Pulsatilla 2013

[greenspan]

Is there a recommended technique for Pulsatillas to ensure reliable germination?

fresh harvested Pulsatilla seed often germinates in the same year, the rest after a cold (winter) period when it becomes warm again (stratification). dried and stored seed falls in a deep dormancy i guess. in such case you need to break dormancy with the phytohormone gibberellinacid 3 (ga3, a crystalline powder; i use a lotion of 0,2% means 200 mg ga3 solute in 100 ml water). it replaces the need for a cold->warm period, so you can sow at warm at once. but not too warm...avoid temperatures over ~20°C. Pulsatilla often germinates about temperatures from 5-10°C. but there is another quite unknown method to germinate stored + dried seed. i found informations about a germination experiment with Ziziphus with different chemical products. the best germination was achieved with thiourea (see here on this site, scroll down to "Ziziphus mauritiana (Murthy 1989)"). it's in german, but easy to understand. so i tried this with dried Pulsatilla seed. here is an example with sowing P. alpina ssp. apiifolia (Jelitto seed). left shows the germination result without any treatment, right with 1% thiourea:



but i have to say that the methods with ga3 or thiourea failed sometimes. e.g. i got old Pulsatilla ambigua seed + got only one seedling treated with thiourea. but it's worth to have heard about the thiourea-method beside the wellknown ga3-method i guess.

repotting Pulsatilla is no problem, but replanting old stocks might fail sometimes.

[ian mcenery]

Magnificent, Ian.

Thank you Cliff I wished all my other plants would be as obliging

[krisderaeymaeker]

I get this as Pulsatilla ambigua . Could  anyone  confirm the ID ? 

[johnralphcarpenter]

Pulsatilla vulgaris, I believe, unless somebody knows better.

[Tim Ingram]

Pulsatillas are just incredibly photogenic but not necessarily easy to grow. For the first time P. vernalis has flowered in the garden on the sand bed, tucked up against a large block of tufa, and has two more flower buds to come. I will be really pleased if this continues to grow well and flower like this in the future. The two forms of P vulgaris are growing in ideal conditions on a chalky bank in a garden near Maidstone - the second one a particularly good strong colour.

[Maggi Young]

 Re: AGS Midland Show 20th April 2013
Jon Evans' great photos of this very lovely show are on the AGS site. They include several portraits of Pulsatilla integrifolia  (Previously Miyakea integrifolia) - shown by the "VeteranVet" George Young .....   http://www.alpinegardensociety.net/discussion/atshows//Midland+Show+Solihull+th+April+/17114/?page=3

[Gerhard Raschun]

With so many beauties here one does not dare to show his own plants.

The only exception, a yellow flowering Pulsatilla pratensis ssp. nigricans !

The plant is probably the rarest color form, only about all 3 years it is possible to find a flowering plant in nature. Almost never finds a plant that blooms for the second time.

Here's a first flowering seedling in the 3rd period!

[Susann]

With so many beauties here one does not dare to show his own plants.

Beautiful! ( And please, everybody, show your pictures. No picture is "not good enough"! We are here to share, not to feel inferior in any way)

Back to your beautiful plant.  In the floras this form is called P pratensis ssp hungarica ( Once again Hungary-thinking of `Budapest´) I got seeds some years ago. Only one seed germinated, the plant developed well, and last summer I incidently gave the pot away! It was ment to be a P albana ssp albana f lutea. They do look a little similar at a very quick glance when not in flower and very small. It took weeks before I discovered that my treasure was gone. I add a photo of the beautiful hungarican:

I mentioned a little mouse that had had a party with my Pulsatillas. I have now found out he had had my biggest P albana ssp albana f lutea as a desert. It makes me very angry with him. I hope his belly hurt a lot!
 In my garden, southern Sweden,  there are still no Pulsatillas in flower, they will probably all show their beauty when I am in Tábor.

I get this as Pulsatilla ambigua . Could  anyone  confirm the ID ? 

The ambigua indentification I leave to Olga or someone else. It will be interesting to have it confirmed or judged as not "correct".

[krisderaeymaeker]

The ambigua indentification I leave to Olga or someone else. It will be interesting to have it confirmed or judged as not "correct".

Thanks Susann  , I hope Olga read this and could give her findings .........

[Olga Bondareva]

thank you olga for the foto of a turczaninovii leaf. i checked some of my older Pulsatilla fotos + found this one...grown from (commercial) seed, labelled as "turczaninovii"...it should be ambigua, because of the bipinnate leafs, isn't it?

Think you are right.  This lovely blue flowered plant looks like P. ambigua.

[Olga Bondareva]

I get this as Pulsatilla ambigua . Could  anyone  confirm the ID ?

Kris it's a beautiful tiny plant. But I can't confirm it is P. ambigua. Probably it is a garden hybrid.

[Olga Bondareva]

By the way.  I can supply with seeds of Pulsatilla. Please let me know if it is interesting.

[Olga Bondareva]

And a couple of nature images from the place where the wild P. albana grow.

[Susann]

I can supply everyone who goes to Czech Conference with fresh true wild collected seeds of Pulsatilla flavescens, Pulsatilla dahurica  and Pulsatilla turczaninovii. Please let me know if it is interesting.

Olga, very very stupid question! I think we all scream "YES, please" when reading this! Thank you for your very kind offer!
And as always, beautiful images. Thank you for showing them.

[Maggi Young]

By the way.  I can supply everyone who goes to Czech Conference with fresh true wild collected seeds of Pulsatilla flavescens, Pulsatilla dahurica  and Pulsatilla turczaninovii. Please let me know if it is interesting.

This is beyond exciting!