Fritillaria 2012

[RickR]

That really is interesting foliage on F. davidii.  And very un-monocot looking! 

As you can see, Ron, our participants here span the gamut of know how.  That you "hope you can contribute in some way" is real understatement!  Welcome!

[Arne]

Luckily I have a frost free room in my garage with windows to set the sprouting seeds, so the lack of light in a dark winter will be the biggest challenge. Most of them were sown i January (oliqua, caucasica, verticillata) and one in September (striata). Same happened last year, from late November and onwards. I guess there will be more to come (I have plenty of pots with seeds).

Thankyou for welcome and furthrter information of the socalled books. I will certenly not buy any.

Arne

[Longma]

So, Ron I'm glad you posted the news about an upcoming monograph on Fritillaria.  Do you know who the author(s) will be?  I know that when it comes out, I certainly must get a copy.

Mark - it has been the 'hot gossip' ( or should I be saying the 'skinny' or 'scuttlebutt' now I'm here ) this year that the long awaited for Kew Monograph on Fritillaria by Martyn Rix is being completed by Bob Wallis and will be published next year. Rix's monograph has long been waited for and there have been numerous 'false dawns' I know. This time it is looking good.

Thanks for the welcome Rick. I'm keen to learn from the wide range of 'know how' that is so obvious from a read through many wonderful posts.

Some nice species there Arne, including one of my 'loves', F.striata. This is usually the first of the Liliorhiza to show and flower for me here in UK. Usually this is in late December, but I know further south at ( Royal Horticultural Society Gardens ) Wisley they have had it emerge in early November.
http://www.alpinegardensociety.net/diaries/Wisley/+November+/237/

[Arne]

Then my F. striata seeds are not so early at all I had been looking for those seed for a while, seeds from the more unusual American fritts are not easy obtainable. These came from the Fritillaria Groups seed exchange.

[Longma]

Not so early at all Arne. 

I'm expecting my latest sowing of F.striata to be showing within the next few weeks also, 

I have sown most of my subgenus Liliorhiza seed now, but do have a few species left to sow. I find the latest sowing time here is end December,

PM me if you would like some of the species I have left.

[deesen]

Odd really Ron, I'd never thought of you as a fabled winged horse with dragon scales

[Tony Willis]

Odd really Ron, I'd never thought of you as a fabled winged horse with dragon scales

Fire breathing as well David!

Frit davidii now seems quite well established in cultivation with flowering plants being shown.

I bought a bulb named as F. delavayi last January from China and it is clearly davidii. It was covered in rice grain bulbils which I took off. No growth occurred this year either on the parent bulb or the off sets but now this autumn they are in full growth as is another clone given me by a friend. None of my other frits are showing although root growth is visible through the bottom of the pots. Slugs just love the new growth on this species

[Longma]

It was covered in rice grain bulbils which I took off.

A good pointer Tony, for anyone receiving Fritillaria bulbs from China. If the bulb has these 'rice grains' then it can only be F.davidii, F.dagana, F. camschatcensis or F.maximowiczii. All but F.davidii are stoloniferous species ( only partly true in F.camschatcensis however, depending upon region ).
Good to hear that you have them established now. You must have quite a few if you removed all of the rice grains,  
I'll be looking to exchange some pollen in the spring time  

[Longma]

Can anyone please help me track down the natural pollinators of the members of the subgenus Liliorhiza?

F.recurva and F.gentneri have Hummingbirds recorded in various articles. Is there a specific one species of bird? Can anyone verify this by personal observation please?

I know many NARGS members like to get out into the wilds, and enjoy the beautiful countryside of the West Coast. If anyone has any observations of insects on Fritillaria flowers ( something as simple as a bee or a fly etc. are perfectly OK ) I would dearly love to hear your observations / experiences. 
Records for these seem very sparse in the written record ( at least that I can find ). Any pointers in this direction would also be most welcome.

[Longma]

Thank you so much to those NARGS Forum members who have contacted me suggesting that this, Annas Hummingbird, is the pollinator of F.recurva and F. gentneri, 

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Annas_Hummingbird/id

A most beautiful bird and that song is most unusual. 

Love them to pop into my greenhouses to visit my flowers in Spring 2013 

Thank you to all those members who passed on this information to me,