Crocus in pots March 2010

[ian mcenery]

a couple more out today,the first of

Crocus scardicus
Crocus x gothenburgensis this has pelistericus as the seed parent and scardicus as the pollen. This one is very small flowered compared with its parents

 

[Lesley Cox]

Art, I might try that regime with c. sativus. I've bought a dozen, sort of mid size I'd guess. I know that a friend who has a small saffron planting grows them (organically) with lots of garden compost and manure underneath, from her cow, not what one would normally give to crocuses. So maybe the gritty compost that everything here gets hasn't been rich enough.

[art600]

Lesley

In addition to the good feed, they need to be planted at least 6 inches down.  This is the recommendation of David Stephens (Crocus Group).  He visited our AGS Group and distributed bags of corms at least the size of beetroot.

[Lesley Cox]

Good Lord!

I can plant them deep in my new bit which is mostly planted now with herbaceous stuff and I'm putting bulbs in every spare patch. In a year or two, most bulbs will be coming up through something.

[vivienr]

I thought I should try to grow some crocus a pot and bought a pack of C.....Tricolor.
I am amazed how many flowers each corm produces - between 4 and 9. Is this normal or have they been treated to put on a great show and then fade away? If I had realised how floriferous they were I would not have put them all into one pot

[tonyg]

Vivien - The trade clone is very vigorous.   My single bulb (1989 £3 per corm) made a big potful in just a few years.  The corms you have will likely have been grown on the Dutch bulbfields where  the soil seems to be laced with miracle-grow!  They will probably make smaller corms in future but there will be plenty of them - each growing shoot should have a new corm at the base.  Feed (high potash) and water well to keep them growing as long as possible and they will do just fine.
Pictured below is a form I raised from wild seed in 1999.  Slower to increase than the trade form and subtly different shape.  Still nice though!

[tonyg]

The main flush of Crocus colour has arrived here this week. 

Garden crocus abound, in the frames here it's the sight that reminds me why I go to so much trouble!
Crocus biflorus weldenii 'Fairy' - Thomas is this the same as your clone?
Crocus corsicus ex seed ex corms collected by Alan Edwards in Corsica many moons ago.  10 years on and I still have just the one corm!
Crocus cvijicii

[vivienr]

Thanks for the advice Tony. I think your plants have much cleaner colouring than mine.

[tonyg]

Second and final installment for tonight.
Crocus pestalozzae.  Easy from seed (OK almost all crocus are) and has the smallest seed of any crocus.
Crocus paschei
Crocus sieberi - seed raise dex Marcus Harvey collections.  Might be from Mt Parnassos as these are not typical of ssp sublimis.  The supposed hybrids with Crocus veluchensis look quite similar.
Crocus vitellinus - raised from seed sown 10 years ago ... is this the first time it has flowered?  Could be!

[tonyg]

Thanks for the advice Tony. I think your plants have much cleaner colouring than mine.

Trick of the light / camera perhaps.  Yours are lovely too!

[ian mcenery]

First flower from seed sown three and a half years ago Crocus cvijicii  and also from seed flowering for the first trime Crocus vernus (thanks Tony G)

[Ragged Robin]

Tony, a fantastic sight in your crocus frame and the single shots are a treat too  Crocus biflorus weldenii 'Fairy' is so pretty.

[Ragged Robin]

Ian, wow, congratulations on the first flowering of your crocus in pots.  Crocus cvijicii is a wonderful shape and colour  

[Alex]

Crocus pelistericus today.

Alex

[mark smyth]

Alex I like the way you keep the corms damp.

Ian, your group of vernus reminds me I havent see mine this year  I must look tomorrow