Status of Merendera
Jane McGary (Mon, 17 Nov 2008 17:11:25 PST)

I've just been trying to find out via internet search whether
Merendera is still regarded as a genus separate from Colchicum, and I
could not find any information that looked authoritative. Does anyone
know if the genus Merendera is still valid? The last time I
investigated this, I was told that it was sunk in Colchicum, but that
was about 5 or 6 years ago, and some publications appear still to be
using Merendera.

I got onto this after admiring Merendera attica, or COlchicum
atticum, in the bulb frame this afternoon. Its flowers are white,
just barely flushed pink, and rise barely above the soil, set off by
gray-lavender anthers. Other Merendera (?) species flower here much
earlier in fall.

Jane McGary
Northwestern Oregon, USA