CULT:bloom season
- Subject: CULT:bloom season
- From: B* S*
- Date: Tue, 10 Apr 2001 09:28:30 -0500
Well, summer arrived with a sweltering heat wave this past
weekend--our high temp yesterday was 94F, a new record. The tulip
bloom season lasted about 3 days! The last unguicularis cretensis
flower whithered away quickly. MDBs and some arilbreds quickly leapt
into bloom only to melt in a day--though WHAT AGAIN held firm whilst
next to it ALMAS OTHER LOVE lasted only a few hours. But more buds
to come. DARK VADER and BLACK CHERRY DELIGHT opened this morning,
and I noticed a rather distorted bloom of I. lactea way down in the
foliage. The last 2 years, this species has bloomed with the bearded
dwarfs and at bearded dwarf stature--this on established clumps that
previously bloomed at about 14" in the early part of the TB season.
Stalks are shooting up on intermediates like BLUE EYED BLOND,
BLUEBIRD IN FLIGHT and RED ZINGER.
Last summer I "rescued" some old clumps that had been overgrown by
perennials, some of these irises included arilbreds. They were moved
to the southfacing side of a brick wall at school, in good soil, and
promptly grew to blooming size. So far we have seen WHITE ARTS, a
hoogiana derivative, and it looks like I. stolonifera will be open
tomorrow, as well as an unknown tetraploid 3/4-bred seedling
purchased many years ago from the ASI plant sale. I recall that it
was a John Holden production. The pure arils (oncos) from Israel
won't bloom this year, but are growing more strongly than I have ever
seen iris of this type grow. They are in pots of a rich, limy soil
with the drainage enhanced by much perlite.
Two seedlings from MESMERIZER X CHANTED are already much too big to
think that the cross was actually that. I think they need to be
relabelled as MESMERIZER X Unknown, but probably a self-pollenation.
Despite the hot and humid weather, few signs of fungal leaf spot or
rot. But judging by increase and rhizome size, TB bloom will be
sparse this year, after much rot last summer.
Looking forward this year to seeing bloom on some new introductions
sent me by Anna and David Cadd. Despite their California origin,
they wintered well and are growing strongly. Also should get bloom
on some interesting Siberian seedlings from SIGNA seed. By the way,
today saw the first germination of SIGNA seed for this year, I.
laevigata. I also transplanted a host of seedlings from a bicolor
Pardancanda I spotted at Tony Avent's Plant Delights Nursery last
fall.
Spurias, Siberians, Japanese, versicolors, pseudacorus and Louisianas
are growing strongly. Looks like a good season coming up.
--
Bill Shear
Department of Biology
Hampden-Sydney College
Hampden-Sydney VA 23943
(804)223-6172
FAX (804)223-6374
email<wshear@email.hsc.edu>
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