Corydalis wilsonii under glassTwo weeks aso , at the NARGS Eastern Study Weekend , Corydalis expert , Henrick Zetterlund told me that the best way to cultuvate Corydalis wilsonii is to grow in in chunk of virgin tufa rock . So Joe and I loaded up the truck with tufa rock from a local bargainer who was sell some of this cute ( and dear ! ) poriferous , limestone rock which only cut our hand a little , and drove it home the 300 mile to Massachusetts . Although my brand young Toyota FJ cuiser is now full of dust-covered lily-white powder , I now have a expert supplying of calc-tufa , well , at least a few twelve piece ! When my NARGS seed get from the annual seed distribultion , I will be establish some seedlings into tny drilled holes , and hopefully next yr , can report of further success with this more or less fussy , tender Corydalis which seems to top out in bloom , here in my nursery around February . Henrick say when grown in tuff , it will stay more in case , low-spirited , dense and almost bun - like . I ca n’t wait . This industrial plant I currently school in a gravelly , standard alpine commixture . Seeds are sometimes avalailable from specialty leaning ( Ron Ratko , NARGS , Scottish Rock Garden Society ) , you may grow in zona 9 , or under glass in a cool or insensate greenhouse , with protective covering .
Lachenaia aloides are starting thier peak season
Anyone who do it me , cognise that I specialise in a few genus , which I run to collect more than others . A few years ago , I discovered Lachenalia , a South African relative of the Hyacinth family unit , easy enough from seed , the bulbs flower in three years , and for what ever ground , I have had portion with the genus . Although some species commence bloom around Christmas ( L. viridiflora , L. rubida ) the peak season is just starting , and the stonger February sun ( yes , stronger….ask anyone with a glasshouse ! ) , coaxes the bub from mystifying withing the twin leaves of the easy to raise , but unmanageable to get hold , bulb . The above L. aloides word form are all roll up from my own source and leaf cuttings , they start their blooming season now , and will proceed until later March . Definately something that brightens up the wintertime on snowy days . The experience of trudging through a benighted blizzard to the greenhouse , and then seeing all this color is an experience that I depend forward to every year . On a cheery day , it is really over-the-top .
speak of color … .
The rarefied Chilean Blue Crocus , Tecophilieae cyanocrocus is peaking also , the last flowers in fact are flower this hebdomad , and hopefully , this year , I can get some seed from the few that I have . Ridicoulously expensive , for such a tiny corm , these are still a collector detail , requiring some accurate conditions such as coolness , moisture , fast drainage and a summer quiescency . But is n’t it deserving it ? Blue is such a compelling colour . One needs to remortgage and plant a twelve of these in a can , or grow some from come as I am trying . This is how they look best . irksome division is the second room that I am getting there . Last year four , this year six . hmmm … .
Asphodelus acaulisMost asphodelus send up tall stems with rather unimpressive white flower , but this bulb , which I bought in England a couple of years ago , is , as the name hints , stemless . Grown in the UK as an alpine menage specimen , here , it proves why . I never was able-bodied to see it in bloom , but now , I am thrilled that in its third yr with me , is producing a endearing pile of prime , and that they are pink and not lily-white . We shall see in a few weeks , how prissy it expect if they all open at once . If our sunlight was stonger , the foliage would be ‘ tighter ” but even in this term , the plant is jell itself up as a stark alpine specimen from a genus noted for agressive robustness .
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