June 2024

[Robert_Parks]

@Robert_Parks love that blue potato. I once tried blue-fleshed potatoes, but they flowered pale lilac for me.

Flower color is not strongly linked to tuber/flesh color in potato, although if stem color is also unpigmented, it isn't going to be a bright potato. It is fun playing with these, the diversity of resulting tubers from more less focused seed.

Robert
Clear, brisk, and windy on the hill in SF.

[Uli]

Hello @Robert_Parks,

Thank you for posting the pictures of flowering potatoes. What are they? Local cultivars of edible potato? Or wild species? I know that the edible potato originated in the Andes of Peru and Bolivia but I am not aware of native Californian ones. How does the whole plant look like?
I managed to acquire a species potato Solanum jamesii which looks like a white flowered mini potato plant. For safety reasons I keep it in a pot, because of bulb/tuber eating rodents and also because I know of a botanical garden where a purple flowering species has invaded the whole garden.....

[Uli]

Lilium Vico Gold 
Raised by Sir Peter Smithers as Lilium sulphureum as one parent, this was once only available in the trade. It is very tall and needs careful staking and is best in shade in my climate. It is fragrant.
However, I sometimes wonder if I have not been sold the hybrid African Queen instead. The apricot touch makes me think this. But I am not a Lily specialist, is there someone around who would be able to tell them apart?

[Robert_Parks]

Thank you for posting the pictures of flowering potatoes. What are they? Local cultivars of edible potato? Or wild species? I know that the edible potato originated in the Andes of Peru and Bolivia but I am not aware of native Californian ones. How does the whole plant look like?
I managed to acquire a species potato Solanum jamesii which looks like a white flowered mini potato plant. For safety reasons I keep it in a pot, because of bulb/tuber eating rodents and also because I know of a botanical garden where a purple flowering species has invaded the whole garden.....

Genetics based on cultivated Andean potatoes. Virtually all of these are from seed of selected cultivars sourced from Cultivariable in Washington state, USA. In general, my choice was for plants suited for cool summers, late tuberization (after fall equinox), and strong dormancy.
Plants are generally sprawling and very vigorous, a few clones grew tall and upright this spring (it was very dark and cold for a while). A few seedlings in a planter are now a lush mound a meter across (seed planted in April). Flowering and seed set is generous the local pollinators do buzz pollen collection. Everything is in planters, and escape us unlikely, given the local conditions.

[Rdevries]

Lilium Vico Gold
Raised by Sir Peter Smithers as Lilium sulphureum as one parent, this was once only available in the trade. It is very tall and needs a few careful staking and is best in shade in my climate. It is fragrant.
However, I sometimes wonder if I have not been sold the hybrid African Queen instead. The apricot touch makes me think this. But I am not a Lily specialist, is there someone around who would be able to tell them apart?

Hi Uli, i grow a few lilies but not this one. I passed your question on to a fellow lily enthusiast who grows Vico Gold and he agrees with you, too orange and likely African Queen. Plant Delights sells Vico Gold

[Rdevries]

Some Aurelian lilies blooming Here this past week. 

[Uli]

Lilium Vico Gold
Raised by Sir Peter Smithers as Lilium sulphureum as one parent, this was once only available in the trade. It is very tall and needs a few careful staking and is best in shade in my climate. It is fragrant.
However, I sometimes wonder if I have not been sold the hybrid African Queen instead. The apricot touch makes me think this. But I am not a Lily specialist, is there someone around who would be able to tell them apart?

Hi Uli, i grow a few lilies but not this one. I passed your question on to a fellow lily enthusiast who grows Vico Gold and he agrees with you, too orange and likely African Queen. Plant Delights sells Vico Gold

Hello Rimmer,

Thank you very much for your reply. 

[Too Many Plants!]

Well, I wasn't expecting to be able to post a bulb flowering in the 101°F of late June. But here I am! Unfortunately I can't seem to locate the tag, and I'm not into disturbing the bulb while flowering or digging on my knees in 101°F for a tag 🏷�. To kill a gopher in my garden...for sure! But a 🏷� will have to wait. Maybe someone will recognize this (should be) South African species???

Forgot to mention...excited to see this bulbs very first flowering!!

It is a Crinum species - foliage resembles that of C. lugardiae but flowers will be needed to confirm.

Hi Robin, here are pics of the flowers...no scent really, and basically whitish. So I must have bought it for the foliage. I have at least a couple more Crinum that seem to be much slower than this guy. I've searched my records, but so far can't find where I purchased these, or what species they were purchased as. I tag most of my plants if they're not something I would know, but none of these I can find tags for.

[Uli]

Lilium Vico Gold
Raised by Sir Peter Smithers as Lilium sulphureum as one parent, this was once only available in the trade. It is very tall and needs careful staking and is best in shade in my climate. It is fragrant.
However, I sometimes wonder if I have not been sold the hybrid African Queen instead. The apricot touch makes me think this. But I am not a Lily specialist, is there someone around who would be able to tell them apart?

I have the reply to Uli's question on the Vico Lily.
My friend and Lily guru, Pontus Wallsten from Switzerland, said the
following:
"it looks like the fabulous, even rarer lilium Vico Queen"..."Vico gold is
yellow with a darker exterior"

Uli, I hope this helps.
Laura

Hello Laura,


Bingo..... that was excellent news, thank you very much for this information. It is indeed Vico Queen. I wrote my question from memory without checking the label. I did this morning and it says indeed Vico Queen. I got it many years ago from Dix Export. They have stopped to sell to individuals. It is good to have the identity of this plant confirmed by a knowledgeable person.

Thank you very much again 

Uli 

[Robin Jangle]

Well, I wasn't expecting to be able to post a bulb flowering in the 101°F of late June. But here I am! Unfortunately I can't seem to locate the tag, and I'm not into disturbing the bulb while flowering or digging on my knees in 101°F for a tag 🏷�. To kill a gopher in my garden...for sure! But a 🏷� will have to wait. Maybe someone will recognize this (should be) South African species???

Forgot to mention...excited to see this bulbs very first flowering!!

It is a Crinum species - foliage resembles that of C. lugardiae but flowers will be needed to confirm.

Hi Robin, here are pics of the flowers...no scent really, and basically whitish. So I must have bought it for the foliage. I have at least a couple more Crinum that seem to be much slower than this guy. I've searched my records, but so far can't find where I purchased these, or what species they were purchased as. I tag most of my plants if they're not something I would know, but none of these I can find tags for.

Flowers are too tubular for C. lugardiae but are a very close fit for C. macowanii. I'm pretty confident that it is Crinum macowanii

[Robert_Parks]

Drimia nana...very small and very cute!

[Wylie]

I got a bulb of Cypella aquatilis from the EU Bx this year, and here it is flowering for the first time. I also have Cypella herbertii in flower.

[Uli]

Hello @Wylie,
The clone of Cypella aquatilis circulating in the EU BX is a single clone. I grow it, too but with me it never sets seed. I have looked for pollen to use the microwave method but could not find any. Please have a lookout for seed forming, you may have different pollinators. Seed would be most important to maintain this beautiful plant in cultivation.

[Aad]

Dioscorea discolor from EX08_314 exchange

  

[Aad]

Amorphophallus linearis from EX08_313 Exhange