Fritillaria 2012

[Maggi Young]

Your photos show a lovely variation in the markings, Diane. That last pic of the the Frits with the Castelleja is just gorgeous.

[Magnar]

Thanks for the lovely pics, Diane

[Kees Jan]

I visited Macedonia last June, where I photographed a fritllary that seemed to be identical to F. latifolia, a species that I have seen before in the Caucasus and NE Turkey. Can anyone tell me if F. latifolia is known to occur in the Balkan?

[Gerry Webster]

Kees Jan - I suppose it might be F. macedonica. I had this many years ago but lost it before it flowered. I vaguely rememember that it was said to resemble F. latifolia with purple flowers.

[Kees Jan]

Thanks, although I'm not sure it is macedonica. I also first thought it was macedonica, but when I checked the description it did not seem to fit. Here is a picture, a rather nice plant. If it is not F. latifolia it is something quite similar.

[Gerry Webster]

From the descriptions I have, the main differences between F. macedonica & F. latifolia is that the former has the upper leaves in a whorl of 3 & the latter does not. Furthermore,  in the former the inner perianth segments are toothed on the margin. From your photo I cannot clearly make out the leaf arrangement.

[Susan Band]

Here is a Chinese Frit which is flowering now. I have a group of these which flower at this time every year, after I have collected seed from all the others. I also noticed seed from these plants germinating now as well.  It looks like a form of Frit taipiense. Apologies for the foliage, it got a bit close to the weed burner, a hazard of coming up when everything around it has died down.
Susan

[Kees Jan]

In the meantime I have found some pictures of F. macedonica that look very similar to what I photographed in Macedonia.

[Janis Ruksans]

Today I finished repotting of frits and started to replant larger stocks. The first to plant was Fritillaria olgae - very nice quite tall growing species from SW Uzbekistan. In nature it grows in very arid conditions. I collected 2 bulbs just at border with Turkmenistan, at Kugi Tang where it grew on rock terrace, in quite shallow soil. It gave good seed crop and on picture are seedlings from those plants. It is very tricky for growing as here it starts forming of new roots when it is still green - soon after ending of blooming. Those bulbs were kept in bulb shed in dust-dry sand but regardless of very dry conditions formed very long roots. So I decided to picture those and to show you. Regardless of long roots, carefully planted it grew very well and blooms every year.
Similar habit has Fritillaria verticillata from SE Kazahstan. This spring when I was there F. verticillata was in full blooms - and bulbs had short new roots, too.
Janis

[ronm]

  Excellent demonstration Janis. 

[ronm]

Checking on my pots of F.davidii today ( and with Janis' post fresh in my mind ) I was pleased to note a very healthy quantity of roots extending well out of the bottom of the pots. I grow them in 1 litre, deep 'Rose' pots, with the top of the bulbs about 2cm below the surface of the compost. The roots were out through all drainage holes and extended at least 10 cm further along the wet table top. The pots are in deep shade, open to the elements, but always kept moist / wet. The first very tiny leaf was peeping out above the compost, in one of the pots, also. This is six weeks earlier than last year. For me the leaves increase in size in succession. This is the sixth year of growing. So far no flowers.
I'm going to pot the 1 litre pots into 3 litre ones tomorrow so that the root system is back in touch with compost at its extremities. 

New season has started, 

[fermi de Sousa]

Here's the first Frit of the season for me - F. persica - as a cutflower due to damage by marauding parrots [see "Moan, Moan, Moan" thread]
cheers
fermi

[Hillview croconut]

Hi,

I have posted many pictures of fritillaria flowers from our southern season on the Flowers and Foliage Now thread but I'd like to throw this one into the ring here.

I have raised thousands of Fritillaria acmopetala but this is the darkest I have ever bred or seen before. Anyone else had a similar colour form of normally green and brown species?

Cheers, Marcus

[ronm]

 I never have Marcus. Was it the only one among many seed raised plants? Did all the others come 'true'? What does the inside of the flower look like?
Are your Frits open pollinated?
The joys of raising from seed, 

[Lesley Cox]

I've had some good darks but not THAT dark. I've sown and raised seed of a couple and they tend darker than the norm when mature so if you do seed from this one..... maybe a dark strain?