This hard-working Georgia transplant is after my heart!
I potted up three bulbs indoors and had a time keeping them warm enough! And once outdoors, every time the temps dipped, they pouted and I had to take them in and out. I didn't ming, cause I love "Milk and Wine Lilies.
We've been having temps in the high 80's lately, and the one bulb that was having the toughest time producing roots, just took hold and BA-BOOM, became the first to bloom, still in the 1 gallon pot!
What a trouper!
Didn't have to wait long!
And: No. I didn't mist it for the pic. It had just rained here. Honest!
R.
The next day, the single bloomed closed and three others opened. I self-pollinated it hoping it will take.
Bang!
Beautiful!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Kaleem
Oh you are so lucky! I got some seed last year, and they didn't grow! You have 3 large bulbs, I can't get them! Such good stripes too!
Aaaahhhhhhhhhh........
wallaby~
They are very sensitive to cold, let me tell you. Every time it got below 60F, if they were out in it, they sulked. By that I mean they paled, stopped growing, and one even seemed to start going dormant! No wonder they are classed as hardy only to zone 9.....
I read at Plant Delights, that if you wanted to have one come back from the ground, say zone 8, you have to put it AT LEAST a foot deep and mulch deeply over that.
Just as some tender herbs are more sensitive to cold (basil), scabrums share that trait: They demand it warm and sunny, full stop.
Maybe the seeds are that way too?
I had planned to push the northern limits by trying one in the ground, but after reading the Pl. Delights thing, there's just no way.
Robert.
Meant to put this one on before. This is one of the bulbs soon after planting.
What a lovely color underneath all those brown tunics. Just like a red onion and only makes you cry with enjoyment.
Robert.
Mmmmmmmm.......I like red onion. I was supposed to be sent some young bulb replacements for the seed that failed, don't know if it will happen but the supplier is reliable.
I was letting the scabrums go a little dryish (still a bit moist, but not fully). So yesterday I gave them all a good drink and ALL this growth on the scape happened overnight: I kid you not! It was not there at all before I watered the day before. I am amazed!
Nice crinums--I just got some seeds too. I hope they like it here Wallaby.
Debbie
It's a nice way of saying thank you for the drink! I love the wavy leaves. What diameter is the bulb, it looks huge.
dmj, I wish you luck. I had good success with other varieties, and they got through a cold, long winter in the cold greenhouse. But as raydio says C. scabrum is sensitive to cold so I wouldn't risk them. I grew some inside, they normally germinate easily if you leave them wrapped in damp paper towel. Leave them until the roots get an inch or so long before potting.
thanks!
Debbie
The bulb is about 3.5 inches (8.75 cm) in diameter.
The bulbs really are temperamental about cold. Also, during their necessary dry dormancy, keep them quite dry if not bone dry.
Robert.
OK Debbie, as you requested, more Crinum pix.
This is the transplanted clump as of today.
Powelliis-a-poppin'!
Center stage: the five unknown Crinums I rescued.
And the C. powellii album I got from Brent & Becky's. The large one already has two daughters and the leftmost one was a little pup that came with the mama bulb.
Nice pics Robert--about the only pics I can contribute are americrinum or crinodonna. But they were enough to get me started wanting more crinums.
Debbie
Looking good! Do I see banana plants too?
Yes. I have a bunch of Musella lasiocarpa, one 'Rojo' (Zebrina), one I don't know (maybe a var. of Musella or Basjoo, but supposedly another hardy one) and one 'Cavendish' dwarf that I'll keep potted.
Rojo fighting to stay ahead of the Cleome.
Back to the topic.
The second bulb to flower is going to have 8 blooms. The other had 4.
Nice flowers, Debbie. I have an Amarcrinum in a pot. The leaves are really dark green compared to other Crinums.
Now, if I cross it with itself, will I get both Crinums and Amaryllis too? LOL. I wish!
Robert.
Thanks--anyone done any of the crinums from seed?
Not yet.
But I've been pollinating my pink xpowellii, the scabrums (third bulb is just starting a bloom scape), and both those with each other. Hope to get some seeds of one sort or another from all that.
I have some xbulbispermum seeds coming this week (prolly tomorrow) and they're sort of already in growth by the time they ripen, so I don't see that as really starting from seed. Can't wait to get them, though.
I just lucked into some free Crinums today! A couple up the road have lots of them across the front of their yard by the road and some by the side of the house (which I hadn't seen before) and they've just about finished blooming now. I've never met them but my mother had spoken to the wife before so she called them to see if I could come up and photograph them and see them up close. The husband, who is the gardener, welcomed me to see them.
So I go look and WHOA! they're really nice. White with a pale pink stripe. Even though we slow down when driving by, all I could see was a darkish stripe on the outside and never saw within the trumpet which I took to be all white. But no. They're an unexpected special beauty!
Look:
The clumps are really crowded and look to be very vigorous. So we're visiting and talking flowers and he says I can have some of them! WOW!!!
Then we tour the rest of the yard and he starts saying I can have some of this and that if I want and one of these and do you want some of this and so on. There's another bunch of Crinums beside the house that is just starting to send up bloom scapes, but he said they were large white trumpets. Gave me some of those too! What a generous and dear man!
So I'll be going back tomorrow to dig some Crinums, cannas, Hibiscus and so on! I have been so blessed! I said I'd bring him something to return the favor but he said aw, don't bother, it's not necessary, so I'm still trying to think of how to return the favor, if not in plants, then some other way.
Here's a pic of the row of thick clumps.
I'm thinking I might give him a start of "Tropicanna" since he really likes cannas and doesn't have that one.
Anyone recognize this Crinum?
Robert.
PS: Pic of the reverse of the bloom.
What a lucky person you are! Boy those are tough crinums up on that slope like that--they must not need as much water as I'm thinking they do...
My neighbor said he's not been watering them this year so they're not going as long as they have been in past years.
We've recently had some good rain, but are still down for the year (we were 6" down by late February!)
It is amazing that they're so lush, I couldn't believe how thick the clumps are. What a strong grower and produces numerous offsets! The white ones are just as thick and lush as the rose stripes.
Plant people are just the best, and my neighbor is one of the best of those!
Robert.
I got some of these (xbulbispermum) hybrid seeds too. We shall see what we shall see there.
But you know the plant pups you get there will bloom next year for sure! And that they will be hardy and obviously somewhat drought resistant and beautiful too.
Well I wish I had a neighbour with crinums to give away! I can't complain though, I have some growing from seed, I might just have to wait a few years...
You will find their roots go to the other side of the earth, so once established watering shouldn't be such a problem. Good luck with the digging Robert, I have read of people having to dig 3 feet deep and taking several hours!
Those C scabrum sure do look good, love the buds, love the flowers, love the foliage, it's just lovable!
dmj, I grew crinum from seed last year, bulbispermum and macowanii, I didn't start them until early June. Most of them grew in a semi-dhaded greenhouse, and they also overwintered there (frost to -9C) with most of them returning. They will be slower to mature here as we have a short season and not so much heat, but they are looking OK. I just pushed them into the leafy compost mix, with gritty soil and peat moss, half buried. Others I grew earlier in the year I left wrapped in damp paper towel in the kitchen, temps around 16C to above, in a shady spot and they all grew, the roots should get to an inch or so long before you pot them, then just place the seed at the surface with root buried. The shoot will then start to grow from the top of the root, which will feed off the seed until it's established.
good luck to you both!
Thanks for the info Wallaby--how big should the seedlings be when you finally move them into sun?
Debbie
I would think they will be OK once growing good leaves and well rooted, keeping them slightly shaded will stop them from drying out while they develop, but mine are still in the greenhouse. I don't have any very sunny places although they could do to go outside, I just chopped a shrub down behind the greebhouse so it gets more! It was feeling cooler in there than outside when it warmed up!
Thanks--if nothing else it should be fun to give them a try from seed.
Debbie
Well. I dug up the Crinums yesterday and it was a 2+ hour ordeal, but ny dear neighbor gave me 19 bulbs! All he kept were two smallish ones to fill in the gap.
The largest is a whopping 18 inches (almost 46cm) around! I couldn't get my hand around the neck of the thing, and I have big hands. Absolutely amazing bulbs!
A pile o' Crinums.
This message was edited Aug 2, 2006 2:41 AM
Big ole thang!
I planted all but 5 bulbs. Those 5 were a bit short rooted, so I put 2 small one in a pot and each of the other 3 hgot their own pot.
Trimmed 'em all back but couldn't cut off the scapes. The buds filled out a bit today and guess they'll bloom on out.
Another "medium-sized" bulb.
The thick fleshy roots went down several feet, and of course they got "pruned" in the digging, but this one still has a lot. The soil was moist way down in the ground though it was dry for about a foot where all the fine feeder roots are.
I gave my neighbor a "Tropicanna" and several small Kniphofia. He likes cannas and bright colors. He also gave me some dark-leafed cannas that bloom red.
Robert.
This message was edited Jun 30, 2006 9:42 PM
This message was edited Jun 30, 2006 10:06 PM
