Tennessee also. I have noticed that the color varies by soil and temperature. In Kansas it was a much clearer dark pink and here in the acidic Tennessee amended laterite-esqe soil it is a dirty pale pink. I posted images last year. It sets seed regularly and offsets slowly for me. I've sent some to friends in New England. Mine is still not showing any inflorescences so far.... a very late year. The Hepatica are just beginning.

Where can I get "Early Rose"?
Aaron

That's good to hear that Gul (not Gul Delight) was hardy for you in Kansas in Zone 5, so if I can find it it should be okay in my zone 5 garden.  If you find a source for 'Early Rose', let us know.  Still would like to find out more about 'Early Rose'.

Early Rose is seedling of White-Rose Beauty. There were 3 seedlings with more prominent pink color in flowers. One very early named PINK SUNRISE, another very late named PINK SUNSET - both were sold to Dutch company. The third (the most pink shaded) was later named EARLY ROSE and this is one offered by me, too. White-rose Beauty was selected by my friend Aldonis Verinsh (Latvia) from material initially got by him from N Caucasus as Muscari pallens, but exact collecting locality was unknown to him. Of course it isn't M. pallens, I think it is new species, some suppose that hybrid, but no real splitting in following generations observed, only variation in color. It well set seeds. Greatest problem - very susceptible to viruses although as most of Muscari don't suffer from infection seriously. For that reason (and some genetical researches) it was sown in great numbers at breeding station of garden plants in Lithuania (in Soviet time) and from those my friend Dambrauskas selected those 3 flower types of pink form. Two other cultivars is SKY BLUE - very light blue with white sterile flowers and DARK EYES with dark blue flowers and light blue sterile flowers. In eighties of last century I brought all three initial stocks to Michael Hoog 200 bulbs of each and from him they came to wide market. Only White-rose Beauty was renamed by him as WHITE BEAUTY because weather in Holland is warmer and pink shade was very pale and in some very warm springs even absent.

Regarding GUL - it is very poor grower with me outside and I'm growing it now only in pots. It split slowly, needs cutting but well reproduces from seed. Occasional blue appears between seedlings.
Janis

[TheOnionMan]

Thanks Janis for this interesting story, it seems that some plants have considerable complicated history behind them, not always well known. 

[WimB]

Hyacinthella dalmatica is just starting to flower here

[Ragged Robin]

Really cute, Wim, especially with the raindrops - do they always come up double?

[WimB]

Really cute, Wim, especially with the raindrops - do they always come up double?

Thanks Robin,
finally we got some rain here, it started to get quite dry here.

I don't think they always come up double, although they did last year too, you can see that here:
http://www.srgc.org.uk/smf/index.php?topic=3329.msg85314#msg85314

You can see them flowering with single flowers and with the flowers more open in a picture of Simon here:
http://www.srgc.org.uk/smf/index.php?topic=4817.msg144037#msg144037

[Ragged Robin]

Thanks for the links Wim, they really are very attractive with the dark eyes and the way they sit low in the leaf spread