Galanthus in October

[Tony Willis]

Tony, here is a big and globular flower. But the apical mark is normal.

Hagen a very nice large flower,but as to the mark what is normal,there are so many variations?

[johnw]

Has anyone tried intergeneric crosses with Galanthus and other Amaryllidaceae genera?  I know Galanthus x Leucojum has been tried but what of other Genera.

It has worked on occassion in Ericaceae so why not within Amaryllidaceae.  Finding the right genus may be a problem.  It must have been luck or extraordinary intuition that lead to x Phyllothamnus, x Phylliopsis and x Kalmiothamnus.  I suspect ignorance lead to the first Azaleodendrons though that cross is cheating a bit.

johnw

[steve owen]

Here's Autumn Beauty, my first in-the-soil snowdrops in flower today. The inner marking variation seen last year is continuing. The "clump" has increased from two flowers to eleven in two years, so reasonably vigorous.

[KentGardener]

That's doing well Steve.  I didn't buy it from Wisley at the time as I thought it was not distinct enough in looks - but it certainly makes up for it by appearing in October!   

[Martin Baxendale]

Here's Autumn Beauty, my first in-the-soil snowdrops in flower today. The inner marking variation seen last year is continuing. The "clump" has increased from two flowers to eleven in two years, so reasonably vigorous.

Looks to me like there's more than one clone there, Steve. One with a V-mark and longer narrower outer segments, and another with a large blotch and shorter, wider, chunkier outers. Rather than a single clone with variable marks. Could be that someone has selected out more than one clone, perhaps even a whole group of seedlings that flower around the same time and propagated them together as a sort of grex under the name Autumn Beauty. It's something that seems to be happening more frequently these days. Unfortunately there doesn't always seem to be very rigorous selection for similarity of appearance, leading to variability in what you may get when you buy (I'm thinking also of a certain Dutch? green-tip elwesii whose name I've temporarily forgotten that came in for some criticism last year on this score). I guess it's a way of getting a lot of saleable stock faster under a particular 'trade name' by choosing a number of similar-looking (or similar flowering period) seedlings (but not necessarily identical) and increasing them rather than selecting out individual clones to propagate. I guess that's okay if you're vigorous in the selections, but more debatable if you're not. 

[Brian Ellis]

Nice to see them Steve, I hope my 'Autumn Beauty' (a present last year) turns out to be like the chunky one, it is in bud at the moment so fingers crossed

[art600]

I have a similar plant to the one shown by Tony Willis.

Not the best photo I have taken, but it shows the mark clearly.

I also have a peshmenii that has a green spot on each of the outer petals.  The photo had to be manipulated to show the spot, but it is there if you concentrate.

[steve owen]

Martin
I'll give the members of this clump a more concentrated study in a few days when all the flowers are open and the wind isn't so strong!
Steve

[steve owen]

A number of varieties through this week; Barnes, Remember Remember, Three Ships, Monostictus Hiemalis, Hollis, Tilebarn Jamie and Peter Gatehouse.

[Mavers]

Fabulous snowdrop Hagen. can you offer any tips regarding compost when growing these autumn flowering snowdrops in pots?

Mike

[Gerard Oud]

From today 3 different elwesii's flowering now All original from Turkey imported over 20 years ago! I did recognise a elwesii/cilicus hybrid with the carved outers but definitly a elwesii.I will take a picture from this one the coming days.

[Hagen Engelmann]

Gerard, cilicicus is clearly only applanat and has no basical mark. Why do you think about a hybrid??

[Hagen Engelmann]

Mike, there is realy no treasure:
30% compost, not too humous
30% grit
15% shreddered leaves of beech
10% perlite/vermiculite
10% silt/loam/clay
2,5% eggshell/lime
2,5% best wishes

[Gerard Oud]

Hagen i try to make a pic tomorrow! Then i can show you the elwesii/cilicicus hybrid flowering right now!

[freddyvl]

Today: G. elwesii 'Remember, Remember' which shows creamy coloured stripes on the outer segments.
It was found by John Morley in his North Green garden in 1992. Named after the first line of a (well-known) folk rhyme, 'Remember, remember, the fifth of November, ... '