Crinums blooming oddly
James Waddick (Mon, 04 Aug 2003 06:10:16 PDT)

Dear all;
Hardy Crinums have become a special addition to the garden
This year has been exceptional and odd.
Both my oldest x powelli and alba have bloomed like crazy
this year and continue to put up scape after scape. Dozens and
dozens, but the flowers seem smaller and less open than usual. This
may be a result of an odd season with rain very early and now severe
drought.
C. bulbispermum bloomed heavily too, but have not put up
later scapes as I recall them doing in wetter years.
'Catherine' - my all time favorite put up a bounty of
stalks, but they all fell over just prior to bloom, twisted and
flopped - not pretty. Another drought result?
Now 'Cecil Houdyshel' (another xpowelli cross) is blooming
better than ever -more stalks, longer bloom, bigger flowers etc.
'Ellen Bousanquet' has yet to pop up a single scape not most
other named cvs.
I don't see a pattern here, except to chalk it up to the
extremes of rain/drought.
I know we need some rain - serious E. Coast rain - but the
Crinums do continue to put on a show by sheer numbers of flowers.

Best Jim W.
--
Dr. James W. Waddick
8871 NW Brostrom Rd.
Kansas City Missouri 64152-2711
USA
Ph. 816-746-1949
E-fax 419-781-8594

Zone 5 Record low -23F
Summer 100F +