MAD ABOUT MORAEAS

by Bob Werra

Information from a hand out Bob distributed to the IBSA symposium about his experiences with winter growing Moraeas in Ukiah, California. He gives the species he has grown a score of 0 to 4 for his opinion and experience on beauty, ease of growth, and whether they produce cormlets or seeds, followed by general comments about each. If there is no rating, it’s because he did not know. He has further divided the species into 3 groups: fugacious (short-lived flowers), nonfugacious, and peacock Moraeas.

The Fugacious group:

NAME	BEAUTY	EASE	CMLETS	SEEDS	COMMENTS
*Moraea bipartita*	3	3		4	Tall blue, multi flowers; easy
*Moraea ciliata*	3	3	4	1	Blue; pretty; many basal cormlets
Moraea crispa	3	3	0	0	Blue pinwheel; lasted 18 years
Moraea falcifolia	1	0			Tiniest; very difficult
Moraea fergusoniae	2	2		0	Blue; somewhat difficult
Moraea fugax	4	3	1	3	Large flowers, many colors: white, yellow, blue
Moraea gawleri	1	1		0	Difficult
Moraea gracilenta	3	2		1	Large lavender flowers, blooms p.m. 3 hrs.
Moraea lugubris	2	0		0	Interesting feathery blue blooms; very difficult
Moraea macrocarpa	2	2		3	Short wiry stem; moderately large blooms, many seeds
Moraea macronyx	4	4	3	0	Yellow & white; pretty; some cormlets
Moraea papilionacea	4	1	0	0	Many colors; difficult to keep going
Moraea polyanthos	3	4	2	4	Tall, evening multi flowers; very easy
Moraea polystachya	3	2		3	Very tall lavender; multi flowers; unpredictable
Moraea serpentina	4	3	3	1	Pretty yellow with spiral leaves
Moraea tortillis	4	2	0	1	Favorite; short, big blue bloom, corkscrew leaves; kept 10 years with no increase
Moraea tricolor	4	3	2	1	Short; large red & yellow flowers; few cormlets
Moraea vegeta	2	3	3	4	Short; tan; self pollinating
Moraea viscaria	4	4		4	Large white; sticky stem, blooms p.m. 3 hrs.

The Nonfugacious group:

NAME	BEAUTY	EASE	CMLETS	SEEDS	COMMENTS
Moraea algoensis	3	1		2	Med. sized, pretty lavender flowers
Moraea atropunctata	4	3	1	3	Large white flowers with black or blue spots
Moraea barnardii	4	2	0	2	Small; very beautiful white with blue lines
Moraea bellendini	3	2		3	Very tall, yellow with green
Moraea lurida	4	1			All colors; doesn't like hot dry?
Moraea thomasiae	3	3		2	Tall, yellow brown
Moraea tricuspidata	3	3		2	Medium white flowers; interesting
Moraea tripetala	3	4	4	4	Skinny lavender; attractive en masse
Moraea unguiculata	3	3		2	Small, white flowers

The Peacocks:

NAME	BEAUTY	EASE	CMLETS	SEEDS	COMMENTS
Moraea aristata	4	3	4	2	Large, white & blue flowers, very stoloniferous
Moraea caeca	4	1		1	Attractive, large lavender flowers; very difficult
Moraea calcicola	4	3	3	3	Large very attractive blue flowers, seeds well
Moraea gigandra	4	3	3	4	Largest, king of the peacocks; lavender & black
Moraea loubseri	3	3		3	Large purple with fuzzy black flowers
Moraea tulbaghensis	4	3		3	Beautiful orange with black, green, blue markings; seeds well; growing 10 + years
Moraea villosa	4	4	4	4	Many color combinations, queen of the peacocks