Subject: [pbs] Sternbergia
Antennaria@aol.com (Mon, 01 Sep 2003 18:41:31 PDT)

Judy, et al,

I grow two Sternbergia here in northern Massachusetts, out in the garden.
Both are grown on small enbankments on the south (warm) side of the house in
full sun, and flower beautifully. Sternbergia lutea is growing in clay/loam
amended with some sand, on the southerly facing base of a rose-of-sharon shrub
(hibiscus syriacus cultivar). I plant bulbs around the bases of deciduous
shrubs, with the theory that the shrub roots take up much of the summer moisture,
allowing the bulbs to dry out properly. So far, this technique has worked very
well. This Sternbergia species has handsome shiney green strap-like foliage
that remain amazingly evergreen in spite of ice and snow through the winter. The
late autumn flowers are glorious.

Sternbergia fischeriana is a beautiful species. Buds might show in very late
autmun/early winter in mind autumns, but they don't open until early spring
here. The flowers are very large, and the glaucous foliage attractive and
narcissus-like. This species is grown in a very sandy soil amended with some leaf
humus, and seems easy enough to grow. Picture link at:

http://www.plantbuzz.com/Buzz/im_stern_id.htm

I'm north of you, so these should be doable in your climate.

Mark McDonough Pepperell, Massachusetts, United States
antennaria@aol.com "New England" USDA Zone 5
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