Big bulb

Many thanks Palustris - that is very generous.

 

Now here is a thing, I have just been weeding part of the garden and there is a bulb about to flower in which the buds look like yours. Anthericum liliago. Only trouble is it is not by any means a 'big' bulb. The flower is perhaps 2 feet tall!

 

I am currently trying to grow Anthericum liliago from seed, but so far it has not germinated. It would be an irony if I had a full sized one about to flower. :D

 

Another of those WHAT!!!! situations, they self seed all over the gravel path (no soil at all, it is on concrete). If no success, put it on the list for sending when dormant!

 

I also tried Anthericum from seed but without success. Maybe they have to be sown fresh or something.

 

I should warn you about Palustris sending seed. He sent me some seeds a while back and I was just expecting a few allium seeds. I got lots of different alliums, galtonia candicans and galtonia viridifolia, which i had just been instructed by my wife to buy. When Palustris is packaging seed I think his preferred tool of choice must be a small shovel or trowel :D
Palustris I have half a greenhouse full of alliums now. You can tell which you sent and which I bought. The bought ones have several shoots growing. The pans containing your seed look like a small section of lawn. The galtonias are also germinating so thanks a million.

 

Thanks for the warning geoff, although it's the sort of problem I like :D

 

Have these big bulbs opened up yet? I want to see what they are....please!

 

Well, I should hate for anyone to feel that had short changed them. Galtonia seeds are easy, the plants produce thousnads, but Anthurium maybe a lot less of them to go round.
No doubt you would also like some Narcissus bulbocodium seeds, and how about Leucojum nicaense or autumnalis? May even have a few Bulbocodium vernum (think that is what it is called) and later on there may be Habranthus texensis.

 

Palustris - you imply you have all those - you are amazing!
Geoff, yes three flowers have opened and I took a photo this afternoon - but I got it all wrong. The bushes in the background were in perfect focus and the flower was all blured! I will have another go tomorrow. But hurrah for digital cameras - in the old days I would have taken the film to the chemist and waited three weeks to find that out - I would not have been pleased!

 

It has finally started to flower, and is looking like a white, or very pale yellow, Camassia.



In the bottom bloom you can clearly see the six petal arrangement of a Camassia, but all the illustrations I have seen are of singles, whilst this looks much fuller than that. So any further information would be welcome. Thanks to you all for your help.

 

Ok, easy one, hah!
Camassia leichtlinii plena, described as being pale yellow to white and double.
Dead easy to grow, they like a moist soil in full sun, being American prairie plants. Very hardy, at least the ordinary ones plus, cuisickii and esculenta are in my garden.
May well not set seed if is double.
If you want the others, let me know, seed is available in plenty and yes I do have the ones mentioned previously. N. bulbocodium seed is ready now and needs sowing now for best results.

PS. And what was my first suggestion, eh then ?
And no I have not got that one, just the single version.

 

Palustris, you are THE bulb-man :D

 

That is one nice Camassia... I think I want one...so where can you buy them?
The ordianry camassia are seeding around my garden.
Palustris...I have been photographing alliums today. I may be asking you to check the ID if you don't mind, that is when i get the piccies uploaded.

 

Palustris, you are absolutely right (of course!). I have just Googled a Beth Chatto picture - which is spot on. I also looked at another site, which explained that it would flower longer than any other type because it was sterile. It then went on to say that if you don't want this (sterile) plant to seed itself around you should deadhead!

If you and Geoff would like a bit, I will make a note and see what I can do. Presumably it will have bulbils at some point - but if it doesn't this year, I will send you one of the original bulbs. I bought it at the Harrogate Flower Show - so I have no idea where it came from. But I could show you where the stand was! :D

Palustris, many thanks for your kind offer. I am really not into Narcissus, but would be very pleased to have some seed of any of the others you mentioned when the time was right.