The fall rains have arrived in the Pacific Northwest a month early this
year, and neither the vintners nor the hikers are very happy about that.
Some of the bulbs, however, may enjoy a long frost-free fall season.
A real surprise was the flowering of Urginea undulata, a miniature member
of this Mediterranean genus (Hyacinthaceae). I bought it as a bulb from
Monocot Nursery about 4 years ago and have been admiring the foliage ever
since. It makes flattish rosettes about 4 inches/10 cm across. The leaf
margins are extremely wavy (undulata) and crimped. I suspected it would
never flower in this cool climate, but after a hot summer it produced a
scape about 10 in/25 cm long with numerous tiny white flowers which lasted
only a couple of days. I didn't get a photo but will try to post a photo of
the leaves, which are more interesting than the inflorescence.
Another flower I regard as something of a miracle under my conditions is
Narcissus humilis, a Mediterranean "daffodil" so unusual that it has been
placed at times in another genus, Tapeinanthus. It has a stem about 5 in/12
cm tall with a single bright yellow flower that has only a corolla, no
corona (cup); the leaves emerge later. Both seed-grown and purchased bulbs
are flowering today, presumably triggered by temperature since one pot is
in a frame that receives more summer water than the other. In response to
the rain and cool temperatures, all the frames have now been given their
first fall watering, which I usually would not do until about Oct. 10.
Two seed-grown pots of Sternbergia colchiciflora are in flower, one from
the Archibalds' seeds and another from NARGS exchange seed collected near
Isparta, Turkey. This is the smallest Sternbergia. The light to bright
yellow flowers don't open very widely and are only about an inch (2.5 cm)
long, appearing before the leaves. The Isparta plants took 7 years from
sowing to flowering.
Monocot seeds has been a source of some interesting Near Eastern plants.
Seeds received as Colchicum hierosolymitanum ('of Jerusalem') produced 5
bulbs that flowered this month for the first time. I'm not sure the name is
right, since I looked up this species on the Internet and came across a
photo showing flowers that seemed not to be tessellated (checkered),
whereas my flowers are faintly tessellated. It's a small species. How I
wish for a good comprehensive reference on this genus! I have good photos
but hesitate to post them on the wiki without being able to verify the name.
On a more mundane level, Cyclamen graecum is producing its thick-textured
pink flowers (I need a white form!), and C. intaminatum its small but
pretty ones. C. africanum and C. rohlfsianum, which have to be kept in the
conservatory, are also in flower. This year I planted a number of C.
graecum outdoors to see if they will tolerate our winters.
All the bulbs are in the ground or frames or pots now, except for a basket
of Nectaroscordum siculum bulbs that glare at me whenever I walk by. I
can't decide if it's worth the trouble putting them in the ground, but
they'd be a good inedible addition to the Vole Bed. I was delighted that my
sole bulb of the expensive N. tripedale (much prettier with its soft pink
flowers) produced seeds this summer.
Jane McGary
Northwestern Oregon, USA