Epimedium 2011

WimB wrote:

The first Epi's are in flower here  :D :D :D

E. x versicolor 'Cherry Tart'
E. x warleyense (I suspect this is E. x warleyense 'Orangekönigin', like the one on the next pic...but I'm not sure, so until I'm sure I'll keep it named as the pure hybrid)
E. x warleyense 'Orangekönigin'
and a very young plant of E. x youngianum 'Freckles' Cc. 950080 (2 last pics)

Excellent start to the Epi season Wim!  We're in suspended animation here, sunny but days so cold and just above freezing that even the crocus aren't opening up, and with deep freezes at night.  

E. x versicolor 'Cherry Tart' is by far one of the best of the newer introductions by Darrell Probst, a real beauty, and one of the few x versicolor cultivars. Not sure if this one is fertile, as most versicolor cultivars are sterile.

So I went digging through my photos of E. x warleyense, and I don't have any good comparative shots of it with the cultivar 'Orangekönigin'.  It is reported that the latter has flowers a shade or two paler than x warleyense, but with darker orange veins, and has shorter rhizomes thus forming a denser clump.  I found a few photos of E. x warleyense, but none that are true closeup views of the flowers, and no photos of 'Orangekönigin', so I will try to get some photos later on.  I do find that regular E. x warleyense is sterile and produces no pollen, on the other hand 'Orangekönigin' does produce pollen. Based on photo dates, my plants typically start blooming the first week of May.

If one grows E. x warleyense in full sun, as I do, the leaves take on beautiful bronzy red and orange tones, whereas in shade they remain bright green.  Also, it flowers much more heavily in sun, making an orange splash in the spring landscape.

For information only:  hybrid seedlings of E. x youngianum 'Freckles' will often inherit the varied leaf speckling.

I picked up a E. wushanense at the WWSW last month..it has 4 flower stems in the basement window.  Suppose to be evergreen but I doubt it will be in my area...not even sure it will be hardy but the holly-like leaflets were too cool to pass up!

Todd wrote:

I picked up a E. wushanense at the WWSW last month..it has 4 flower stems in the basement window.  Suppose to be evergreen but I doubt it will be in my area...not even sure it will be hardy but the holly-like leaflets were too cool to pass up!

Todd, that's a great species to "pick up".  I don't grow the regular more upright form (wish I did), but do grow the one Darrell Probst calls the "spiny-leaved form" which is lower growing.  This winter seemed to be a particularly hard text-book winter to challenge the evergreeniness of supposedly evergreen plants in New England.  If I have time, I'll post the results from this year later on. As always however, E. wushanense "spiny-leaved form" came through looking fairly good but with some leaf burn, whereas some of the species I characterize as reliably evergreen such as E. pinnatum ssp. colchicum and E. pubigerum took a total beating... I have already trimmed off the foliage for the spring season.

Mine has spiney-edged leaves...I wonder if it will turn out to be the smaller form.  The plants came from Phillip McDougal.

This 'spring' has been so horrid it will still be weeks before I know the status of plants in the garden.  I expect my dwarf Japanese maple, Sharp's Pygmy, will be toast as the snow is as hard as concrete and still has feet to melt.  Evergreens will probably be fine (no exposure to cause winter burn) EXCEPT for being like pancakes.  Oh when I think of my evergreen ferns not to mention hellebores.

Todd wrote:

I picked up a E. wushanense at the WWSW last month..it has 4 flower stems in the basement window.  Suppose to be evergreen but I doubt it will be in my area...not even sure it will be hardy but the holly-like leaflets were too cool to pass up!

It is evergreen at 9 Deg. here in Oregon with no snow. :)
James

No Epimediums here yet!

Wim, where do you get your plants from?

Hoy wrote:

No Epimediums here yet!

Wim, where do you get your plants from?

Trond,

my Eppies come from different sources. Some from Koen van Poucke: http://www.koenvanpoucke.be/, some from Epimedium nursery: http://www.epimedium.be/nederlands/home.html and some from Darrell Probst. The ones I've shown here this year already come from Epimedium nursery.

Thanks, Wim. It is a pity Norway isn't a EU member, makes mailing plants very difficult!

Hoy wrote:

Thanks, Wim. It is a pity Norway isn't a EU member, makes mailing plants very difficult!

You're welcome. Does Norway have a very strict import policy? I thought it was exempt from all red tape under EEA (European Economic Area) law? I believe we (in Belgium) may import up to 5 plants from Norway with a rootball without having to apply for a phyto. (I'm not very sure, though)

WimB wrote:

Hoy wrote:

Thanks, Wim. It is a pity Norway isn't a EU member, makes mailing plants very difficult!

You're welcome. Does Norway have a very strict import policy? I thought it was exempt from all red tape under EEA (European Economic Area) law? I believe we (in Belgium) may import up to 5 plants from Norway with a rootball without having to apply for a phyto. (I'm not very sure, though)

It is a strict private import policy on plants although we are a EEA member. They say they are afraid of diseases but I suspect the nursery industry and big retailers (in Norway) want the marked to themselves. Live plants is difficult but bulbs are easier. And I can import 50 small packets of garden seeds in one parcel.

Hello fellow forum members,

This is my first contribution on this thread. Let me introduce myself to those who doesn't know me yet. My name is Gerrit and I live in Holland in an agreeable climate. Mild winters and cool summers, enough rainfall. I am especially dedicated to the genus Epimedium. I started 4 years ago and my collection is extending every year.

The E. season has already started here, due to the very warm and sunny spring so far on.

E. fire dragon grows in a trogue, which is placed against the southwall of the house. Under a deciduous tree. The plants are developing quickly in spring.
E. black sea.
E. brachyrrhizum, the first flowers on one stem. The other stems are not developed yet.
E. davidii 'dwarf form', beautiful big yellow flowers in the same trogue.

Gerrit

Hello Gerrit! Nice to meet you and your Epimediums! (The warm spring weather stops right north of you - here it is wt spring weather :( )

Welcome to the forum, Gerrit!

That's a nice selection of Epimediums.  Now I am wondering if what I have is misnamed.  I bought it as Fire Dragon, but the bracts are barely tinted purple, and the buds open in a decidedly different fashion...

This is it:

Hi, Gerrit, and welcome to the forum! What beautiful plants! 

Hello Rick

I presume your plant is E. amber queen. A fantastic plant by the way.

Gerrit.

Hello Gerrit, happy to see you here in the Epimedium thread, with an excellent start to the season.  I must pick up 'Fire Dragon', such a wonderful color combination, and now that I'm working again, I won't feel guilty about buying a few plants ;)  Glad you show 'Black Sea' too, it is a good one that seems so seldom grown, again with a unique flower color effect.  I haven't placed any Epimediums in troughs, but the photo of a dwarf E. davidii in a trough suggests these look quite at home in a trough, I might thy that.

I agree with your suggestion that Rick's Epimedium is 'Amber Queen', another one that I hope to get this year. Just 25 F (-4 C) here this morning, the cold nights are retarding plant growth, still waiting for warmer weather to start the main spring flush of growth... mo epimediums are showing any spring growth yet.  Off to work!

I'm so excited, last year while unemployed, I had unlimited time to play in the garden and I spent lots of time hand-pollinating Epimediums, and sowed approximately 45 flats of fresh harvested seed from both my crosses and some OP (open pollinated) seed.  The flats were protected with wire mesh (chipmunks and squirrels love to eat the seed). Checking the flats today on this warm almost summer-like day, many are showing germination. In fact, what I first noticed on a few flats was the layer of decomposed pine bark mulch I top dress with, was curiously raised up, and upon inspection, found that germination is so prolific that it is literally jacking up the mulch layer :D  I watered them well, with the dryish mulch settling back in.  Maybe in another week or two, I'll report back and take some pics.

McDonough wrote:

I'm so excited, last year while unemployed, I had unlimited time to play in the garden and I spent lots of time hand-pollinating Epimediums, and [glow=red,2,300]sowed approximately 45 flats [/glow]

OMG!! Now that you are gainfully employed where are you going to find the time and space for all those seedlings??!! :o :o :o

AmyO wrote:

McDonough wrote:

I'm so excited, last year while unemployed, I had unlimited time to play in the garden and I spent lots of time hand-pollinating Epimediums, and [glow=red,2,300]sowed approximately 45 flats [/glow]

OMG!! Now that you are gainfully employed where are you going to find the time and space for all those seedlings??!! :o :o :o

I have enough space, but time will be the challenge.  On this Epimedium hybridization project, I am totally motivated!  Not knowing if I would ever find a job, I scoped out my targeted Epimedium hybridization for 2011, but now must put much of that on the shelf, except from what I might be able to do on weekends.

In sunny parts of the yard, some ornamental tree are finally getting large enough to produce some shade, so I can underplant with Epimedium.  This photo isn't very good, but you'll get the idea, I use this "tree ring" under Cornus kousa 'Milky Way' to underplant with approximately 120-130 epimedium seedlings.  In this view, it was recently planted the summer of 2010 with 1 & 2 year old seedlings.  After 3 years, when plants start growing in together, I dig them all out, mark and replant the ones I like, and I give away others to friends and my town's local garden club plant sale.  Now, with 45 flats, I will probably be digging up a much greater expanse of sod ;D

Epimedium setosum.

Very small flowers, in front of a 'huge' Helleborus.

Gerrit.

gerrit wrote:

Epimedium setosum.

Very small flowers, in front of a 'huge' Helleborus.

Gerrit.

Very small flowers as you say, but overall a most elegant and charming little species.  Funny that you mentioned E. setosum; when I was checking my seed flats for any sign of Epimedium germination, it was E. setosum and E. brevicornu that have germinated first (representing both manual crosses and open pollinated seed).  We're getting several very warm sunny days in a row which is activating strong epimedium growth; I noticed lots of buds on E. epsteinii curled up near the base.  Glad I cut back all my eppies this past fall, I don't like doing it in the spring because invariably I end up breaking some of the new shoots and flower stems.

Here some new E., blooming.

Epimedium x youngianum 'Kozakura'
Epimedium 'Togen'
Epimedium acuminatum 'Night Mistress'
Epimedium davidii
Epimedium dolichostemon
Epimedium grandiflorum 'White Queen'
Epimedium grandiflorum 'Lilafee'

Wonderful epimediums, Gerrit.  The color on the acuminatum Night Mistress is superb!

  With your E. davidii, is that normal for your plant to have such short spurs?

This is the Epimedium davidii I grow:
(photo from a previous year)

P.S. I added the species names in your photos to the post text so they can be found using the search function of the web site.

Yes Rick, I see what you mean. I searched my pictures from last year and they look the same, so obviously we have different clones.

I see, I have to add names. Thank for doing it.

Gerrit,

I've never seen a E. davidii with such short spurs either. It's nice.

Here are some plants from my garden: flowers and young leaves:

Epimedium 'Domino'
Epimedium grandiflorum 'Freya'
Epimedium grandiflorum 'Spring Wedding'
Epimedium 'Amanagowa'
Epimedium 'Kaguya Hime'
Epimedium 'Pink Champagne'
Epimedium 'Akebono'
Epimedium x sasakii
Epimedium x youngianum 'Merlin'

Some leaf variation:

Epimedium grandiflorum 'Freya'
Epimedium grandiflorum 'Lilafee'
Epimedium grandiflorum 'Spring Wedding'
Epimedium 'Pink Champagne'
Epimedium 'Spine Tingler'
Epimedium x versicolor 'Cherry Tart'
Epimedium x youngianum 'Azusa'
Epimedium x youngianum 'Freckles'

And an Epi I received as an alternate form of E. x sasakii which it clearly is not!  ???  ???

Hello Epimedium fans, much to respond to here, many tempting beauties!  Will chime in later on tonight, but with this quick hit-and-run post, here are a couple photos of Epimedium seed germination.  After heavy rains again last night, almost all flats are showing strong germination, and Jeffersonia seed is just starting too.

Left:   E. grandiflorum 'Red Queen' OP seedlings (open pollinated, although I made a few "assists" ;D)
Right:  E. setosum OP on left half, E. sempervirens 'Aurora' OP seedlings on the right half.

While the seedling density may appear moderate, the shredded bark mulch cover is literally lifting up, there are hundreds more seedlings on their way up :D

McDonough wrote:

While the seedling density may appear moderate, the shredded bark mulch cover is literally lifting up, there are hundreds more seedlings on their way up :D

That's fun to see, I'm glad you got such a good germination for your seeds....It's nice to see the start of Mark's Epi's nursery... ;) ;)
I got some Jeffersonia dubia seeds of a very good dark form last year and they have all germinated too. I didn't expect them to be that easy to germinate.

Blooming here, while we have a summer in April with temps up to 25 deg C. Another 4 days to go with such abnormal weather.

Epimedium grandiflorum 'Queen Esta'. A beautiful species with very dark emerging leaflets and purple flowers.

Lots of pretties! Some really great leaves and flowers..

Hiya Gerrit, a nice one, showing E. grandiflorum 'Queen Esta'.  I have it planted very close to E. grandiflorum 'Dark Beauty', and it is very clear when comparing these two that they must be closely related, perhaps from the same cross. 'Dark Beauty' has more intense foliage coloration, but 'Queen Esta' is certainly desirable not only for the dark purplish leaf color in spring, but for the small leaflet size making for a handsome clump.  Another one, E. grandiflorum 'Pierre's Purple' must surely be yet another kindred cultivar, again with dark purplish tinged spring foliage and small leaflets and purplish flowers.  Here at least, these cultivars are relatively inexpensive and shouldn't be passed over for the more in-vogue cultivars, they're a relative bargain.

Catching up!

@Gerrit, I really like 'Night Mistress', such large and dramatic color flowers.  This is a Garden Vision Epimediums 2004 introduction from a wild-collected form (not a hybrid)  by Darrell Probst... I missed my chance at buying it; hasn't appeared in the catalog for years.  Darrell says it was collected at "high elevation locale near Nanchuan, China.

I see that 'Togan' and 'Freya' that Wim showed, are popular in Europe, but not available here that I'm aware of. :'(

Regarding E. davidii, I think two things are going on... Gerrit's photo show flowers at early stage, thus the spurs are not fully produced, and there are forms with rather short spurs.  I really like the "boxy" look to the flower, with well developed boxy cup, distinct from most any other epi.

The photo of E. grandiflorum 'White Queen' shows that we must not dismiss the older cultivars; this one is exceptional and very inexpensive as Epimedium go ($6), with lovely bronzed new growth and really dense sprays of white purple-tinged flowers.

@Wim - nice shot of E. x 'Amanogawa', one of my very favorites, apparently a hybrid of E. acuminatum x dolichostemon.  You captured the brownish yellow cup well, a most unique and desirable cultivar.  You mention one called 'Spine Tingler' (one of Darrell Probst's introductions), yet the photo is listed as 'Sphinx Twinkler'.  Is there really something called 'Sphinx Twinkler', or is the plant shown really 'Spine Tingler'?  The tiny-flowered white and yellow one that is listed as not-sasakii; it looks like one of the E. sagittatum types, of which there are many species that have these tiny white and yellow flowers.  Not sure what it is, but to be honest, I'm not overly fond of the E. sagittatum types... the flowers are just too small and insignificant, although the foliage can be nice.

McDonough wrote:

Hiya Gerrit, a nice one, showing E. grandiflorum 'Queen Esta'.  I have it planted very close to E. grandiflorum 'Dark Beauty', and it is very clear when comparing these two that they must be closely related, perhaps from the same cross. 'Dark Beauty' has more intense foliage coloration, but 'Queen Esta' is certainly desirable not only for the dark purplish leaf color in spring, but for the small leaflet size making for a handsome clump.  Another one, E. grandiflorum 'Pierre's Purple' must surely be yet another kindred cultivar, again with dark purplish tinged spring foliage and small leaflets and purplish flowers.  Here at least, these cultivars are relatively inexpensive and shouldn't be passed over for the more in-vogue cultivars, they're a relative bargain.

Thank you Mark for your interesting expose about E. gr. 'Queen Esta'. The relation between 'Queen Esta' and 'Dark Beauty' is intriguing. Both are found in the garden of Herald Epstein, I presume. Can you tell us more about it? About parents? And...the more expensive ounces are not always the best. I think: The best the genus Epimedium can offers us, so far on, are 'Dark Beauty' and 'Queen Esta'. ('Dark Beauty and 'Pierre's Purple' are not available here in the low country's)

McDonough wrote:

@Wim - nice shot of E. x 'Amanogawa', one of my very favorites, apparently a hybrid of E. acuminatum x dolichostemon.  You captured the brownish yellow cup well, a most unique and desirable cultivar.  You mention one called 'Spine Tingler' (one of Darrell Probst's introductions), yet the photo is listed as 'Sphinx Twinkler'.  Is there really something called 'Sphinx Twinkler', or is the plant shown really 'Spine Tingler'?  The tiny-flowered white and yellow one that is listed as not-sasakii; it looks like one of the E. sagittatum types, of which there are many species that have these tiny white and yellow flowers.  Not sure what it is, but to be honest, I'm not overly fond of the E. sagittatum types... the flowers are just too small and insignificant, although the foliage can be nice.

Mark,

there seems to have been a mix up with the name of 'Spine Tingler' here in Europe, a lot of breeders here sell E. 'Spine Tingler' as 'Sphinx Twinkler'  :-X but it's the same cultivar!

Like you said, the small flowered Epi has no flowers to write home about, but the leaves are nice.

gerrit wrote:

Thank you Mark for your interesting expose about E. gr. 'Queen Esta'. The relation between 'Queen Esta' and 'Dark Beauty' is intriguing. Both are found in the garden of Herald Epstein, I presume. Can you tell us more about it? About parents? And...the more expensive ounces are not always the best. I think: The best the genus Epimedium can offers us, so far on, are 'Dark Beauty' and 'Queen Esta'. ('Dark Beauty and 'Pierre's Purple' are not available here in the low country's)

I ordered 'Dark Beauty' last year from Probst, I hope to be able to show pictures next year. It is a cross between E. grandiflorum ‘Silver Queen’  and E. grandiflorum ‘Yubae’ found in the garden of H. Epstein. Maybe Mark can tell us more about the parentage of 'Queen Esta'.

And because I like this plant so much, here are some pics (again  :P) of E. 'Pink Champagne'

McDonough wrote:

I really like 'Night Mistress', such large and dramatic color flowers.  This is a Garden Vision Epimediums 2004 introduction from a wild-collected form (not a hybrid)  by Darrell Probst... I missed my chance at buying it; hasn't appeared in the catalog for years.

Mark, just a heads-up that you haven't entirely missed your chance; the newly resurgent Collector's Nursery is offering 'Night Mistress' via mail-order:

http://www.collectorsnursery.com/cat03/index.php?main_page=product_info&...

I ordered one earlier this spring and now have a lovely 'Night Mistress' in hand.  (I also splurged on a E. wushanense 'Spiny Leaf Form' after seeing your spectacular pictures!)

A view on Epimedium x omeiense 'Akane' in my garden. Picture 1 and 2.

On picture 3 the same plant, but together with E. 'Amanogawa'. Two stunners in one view.

Number 4 "Amanogawa' in close-up.

From my garden, Epimedium 'Mikinorii'. Named after the famous Japanese planthunter Mikinori Ogisu.

It's a young plant, 2 years old and I'm not particular enthusiast about it. The flowers are hided behind large leaves. The two toned flowers are okay.

Mark, I like to hear your opinion about this plant. You never discussed it on a one of the fora you participate, as far as I know. And I like to know wheather it is a spreader or a clumper.

WimB wrote:

there seems to have been a mix up with the name of 'Spine Tingler' here in Europe, a lot of breeders here sell E. 'Spine Tingler' as 'Sphinx Twinkler'  :-X but it's the same cultivar!

gerrit wrote:

Thank you Mark for your interesting expose about E. gr. 'Queen Esta'. The relation between 'Queen Esta' and 'Dark Beauty' is intriguing. Both are found in the garden of Herald Epstein, I presume. Can you tell us more about it? About parents?  I think: The best the genus Epimedium can offers us, so far on, are 'Dark Beauty' and 'Queen Esta'. ('Dark Beauty and 'Pierre's Purple' are not available here in the low country's)

I ordered 'Dark Beauty' last year from Probst, I hope to be able to show pictures next year. It is a cross between E. grandiflorum ‘Silver Queen’  and E. grandiflorum ‘Yubae’ found in the garden of H. Epstein. Maybe Mark can tell us more about the parentage of 'Queen Esta'.

Wim, that mixup between the correct name 'Spine Tingler' somehow becoming 'Sphinx Twinkler' :rolleyes:, reminds me of the game where a group of people form a circle, one person wispers a phrase in their neighbor's ear, who turns around and wispers what they heard in their neighbor's ear, and by the time it goes around the circle it comes out as something completely different.  Seems like someone tried interpreting some bad handwriting on a label; the genesis of name confusion... 40 years from now Epimedium aficionados will struggle to learn the true origins of such plants, if this name mistake continues to spread.

Wim and Gerrit:  The Garden Vision Epimediums catalog says about E. grandiflorum 'Queen Esta': "a beautiful cultivar named by Harold Epstein after his wife, Esta. It was the first named seedling introduced from his garden".  The parentage of 'Dark Beauty' is stated as an apparent cross between 'Yubae' and 'Silver Queen' (yet another spontaneous hybrid seedling in Harold Epstein's garden),although this doesn't seem entirely clear to me, there are other possibilities of species and cultivars that seem more likely to pass along dark foliage color.  

Much more likely as one of the parents would be E. grandiflorum var. violaceum, which when first emerging has dramatically dark foliage which can take on various hues depending on exposure and as days go by.  Other cultivars like E. grandiflorum 'Tama Mo Genpei' and E. g. var. violaceum 'Bronze Maiden' also have striking dark foliage.  Then there are various youngianum and even some sempervirens that are very dark leaved, which when they cross with grandiflorum, do not always seem obvious as a cross... many so-called grandiflorum and even some youngianum are actually mixed heritage.  Here are some photos of dark-foliaged types to give an idea of their similarity.

Early leaf emergence:
left:  E. grandiflorum 'Dark Beauty', center: E. grandiflorum 'Queen Esta', right: E. grandiflorum var. violaceum

More developed leaves:
left:  E. grandiflorum 'Dark Beauty', center: E. grandiflorum 'Queen Esta', right: E. grandiforum var. violaceum
As can be seen in the side-by-side comparison of 'Dark Beauty' and 'Queen Esta', they are very similar.  As I stated before, I think 'Dark Beauty' is the better of the two.  'Queen Esta' is a bit more upright growing (less spreading) and has smaller more pointed leaflets, and foliage color that is more somber toned and lacking the rich coffee tones taken on by 'dark Beauty'.

E. grandiforum 'Tama No Genpei':

Left and right: E. grandiflorum var. violaceum 'Bronze Maiden':

Hybrid seedling of E. sempervirens 'Aurora', with very dark leaves:

PS:  Loved the pics of E. 'Pink Champagne', one can never has too much champagne ;)  Mine is budded and should be photogenic by next weekend.

macjon wrote:

Mark, just a heads-up that you haven't entirely missed your chance; the newly resurgent Collector's Nursery is offering 'Night Mistress' via mail-order:
http://www.collectorsnursery.com/cat03/index.php?main_page=product_info&...
I ordered one earlier this spring and now have a lovely 'Night Mistress' in hand.  (I also splurged on a E. wushanense 'Spiny Leaf Form' after seeing your spectacular pictures!)

Thanks Macjon, I wasn't aware that Collector's Nursery started back up again, even if just in a small way, I used to order from them.  So far as ordering plants, I think I'll still have to "cool my heels" and hold back on much spending, as with my new job I took a 34% cut in pay, gas prices are crazy with my long daily commute, and next year is a "double-up college year" where I will have both of my girls in college next year, so will have extra financial concerns.  But I think I do need this 'Night Mistress' ;)

gerrit wrote:

A view on Epimedium x omeiense 'Akane' in my garden. Picture 1 and 2.

On picture 3 the same plant, but together with E. 'Amanogawa'. Two stunners in one view.

Number 4 "Amanogawa' in close-up.

Gerrit, Epimedium x omeiense 'Akane' is yet another one on my "wish list", love the color on that one, and the flowers display pretty well too.  Last year I moved and divided my largish plant of E. 'Amanogawa' into three pieces.  One is ready to flower, another is just beginning to emerge, the third shows no signs of emergence yet!?!  Maybe I divided it too late in the season, and with last year's summer long drought, perhaps I have lost one of the divisions.  I'll be patient, it still may emerge late.

E. mikinorii is another that I don't have, can't recall ever seeing it listed here in the US.  I know what you mean, some of the asiatic species have this tendency to hide their down-facing blooms under the leaves.  I feel somewhat the same about E. epsteinii, but I think I'm just going to try to figure out a spot where I can plant it up high on an embankment, so that I can better see the flowers.  Here are some shots.  From above, the flowers are mostly visible, looking like pure white flowers with those extra wide sepals.  From a low angle one can appreciate the beautiful dark earthy brown-pink centers.  It took a long time to get established, but is now starting to run a little bit.

From above:

From a low side angle (notice the Jeffersonia dubia seedlings in the right-hand photo):

macjon wrote:

I ordered one earlier this spring and now have a lovely 'Night Mistress' in hand.  (I also splurged on a E. wushanense 'Spiny Leaf Form' after seeing your spectacular pictures!)

Macjon, I meant to say, just noticing that your message was your first message on the forum... a hearty WELCOME to the NARGS Forum.  I see that you are close by, living in eastern Massachusetts.  Ever get to visit Garden Vision Nurseries out near the center of the State, during one of their open-nursery days?  Tell us about your experience with Epimediums.

Now the fun begins, watching a new season unfold, and my selected 4 year old hybrids... to watch how they perform.  And already, some one and two year hybrid seedlings are starting to bloom.  In the past, I showed several hybrid seedlings from E. x youngianum 'Liliputian', one of which is the smallest Epimedium with pure white flowers.  I have narrowed down the seedling plants to about 8-10 that show some interesting variation.

E. x youngianum 'Liliputian' itself is only just emerging, at least a week or two behind the hybrids.  The hybrid plants are mostly earlier blooming.  The best and most dwarf one, is budded up, but needs another week before I can show it.  Here are three hybrids of interest that are flowering now, and already, one is showing to be much better than the others.

View of three E. x youngianum 'Liliputian' seedlings, notice the different growth forms: wide loose and spreading on the left, semi-compact, larger flowered and coffee-color-leaves in the center, and dwarf and floriferous on the right.

Same progression, left: wide, loose and spreading, center: larger flowered & coffee leaves, right: dwarf and ultra floriferous

Two more views of the dwarf ultra floriferous one.

Mark, when do you start a nursery and mailorder service?  ;D
Very exciting differences in the offspring and although one is as you we see more showy, the other two are also nice. The spreading one for example could do good in a woodland setting.

McDonough wrote:

Now the fun begins, watching a new season unfold, and my selected 4 year old hybrids... to watch how they perform. 

Mark, enjoy the new season. Here in the low countries the epimediumseason is almost over. Due to the extreme weatherconditions. We've had a recordhigh temperature in April. 3 deg C. higher than normal. And almost no rainfall.

Hoy wrote:

Mark, when do you start a nursery and mailorder service?  ;D
Very exciting differences in the offspring and although one is as you we see more showy, the other two are also nice. The spreading one for example could do good in a woodland setting.

Maybe some day Trond, when I reach retirement age, to perhaps run a small plant operation for "mad money".

gerrit wrote:

Mark, enjoy the new season. Here in the low countries the epimedium season is almost over. Due to the extreme weather conditions. We've had a record high temperature in April. 3 deg C. higher than normal. And almost no rainfall.

Sorry to hear about the dry hot spell, sounds like our dreadful summer last year.  So far this year, we've had a slow starting spring, and now with moderate cool to warm days and regular rain, it's been a very fine spring, and the eppies are happy.  gerrit, do you grow any of the late blooming sorts, E. membranaceum is nearly everblooming, E. rhizomatosum can go well into summer (sporadically flowering), and E. elongatum is very late to bloom too.

The flush of growth and bloom on Epimediums has been outstanding, too many things to photograph (now, on weekends only since I'm back to working).  Mt biggest regret is that I had a whole hybridization program scoped out for 2011 if I had remained unemployed, which is shelved until a different year in teh future, maybe when I retire.  However, on the weekend I make opportunistic crosses. ;)

One of the earliest and showiest "eppies" is E. sempervirens 'Violet Queen', with sheer flower power and striking hot pink-red foliage that peaks after the flowers. I'm interested in hybridizing with this one, so I was able to manually pollinate 1/2 of this clump with pollen from yellow E. pinnatum colchicum... both are shown below.

Photos 1-3 E. sempervirens 'Violet Queen', photo 4 is a flat of OP (open pollinated) seedlings just germinating now, from seed sown spring 2010.

Left: evergreen foliage on E. pinnatum colchicum was battered from the winter ice layer this year, so I cut off all the foliage in spring for better visivility of the bright yellow flowers.  Lots of pollen on the flowers, so I'm spreading pollen on several other species to see if the yellow color and evergreen habit can be imparted to hybrid offspring.
Center:  Hot spring foliar color on E. x setosum.  I plan on continuing to use this one, with tiny but perky little white flowers, for hybridization.
Right: E. grandiflorum 'Tama No Genpei', one of the better grandiflorums with nice coffee color spring foliage and rich pink & white flowers.

A rare one, E. qingchengshanense, a recently described species.  Flowers somewhat like E. fargesii; delicate reflexed white sepals and purple spurs.  It too is receiving borrowed pollen ;D and here again, I have hybrid seedlings germinating (form manual crosses).

This past winter, I bought a new tool that I envisioned would help with dividing Epimediums.  Anyone who has tried dividing an Epimedium knows they build up into nearly impenetrable dense rhizomatous root balls making them extremely difficult to divide.  The tool was from Sears (Sears Craftsman brand), although this weekend I found similar such tools at a hardware store made by Stanley, another well known name in tools.  The tool is like a narrow super-heavy-duty trowel, but with a serrated cutting edge on one side.  It if very thick, solid, and heavy... the weight making it balanced and most effective and easy to use.  

In the 1st photo, I had dug up a mature 10-year old clump of E. x youngianum 'Murasaki-Juji', and used this new tool to easily saw through the rhizomes to make three intact divisions.  I'm sure this tool will be very effective on dividing other tough perennials as well, a good buy at $15 US.

Mark,

really nice pics of great plants!

And that looks like a really handy tool, I should be able to find that here in Europe too.

here are some of the last in my garden:

E. dolichostemon
E. grandiflorum 'Yellow Princess'
E. x youngianum 'Tama Botan'

Wim, your season is closing so soon?  Of course, your season started much sooner than here.  I'm going to the open-nursery weekend at Garden Vision Epimediums (now at a new location, run by Karen), and I hope to pick up E. dolichostemon, yet another one on my wish list, I like the shape of the flowers.  Last year I finally moved my E. grandiflorum 'Yellow Princess', it has never performed well, probably too dry where I had it, and with the flowers I'm always hoping to see a brighter display, although it is a nice smaller-sized grandiflorum with flowers the color of forma flavescens forms.

I was looking around on the web and found this gallery of Epimediums, some of which I'm unfamiliar with:
http://www.visionspictures.com/index.php?module=result&searchKey=Barrenwort

Anyone familiar with the following cultivars:  Star Cloud (looks like an E. stellulatum cultivar), Madame Butterfly, Flowers of Sulphur (I know this one is going around in the UK and Europe, haven't seen it here in the USA yet), Egret (the one I like the most, beautiful white and yellow combination, elegant flower shape), and Big White (looks like a pale acuminatum type hybrid).

Direct links to two 'Egret' photos:
http://img.visionspictures.sodatech.com/ELBO/wprev/elbo54993.jpg
http://img.visionspictures.sodatech.com/ELBO/wprev/elbo54994.jpg

McDonough wrote:

Wim, your season is closing so soon?  Of course, your season started much sooner than here.  I'm going to the open-nursery weekend at Garden Vision Epimediums (now at a new location, run by Karen), and I hope to pick up E. dolichostemon, yet another one on my wish list, I like the shape of the flowers.  Last year I finally moved my E. grandiflorum 'Yellow Princess', it has never performed too well, probably too dry where I had it, and with the flowers I'm always hoping to see a brighter display, although it nice a nice smaller-sized grandiflorum with flowers the color of forma flavescens forms.

We have had a very warm and dry spring here in Belgium...so the flowers started early but most of them are going over now  :'( Still have the beautiful leaves for the rest of the year, though   :D

McDonough wrote:

I was looking around on the web and found this gallery of Epimediums, some of which I'm unfamiliar with:
http://www.visionspictures.com/index.php?module=result&searchKey=Barrenwort

Anyone familiar with the following cultivars:  Star Cloud (looks like an E. stellulatum cultivar), Madame Butterfly, Flowers of Sulphur (I know this one is going around in the UK and Europe, haven't seen it here in the USA yet), Egret (the one I like the most, beautiful white and yellow combination, elegant flower shape), and Big White (looks like a pale acuminatum type hybrid).

Direct links to two 'Egret' photos:
http://img.visionspictures.sodatech.com/ELBO/wprev/elbo54993.jpg
http://img.visionspictures.sodatech.com/ELBO/wprev/elbo54994.jpg

I've never heard of Star Cloud.
Madam Butterfly is a selection made by Robin White which gives a lot of flowers above the evergreen leaves...don't grow it myself but it has been for sale here in Belgium for a couple of years.
Flowers of Sulphur is a E.flavum x E. ogisui hybrid made by Robin White
Egret is one of the best spreaders, evergreen, carries it's large long-lasting flowers above the evergreen leaves, it's a E franchetii x E. latisepalum hybrid. If I remember correctly it's a hybrid made by Thierry Delabroye (His nursery is not far away from where I live, just across the border in France and he is very famous for his Helleborus crosses: http://www.mytho-fleurs.com/images/Delabroye/Hellebous-13-02-2005/page_0...).
Don't know Big White either.

This weekend at Garden Vision Nursery their open weekend indeed. I received their catalogue and I wish I was there. So many desirable epimediums but also beautiful primulas. E.gr.'Pierres Purple, E.gr.Princess Susan' E.gr. Saxton's Purple' and so on.

Mark please show us pictures as many you can here.

gerrit wrote:

This weekend at Garden Vision Nursery their open weekend indeed. I received their catalogue and I wish I was there. So many desirable epimediums but also beautiful primulas. E.gr.'Pierres Purple, E.gr.Princess Susan' E.gr. Saxton's Purple' and so on.

Mark please show us pictures as many you can here.

Gerrit, I tried to come home promptly tonight after work, with just a bit of light left, to take some photos, but only some came out okay, the low light is not the best for photography.  Epimedium grandiflorum 'Princess Susan' is one of the best, a clear pink and white that sets the standard buy which other clear bicolor epimedium flowers are judged. Yet another spontaneous hybrid in the garden of Harold Epstein, this one named for his daughter.  So far as purple grandiflorums go, 'Purple Prince' is by far the best and darkest purple.  The shots I took tonight do not do it justice.  'Pierre's Purple' and 'Saxton's Purple' are both nice, but frankly not as good as 'Purple Prince'.  I'll try and get shots on the weekend when I have sunlight.

Again, photographed in the warning light of dusk, these photos of Epimedium hybrids (2-4 year plants) should give some account of the anticipation of seeing hybrids bloom, to assess their potential... such fun, wish I could see them by daylight.

1-3: a bright cherry pink color with a white star on top of the sepals.  In the first view, some other hybrids blooming for the first time.

4:  my super-floriferous dwarf seedling from youngianum 'Liliputian'.
5:  a colorful 1st bloom on a seedling with bright spring foliage and largish lavender and white flowers.
6:  a dwarf hybrid seedling from 'Liluputian', with light pink and white flowers, odd recurved sepals, often just two sepals instead of four.

7-8: A sempervirens hybrid (possibly crossed with grandiflorum f. flavescens) with yellow and white flowers and light bronze foliage (foliage turns deep near-black in late fall).  Still in early flower.

9:   a small cherry color one, 2nd year seedling.
10: E. grandiflorum f. flavescens hybrid with very dense and rather huge cream flowers, lightly bronzed foliage.  Compact.

Wim's shot of E. dolichostemon is quite interesting as it shows the flower spurs as pinkish little curlicues.  A characteristic that might be interesting for breeding(?).

A few first flowers of Orangekönigin opened today in my garden, the first warm day we've had in weeks. (Yesterday was 30 degrees F below normal.)

I agree Rick, the flower shape on E. dolichostemon is truly unique.  The hybrid that Gerrit and Wim have shown before, E. x 'Amanogawa' has as one of its parents E. dolichostemon.  The form of E. dolichostemon that Garden Vision Epimediums sells has darker brownish-red spurs instead of pinkish ones, I suppose the plant is variable.

Included here are two shots of E. x warleyense 'Orangekönigin' that I happened to photograph tonight, for the purpose of noting the difference between it and regular warleyense.  I don't have side by side shots, but I noticed that 'Orangekönigin' has dark orange spur tips, whereas they are greenish-yellow in regular warleyense.  Flower color is a tad lighter orange with 'Orangekönigin' but I don't think I could tell the two apart on flower color alone, need to look at the spurs.  Also, 'Orangekönigin' has yellow pollen whereas regular warleyense has green pollen.

It's wonderful, to go out in the garden in the early morning, as I do with my wife, who has become enthusiast of epimediums too, or as you do after a day of working with your photocamera and admire the new flowers blooming, or the appearency of new hybrids flowering for the first time.

That super-flowering x youngianum 'Liliputian' is really unbelievable. Compliments from my wife too.

I'm happy, I could purchase E.gr.'Purple Prince', you mentioned above.

One of the last flowering epimediums here in my garden, Epimedium wushanense nova. I'm real proud of it. An impressive appearance, altough it is a young plant, flowering for the first time.

Impressive Epimedium displays!  Those at our BG are now even showing themselves yet.  I am just getting into these...recently purchased E. grandiflorum 'Saxton's Purple', E. wushanense and E. pubigenum 'Orangekinigin'.

Tomorrow starts the 3 day Epimedium extravaganza here in Central Massachusetts, as Garden Visions has its annual sale. Over the past few years I've brought home about a dozen Epimedium species and hybrids, but the one that I look for first when I go out to the garden is E. x versicolor 'Versicolor.' The leaves and the flowers look almost too perfectly matched, and it's grown to a very impressive size in 3 years. It's easily my favorite, and tomorrow I'll bring home at least one more of this beauty, plus a few more I've lusted after for years.

Lucky guy, living in the epicentre of the epimediumworld Peter. I like E. x versicolor 'Versicolor' too.

When you come back with you precious little E. show them please.

gerrit wrote:

It's wonderful, to go out in the garden in the early morning, as I do with my wife, who has become enthusiast of epimediums too, or as you do after a day of working with your photocamera and admire the new flowers blooming, or the appearency of new hybrids flowering for the first time.

That super-flowering x youngianum 'Liliputian' is really unbelievable. Compliments from my wife too.

I'm happy, I could purchase E.gr.'Purple Prince', you mentioned above.

One of the last flowering epimediums here in my garden, Epimedium wushanense nova. I'm real proud of it. An impressive appearance, altough it is a young plant, flowering for the first time.

Gerrit, very nice... an impressive E. wushanense... a plant with such substance.  Mine is just starting to open it's first flowers; I'm so pleased it is the weekend because I get to observe these beauties in more detail, maybe dab some pollen here and there.  In the morning (Saturday), I shall be heading out to Garden Vision Nursery (indeed the epicenter for epimedium) with a friend, to pick up a small order. 

Thanks for the compliments on the super-floriferous hybrid selection from E. x youngianum 'Liliuptian', but as a reminder, all of the hybrids that I currently show are the work of bees. But the ultra-floriferous one is a reminder to watch plants, give them space to develop, and watch them for 3-4 years to see what they are actually about in terms of growth characteristics, to reveal their special features.  Next year I should be able to show a few seedlings plants in first-flowering from my manual crosses, and in 2 years, lots more.

Peter wrote:

Tomorrow starts the 3 day Epimedium extravaganza here in Central Massachusetts, as Garden Visions has its annual sale. Over the past few years I've brought home about a dozen Epimedium species and hybrids, but the one that I look for first when I go out to the garden is E. x versicolor 'Versicolor'. The leaves and the flowers look almost too perfectly matched, and it's grown to a very impressive size in 3 years. It's easily my favorite, and tomorrow I'll bring home at least one more of this beauty, plus a few more I've lusted after for years.

Peter, you characterized it well, this cultivar is amazing, with unique flower color and abundance of flowers, and perfectly matched vibrant foliage color within the same harmonious color range, that it is hard to beat.  Feel free to ask for divisions of any Epimedium, I have about 200 types, and the number keeps growing :D

Headed out to Garden Vision Epimediums on their "open nursery weekend" to pick up a small order.  This year, the open house took place at Karen Perkin's residence in Phillipston Massachusetts (central MA).  The morning was warm and sunny, with a haze of tree pollen burning my eyes and making me sneeze frequently and my nose run like the wind, and with swarming clouds of biting gnats, my fingers bloodied from whacking them off my forehead or when they enter my ear canals... ah, spring in rural Massachusetts. I reduced the gnat population slightly by inadvertently swallowing a few. ;D

Karen's property is rustic and scenic, with lots of grade change and beautiful stone outcrops and massive boulders.  Already in a short time, the grounds are shaping up and looking great, showing much potential.  And there they were, the rows of tables with Epimediums lined up alphabetically, such enticement.  A couple "eppies" I wanted were not available, but still was able to add a modest number of new types to my collection, here's what I bought:

E. sempervirens 'Candy Hearts', E. elachyphyllum, E. flavum, 'After Midnight', 'Starlet', 'Flame Thrower', and Iris gracilipes Buko, I. cristata 'Navy Blue Gem', and I. cristata 'Brumback Blue'.

Flowering in her new display beds was an Epimedium from Diana Reeck at Collector's Nursery, named E. 'Hot Lips', visually jumping out from the rest with a low shield of waxy shiny bronzed foliage and uniquely hued flowers of light pink sepals, raspberry pink centers and long arched spurs that shade to near white at the tips.  Wow!  I want that one!  Also looking fine, were clumps of Trillium pusillum 'Roadrunner' in perfect bloom.

Here's another hybrid selection, a 3-year old plant.  It looks promising, with exceptional star-like flowers with long straight points, the sepals edged in purplish-pink creating a broad white star zone on the back of the sepals.  The foliage is small and bronze-tinged.  I'll try to get a photo when more fully developed and under better light conditions.

A veiw of a bed under Cornus kousa 'Milky Way' with about approximately 120 Epimedium hybrid seedlings, mostly 1-2 year olds and a few 3-year plants.  This is the best part... getting to review new flowering on hybrid plants.

McDonough wrote:

Headed out to Garden Vision Epimediums on their "open nursery weekend" to pick up a small order.  This year, the open house took place at Karen Perkin's residence in Phillipston Massachusetts (central MA).  The morning was warm and sunny, with a haze of tree pollen burning my eyes and making me sneeze frequently and my nose run like the wind, and with swarming clouds of biting gnats, my fingers bloodied from whacking them off my forehead or when they enter my ear canals... ah, spring in rural Massachusetts. I reduced the gnat population slightly by inadvertently swallowing a few. ;D

Karen's property is rustic and scenic, with lots of grade change and beautiful stone outcrops and massive boulders.  Already in a short time, the grounds are shaping up and looking great, showing much potential.  And there they were, the rows of tables with Epimediums lined up alphabetically, such enticement.  A couple "eppies" I wanted were not available, but still was able to add a modest number of new types to my collection, here's what I bought:

E. sempervirens 'Candy Hearts', E. elachyphyllum, E. flavum, 'After Midnight', 'Starlet', 'Flame Thrower', and Iris gracilipes Buko, I. cristata 'Navy Blue Gem', and I. cristata 'Brumback Blue'.

Flowering in her new display beds was an Epimedium from Diana Reeck at Collector's Nursery, named E. 'Hot Lips', visually jumping out from the rest with a low shield of waxy shiny bronzed foliage and uniquely hued flowers of light pink sepals, raspberry pink centers and long arched spurs that shade to near white at the tips.  Wow!  I want that one!  Also looking fine, were clumps of Trillium pusillum 'Roadrunner' in perfect bloom.

What's a gnat? Something like a mosquito? I don't think we have those over here  ;) We do have pollen though....always fun for someone with tree-pollen and grass-pollen allergies like me  :(

Looks like you bought a nice selection...I wish we had such a selection of I. cristata cultivars to buy over here.

Those hot lips  ;) look really nice....don't want it, need it!!!

Trillium pusillum is not very easy here, managed to kill it a couple of times already.

McDonough wrote:

Here's another hybrid selection, a 3-year old plant.  It looks promising, with exceptional star-like flowers with long straight points, the sepals edged in purplish-pink creating a broad white star zone on the back of the sepals.  The foliage is small and bronze-tinged.  I'll try to get a photo when more fully developed and under better light conditions.

Very nice, Mark,

the spurs look like they are elongating the star on the upper sepals. Name-worthy! Mark's Star ;D  ;D

Could you show a pic of the inside of the flowers?

Gnats are small blood-sucking insects.  They swarm for a period of about 1 month in spring, parts of northern New England are (in)famous for these beasties, making it very difficult to be outside without some sort of strategy of self protection, which may include hats with head netting attached.  While it was a warm day, I wore a sweatshirt and hat, and while I hate to do it... lathered up with insect repellent.  In a few weeks gnat season will be mostly over, to be replaced by mosquito season the rest of late spring and summer ;D

http://www.google.com/search?q=gnats&hl=en&prmd=ivns&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=zIvGTeHHA4vAgQfAxrnMBA&sqi=2&ved=0CFAQsAQ&biw=1280&bih=809

Earlier I was going to post a photo of my Trillium pusillum 'Roadrunner'... glad I didn't as it is still a runt, need to get it into a richer soil situation and possibly more sun, to have it start "running" as its doing in Karen Perkin's garden.

WimB wrote:

McDonough wrote:

Here's another hybrid selection, a 3-year old plant.  It looks promising, with exceptional star-like flowers with long straight points, the sepals edged in purplish-pink creating a broad white star zone on the back of the sepals.  The foliage is small and bronze-tinged.  I'll try to get a photo when more fully developed and under better light conditions.

Very nice, Mark,

the spurs look like they are elongating the star on the upper sepals. Name-worthy! Mark's Star ;D  ;D

Could you show a pic of the inside of the flowers?

I'll try to get some better photos soon, I was dodging thunderstorms and lightning yesterday afternoon.  The other 2-year hybrid plant I showed a few messages back (http://nargs.org/smf/index.php?topic=630.msg8577#msg8577) has the sharpest defined "white star" on the of reddish-pink of any hybrid I've seen.  One reason I bought E. 'Starlet', another of Diana Reeck's (Collectors Nursery) hybrids, is to compare the star-like color effect, although from what I can see, the white star is diffuse in that selection.
http://www.collectorsnursery.com/cat03/index.php?main_page=product_info&...

By the way, 'Hot Lips' is available here, what a beauty:
http://www.collectorsnursery.com/cat03/index.php?main_page=product_info&...

Our 'gnats' are actually called Black Flies, which are sometimes referred to as 'Buffalo Gnats' since they have a sort of hump in their back. They are small, black blood sucking insects which are actually more painful and irritating than mosquitoes because the females literally slash the skin and lick up the blood as it pools. Black flies breed in flowing water from rivers and streams. After mating the female deposits the fertilized eggs on rocks or other substrate in swift flowing water. Larvae emerge from eggs and develop aquatically, feeding on algae and organic matter flowing by in the moving water. In 7-10 days they develop into pupae. Adults emerge from the pupal case through a slit and float to the surface on a bubble of air. Emerging adults live from 2-3 weeks. They are usually found from spring through fall, with the greatest numbers appearing in the late spring and summer. They are active during the day, with peak activity in the morning and early evening. Here in MA we get them for about 1 month, and for that period, insect repellent is essential, unless you are a masochist.

I'm finally learning how to take pictures, given the necessity of not embarrassing myself here on the Forum. I may even get a better camera, and possibly even take a few lessons! Here is E. brevicornu, about 3 years old, growing in east end of my garden, with morning and late afternoon sun.

Another nice small Epimedium, E. x youngianum 'Be My Valentine.' It's been in the garden for 3 years, originally purchased from Garden Visions. It's now about 1 foot across and is about 10 inches tall. The flowers are beautiful, and can be seen from quite a distance.

More charming plants!
We have a lot of some kind(s) of tiny flying things which we might call gnats or 'no see 'ems' etc (in my house we say 'pinwall'(sp??) a word my housemate uses, not sure if it has any origin outside his mind or not..lol) thankfully, they do not bite, since they are here any time its above (or not far below!) freezing and too small to be stopped by the screens!
Meanwhile, we still have snow in some deep shade spots, and mosquitoes are already out!

Off topic but...
Here, or at least to me  ;), "gnats" are basically unidentifiable little flying objects, mostly harmless to plant and animal; often seen swarming later in summer in cyclonic clusters that I presume to be mating groups... ? 
Black flies are readily-identifiable blood-sucking pests with humped backs that spend their larval period attached to rocks in rivers, as Peter has described (and although I don't find the bites themselves painful, the itchy inflammation afterwards is maddening), and no-see-ums are... well, I actually have only encountered them in northern Saskatchewan and North Dakota (or something like them), not here, but they are miniscule biting flies with razor jaws.  Having said that, we only get some mosquitoes and a few black flies here... 
"No-see-um" netting has long been available as tent screening and works like a charm; perhaps it's available for windows too?

Both Epimedium brevicornu and E. x youngianum 'Be My Valentine' are among my favorite epimediums.  Be My Valentine does indeed stand out with rather perky bright color flowers, one of the best youngianum introductions,.

Wim: following up on your request, here is a photo showing the face-view of the flowers on "Mark's Star" ;D  Clean white inside.

I have lots and lots of hybrids from E. grandiflorum 'Dark Beauty'.  They are easy to spot, as they inherit the rich coffee-toffee-mocha foliage coloration.  Since these are bee hybrids, they hybridized with epimediums planted close by, such as E. grandiflorum 'Larchmont' (pale lavender and white), E. grandiforum f. flavescens 'La Rocaille', youngianum 'Liliputian', E. sempervirens, etc.  Observing these hybrid plants, one can see the potential if they were deliberately crossed with more colorful flowered species, otherwise, much of the resulting plants are rather bland so far as the flowers.

E. grandiflorum hybrid from 'Dark Beauty' with long narrow leaves (shows E. gr. f. flavescens influence):

E. grandiflorum hybrid from 'Dark Beauty' with rounded leaves, showing influence by E. sempervirens or E. x sasakii:

Other hybrids
Left:     hybrid with colorful foliage and cream flowers
Center: hybrid with red-brown-edged foliage and lavender flowers
Right:   hybrid with glossy burnished leaves and pale lavender flowers

Skulski wrote:

  Having said that, we only get some mosquitoes and a few black flies here... 
"No-see-um" netting has long been available as tent screening and works like a charm; perhaps it's available for windows too?

Numerous kinds of flies here, but none of them biting fortunately :) Horseflies, but they rarely seem to get around to doing anything other than buzz around...
Worth looking into the no-see-um netting! I can wave them off, but some people are driven to distraction...lol

For Gerrit, here are two views of E. grandiflorum 'Pierre's Purple'.  The foliage color and general look on many of these grandiflorums changes quickly, but this is a snapshot in time where there is both dark foliage and flowers, the foliage will lighten up quickly in the days to come.  The flowers are not so plentiful, nor are they anything special (not particularly purple either).

E. grandiflorum 'Pierre's Purple'

Next to it I have E. grandiflorum 'Mt. Kitadake Purple', which is later to leaf out and develop, nice flowers but again not floriferous thus not much of a show.  I could easily live without either of them.  Later in the summer I can tell the two apart by the way the leaves layer into dense leafy clumps, with new leaves showing some dark tones.

E. grandiflorum 'Mt. Kitadake Purple'

Yes Mark, the short period of emerging with bronze foliage is the most lovely period of the epimedium-cycle. In my garden, with the flowering season almost done, there is definitely much to see. The  colourchanging of the second offspring of new leaves is interesting and every plant looks different and beautiful.

It's intriguing what you're gone do with those 120 hybrids underneath the Cornus Kousa. Normally one need days for labelling, digging and potting, registrating and so on. And that's only your bee- pollinated part. You did not tell us yet about your hybridization project from last year.

Peter wrote:

Tomorrow starts the 3 day Epimedium extravaganza here in Central Massachusetts, as Garden Visions has its annual sale. Over the past few years I've brought home about a dozen Epimedium species and hybrids, but the one that I look for first when I go out to the garden is E. x versicolor 'Versicolor.' The leaves and the flowers look almost too perfectly matched, and it's grown to a very impressive size in 3 years. It's easily my favorite, and tomorrow I'll bring home at least one more of this beauty, plus a few more I've lusted after for years.

Hi Peter, how was your day at Garden Vision Epimedium? Did you bring back some cute little epimediums?
Your E x 'Be my Valentine' looks super as well as your E.brevicornu, who ought to be a slow growing specie.

gerrit wrote:

Yes Mark...
It's intriguing what you're gone do with those 120 hybrids underneath the Cornus Kousa. Normally one need days for labelling, digging and potting, registrating and so on. And that's only your bee- pollinated part. You did not tell us yet about your hybridization project from last year.

The young plants under my Cornus kousa tree can stay there for up to 3 years before getting overcrowded.  This bed is currently a mix of 1, 2, and some 3-year plants... the older ones will be judged this season and moved out into the garden or marked for giveaway.

Left:  mixed 2-3 year hybrids; right: E. davidii EMR seedling... looking similar to the parent.

Seedlings, seedlings, seedlings, that will be the challenge this year.  Four flats of Epimedium on the left and center, 2 flats of Jeffersonia on the right.  I'm going to ask my wife to row-out some of the seedlings in a new bed.

Left: two views of a hybrid between E. x youngianum 'Freckles' x grandiflorum 'Princess Susan'; in one view the speckling can be seen better.  Has the clearer pink and white flowers of 'Princess Susan'.  Right: two views of E. gr. 'Princess Susan'.
 

Epimedium hybrid "Mark's Star" ;D (on the left) has a companion on the right, a hybrid of similar form and narrow pointy stars, in softest pale lilac.

Peter wrote:

Our 'gnats' are actually called Black Flies, which are sometimes referred to as 'Buffalo Gnats' since they have a sort of hump in their back. They are small, black blood sucking insects which are actually more painful and irritating than mosquitoes because the females literally slash the skin and lick up the blood as it pools. Black flies breed in flowing water from rivers and streams. After mating the female deposits the fertilized eggs on rocks or other substrate in swift flowing water. Larvae emerge from eggs and develop aquatically, feeding on algae and organic matter flowing by in the moving water. In 7-10 days they develop into pupae. Adults emerge from the pupal case through a slit and float to the surface on a bubble of air. Emerging adults live from 2-3 weeks. They are usually found from spring through fall, with the greatest numbers appearing in the late spring and summer. They are active during the day, with peak activity in the morning and early evening. Here in MA we get them for about 1 month, and for that period, insect repellent is essential, unless you are a masochist.

I'm finally learning how to take pictures, given the necessity of not embarrassing myself here on the Forum. I may even get a better camera, and possibly even take a few lessons! Here is E. brevicornu, about 3 years old, growing in east end of my garden, with morning and late afternoon sun.

No gnats over here, from what you guys have told, I'm very glad we don't have them over here!

McDonough wrote:

Wim: following up on your request, here is a photo showing the face-view of the flowers on "Mark's Star" ;D  Clean white inside.

Very nice Mark, I'd buy a 'Mark's Star' ;D if it were for sale, it's one of the best hybrids you have shown here. Although the cross between 'Princess Susan' and 'Freckles' is very nice too.

Mark, a nursery here in Holland have listed a number of epimediums in their catalogue and I wonder if they exist or well-labelled.
Please help me to find out and give your opinion.

Epimedium warleyense 'Koper" and Epimedium lilacinum. Are they fairytale epimediums?
Epimedium "Creeping Yellow" This is interesting. It's listed by a nursery in Lilliesleaf, Scotland. I tried to visit this nursery last year, when I was on a vacation in Scotland, but the nursery didn't exist anymore. What happened with this epimedium. Could it appear now in Holland? I saw it also somewhere in the US.
Epimedium "Violet Queen". Maybe there is an Epimedium sempervirens "Violet Queen" PDN perhaps?

And for fun, 2 pictures of my young plant Epimedium wushanense "Caramel", blooming for the first time

Gerrit, that foliage is way cool!  ;D

I would grow it just for that!

Gerrit, will reply as soon as I can, hopefully this weekend.  Next week I'm off-site traveling to various sites for work, and this weekend is 200% booked, must prepare for a conference where I'm presenting (also for work).  I think I liked being unemployed much better.  Please bear with me.

gerrit wrote:

Mark, a nursery here in Holland have listed a number of epimediums in their catalogue and I wonder if they exist or well-labelled.
Please help me to find out and give your opinion.

Epimedium warleyense 'Koper" and Epimedium lilacinum. Are they fairytale epimediums?
Epimedium "Creeping Yellow" This is interesting. It's listed by a nursery in Lilliesleaf, Scotland. I tried to visit this nursery last year, when I was on a vacation in Scotland, but the nursery didn't exist anymore. What happened with this epimedium. Could it appear now in Holland? I saw it also somewhere in the US.
Epimedium "Violet Queen". Maybe there is an Epimedium sempervirens "Violet Queen" PDN perhaps?

And for fun, 2 pictures of my young plant Epimedium wushanense 'Caramel', blooming for the first time

I believe E. warleyense 'Koper' is a language-translation issue, and not a valid cultivar.  The only links to the name source as Romanian, and google comes up with such terms as "koper-oranje" describing the flowers... I have to believe this is just language semantics and not an actual cultivar name.

The name E. "lilacinum" seems to be applied to either E. glandiflorum 'Lilacinum' or E. x youngianum 'Lilacinum'. Prossibly inconsequential and not worth troubling over.

E. 'Creeping Yellow' represents dubious marketing... the plant a rather mundane white-flowered plant, but "gets its name from foliage that is pale yellowish-green". It is reported to have "emerging leaves rimmed with copper and bronze and mottled with red speckles."  The name "creeping yellow" seems misleading or a poor choice. :(
http://www.stonyfordcottagenursery.co.uk/epimedium-creeping-yellow-bare-...
http://www.munchkinnursery.com/shopping/shopexd.asp?id=57

Your Epimedium wushanense 'Caramel' is awesome, I want to obtain this one badly!

A hurried post, last year I selected a very small Epimedium hybrid seedling with tiny light pink flowers, but it's the neat clump of speckled foliage that is an interest... I like it:

So many Epimedium have flowered, are in flower, and ready to flower; I hope to catch up.  Here's one that I don't think I've shown before, E. grandiflorum 'Circe' (left); really nice bright flowers above the foliage.  Also, a first glimpse at the late-to-emerge high alpine selection of E. grandiflorum named 'Cranberry Sparkle' (right); both are Garden Vision Epimedium introductions.  Cranberry Sparkle has flower buds are dark-red-purple from above, an awesome cultivar.

The next two views show another 3-year hybrid that I like, with light white-pink sepals from above, but purplish-plum petals and center, catching my eye.  Will wait to see how it clumps up in years 4-5 to make a determination.

What an amazing sight your garden must be!!  :o  From these little snippets of photos, it looks simply fantastic!

Thanks Lori, I'll be posting some general garden views this weekend... the Epimediums make it easy for the garden to look nice ;)

Mark, I agree with Lori!
You can't sleep much or watch the telly - both attending to your work and to your beautiful garden!

Epimedium gr. 'Circe' is a lovely one. It catched my eye already before. A very good performance with her flowers elegant above the leaves. A very vivid attractive colour because of the long white spur tips. One of the many species, we'll never see here.

Finally the rain has arrived after 2 months with no single drop. We've had a bad epimedium-year, the flowers didn't develop well, with temperatures above 20 degrees C. And sunshine almost every day. The flowers  left only a few days. Maybe we'll see a second flush.

gerrit wrote:

Finally the rain has arrived after 2 months with no single drop. We've had a bad epimedium-year, the flowers didn't develop well, with temperatures above 20 degrees C. And sunshine almost every day. The flowers  left only a few days. Maybe we'll see a second flush.

Too bad about the drought you've had; reminds me of last summer's terrible record-breaking drought and heat waves.  In fact, for the first time ever with Epimedium, I had a number of losses this spring, I'm sure due to the record drought in summer 2010 (and a large part of Autumn 2010) and with a 100% watering ban in town.  About 10 species/cultivars here were total "no-shows" this spring, and maybe 12-14 others are barely alive with a few late-emerging leaf sprouts and most parts of the rhizomes dead, all weakened from the drought and collapse of all foliage the previous summer.

A miscellany of Epimedium tonight.  We've been pummeled by rain for the last several days, so, some "eppies" are looking a bit down-trodden, but I snapped a few recent pics to share here, even though they may look a bit dark.

E. pubescens "Shaanxi Forms", the hardy version of E. pubescens.  I like this one because it is very low growing, with colorful foliage, reliably evergreen foliage, and late display of starry white flowers (just starting now) and a rebloomer.

E. x cantabrigiensis "Red Form" - a cute plant with tiny red and yellow flowers.

E. x youngianum hybrid seedlings, the foreground plant shows small thimbles of white with light pink sepals.

Some yellows:
left:   E. davidii EMR x ?brevicornu hybrid (small flowers) and E. davidii EMR open-pollinated seedling plant; much more prolific flowering.
right: E. x 'Lemon Zest' - a cute one with small spur-challenged yellow thimbles.

Left:   E. grandiflorum 'Cranberry Sparkle' - the darkest cranberry red flowers of any "eppie", this high-alpine selection is outstanding.  So far, I haven't gotten a good photo, so what I show will have to do.
Right:  Epimedium hybrid with rich pink sepals and wide-spreading white spurs.

E. x 'Domino' garden scene:

What a breathtaking view of your woodlandgarden with the majestic E.x domino. I'm so happy, I purchased this one a few weeks ago.
Mark, I enjoyed looking and studying your pictures. Thanks a lot for doing it.
The possible hybrid between E.davidii EMR and E. brevicornu took my special interest. I wonder, how the spurs can be pink, as the parent has white flowers. I was thinking of E. brachyrrhizum perhaps.
The E.gr.'Cranberry Sparkle' is a stunner indeed. A better photo you showed already in reply 87. Is this the most red form of all? I'm thinking of E.gr.'Yubae' and maybe E.gr.'Red Queen'.

Gerrit

McDonough wrote:

gerrit wrote:

Finally the rain has arrived after 2 months with no single drop. We've had a bad epimedium-year, the flowers didn't develop well, with temperatures above 20 degrees C. And sunshine almost every day. The flowers  left only a few days. Maybe we'll see a second flush.

Too bad about the drought you've had; reminds me of last summer's terrible record-breaking drought and heat waves.  In fact, for the first time ever with Epimedium, I had a number of losses this spring, I'm sure due to the record drought in summer 2010 (and a large part of Autumn 2010) and with a 100% watering ban in town.  About 10 species/cultivars here were total "no-shows" this spring, and maybe 12-14 others are barely alive with a few late-emerging leaf sprouts and most parts of the rhizomes dead, all weakened from the drought and collapse of all foliage the previous summer.

Sorry to hear about this terrible summer last year. I won't complain any more. I watered my plants every day, especially my rock garden with limestones (tufa). They even didn't talk about a watering ban. So actually no problems over here. But to loose so many Epimediums, that's something. When it's such a bad weather, the plants suffer, the gardener suffers too.

gerrit wrote:

What a breathtaking view of your woodlandgarden with the majestic E.x domino. I'm so happy, I purchased this one a few weeks ago.
Mark, I enjoyed looking and studying your pictures. Thanks a lot for doing it.
The possible hybrid between E.davidii EMR and E. brevicornu took my special interest. I wonder, how the spurs can be pink, as the parent has white flowers. I was thinking of E. brachyrrhizum perhaps.
The E.gr.'Cranberry Sparkle' is a stunner indeed. A better photo you showed already in reply 87. Is this the most red form of all? I'm thinking of E.gr.'Yubae' and maybe E.gr.'Red Queen'.

Gerrit

Congratulations on getting 'Domino', one of the very best cultivars out there.

With the possible davidii hybrid with brevicornu, this is a best guess... the seedling appeared under E. davidii EMR (so I label it accordingly) and close by is E. brevicornu (a very willing parent) and E. stellulatum and E. pubescens "Shaanxi Form", each of those three has tiny white starry blooms.  I have about 1-1/2 dozen E. brevicornu hybrids (many with E. membranaceum), and they all follow a similar theme... small flowers with white sepals (often spotted red or pink, making them look pinkish), and amplified yellow petal cups... cute little things.  The hybrids where I'm quite convinced they involve E. brevicornu x membranaceum pick up the white pink-spotted sepals of membranaceum, showing up a bit more pink in the hybrid.  But, it's just a guess :)

A few more garden views... all taken on dreary cool and rainy days... lots of Epimedium, but other plants like Pulmonaria, Ariseama, Cypripedium, Phlox, etc.

Wow, what a fantastic group of Cypripedium. C.parviflorum pubescens, I guess? If it is so, it's native in your region. Do they still grow a lot in the woods of N.America?

Mark, your garden is marvellous :o :D

McDonough wrote:

A few more garden views... all taken on dreary cool and rainy days... lots of Epimedium, but other plants like Pulmonaria, Ariseama, Cypripedium, Phlox, etc.

gerrit wrote:

Wow, what a fantastic group of Cypripedium. C.parviflorum pubescens, I guess? If it is so, it's native in your region. Do they still grow a lot in the woods of N.America?

Mark, I can only agree with Gerrit, that is one impressive clump of C. parviflorum var. pubescens.

What's the plant growing underneath the two Arisaema sikokianums?

In total it's a very nice woodland corner....I find the best pictures of woodland plants are often taken during these dreary days....wish we had some rainy days (unlike our northern neighbours in the Netherlands we still haven't seen any rain)

I especially liked the E. davidii hybrid, too.  And besides all your wonderful pics of your wonderful garden, Mark, I always appreciate your insightful remarks that accompany.  They are certainly not just pretty pictures!

WimB wrote:

Mark, I can only agree with Gerrit, that is one impressive clump of C. parviflorum var. pubescens.
What's the plant growing underneath the two Arisaema sikokianums?

Wim, I answered under a different topic, follow this link:
http://nargs.org/smf/index.php?topic=593.msg9083#msg9083

RickR wrote:

I especially liked the E. davidii hybrid, too.  And besides all your wonderful pics of your wonderful garden, Mark, I always appreciate your insightful remarks that accompany.  They are certainly not just pretty pictures!

Thanks Rick :)

One Epimedium that I believe should be more widely grown, is a relative newcomer on the horticultural scene, is E. elongatum, found at 9,000'-12,000' in Sichuan Province, China.  The only source I know for this species is Garden Vision Epimediums (it was listed again in the 2011 catalog: $45).  Besides being very hardy (suggested to be at least USDA Zone 4) is that it flowers very late, starting here early June, when most other epimediums are long done flowering.  It is a low grower, wider than tall, with an attractive shield of small crimp-edged leaflets, new foliage light bronze-toned, and airy upright stems and large spidery bright yellow flowers from June-July.  Here's a photo taken yesterday, with a couple stems just starting to rise from the foliage mound.

I haven't shown photos of the flowers previously, here are three photos showing the blooms; they look better in real life:

One of the best and neatest of the yellow-flowered species is E. ilicifolium.  After being in a spot too dry to its liking the last several years, I finally dug it up last autumn, split it into two, and replanted in a more moist spot.  The foliage is particularly striking, narrow and long, and as its names suggests, prickly edged like a holly.  But what I like about it is its very low compact habit, and light yet luminous yellow flowers, these too on stems that splay sideways rather than gaining any height.  The foliage is evergreen, and it looked great here all year.  I plan on using this species in hybridization efforts, although virtually no progress on such efforts this year, the demands of "onboarding" and ramping up to a new job with lots of traveling and/or long daily commute forced me to give up such efforts temporarily.

Terrific plants, Mark!  I wish they were all more available!
The flowers on E. ilicifolium remind me of what used to be called a "mobile".  :)

Do you never run out of extraordinary plants to show, Mark?

Hoy wrote:

Do you never run out of extraordinary plants to show, Mark?

Nope, not as long as I grow Epimedium hybrids by the hundreds, if not thousands. ;D

Today I started planting a new Epimedium bed.  It is an area approximately 30' long x 7' wide, with a path down the middle of the long length. Into the top layer of soil, I mixed in a 6" layer of decomposed pink bark mulch, the eppies love it.

The seedlings going in were sown in flats last summer, the flats sitting out in an open shaded location exposed to the elements, and keep moist.  Wire screening was placed on top of each flat to keep chipmunks and squirrels from digging and eating the seed.  Left to the elements all winter, most flats show lots of germination.

Epimedium 'Purple Prince' x OP (open pollinated) is demonstrated here.  I knock out the flats when moderately moist/dry, the soil is gently crumbled to release the seedlings, they are easy to feather apart.  I hold each seedling by its leaf.

I plant the seedlings in row, spaced closely at only about 3-4" apart, where they can stay for 2 years growing in together vbut still easily separated.  In the second year, many will bloom, and I will be able to start culling through the better or worse sorts.  Differing blocks of varieties are separated by about 6" distance.  After planting, I spread a layer of pine back mulch, and then my favorite part, hand watering.

View of a portion of the new bed, showing a 15' length, with little "points of green" ;)

For some interest, I also planted out a few larger 2 or 3-year hybrid plants, just for some immediate color and interest.  Two views of Epimedium membranaceum x brevicornu.  This is interesting, because it demonstrates an aspect of hybrids that people don't always pay attention to.  In this case, the plant looks just like E. membranaceum, with flurries of large yellow spider flowers, but in the second photo showing a close up of the flower panicles, notice the dense hairy fluff on the stems and pedicels, a strong characteristic of E. brevicornu, which it almost always imparts on its progeny.

Last year I found a hybrid seedling under E. brachyrrhizum, this seedling (left) certainly has a lovely second flush of colorful foliage.  On the right is a seedling I just noticed today, probably a 2-year plant which was growing amongst E. fangii, no doubt a E. brevicornu x membranaceum hybrid with small white flowers and a yellow cup and spurs; I have dozens of similar such hybrids appearing because both membranaceum and brevicornu are planted right next to each other, and overhanging my patch of E. fangii.

I totally agree, what you said about Epimedium illicifolium,Mark. It is no love at first sight, when you see it for the first time, but this one is one of the best the genus Epimedium can offer us, in my opinion. A slow grower in my garden, that's a pity. One of the last in the season. I put it on an embankment, in order to see the horizontally growing branches.

I post a picture from about a month ago.

Funny to see the rows of your seedlings Mark. Isn't there a risk of damage by birds, chipmunks,and others looking for food?

gerrit wrote:

Funny to see the rows of your seedlings Mark. Isn't there a risk of damage by birds, chipmunks,and others looking for food?

The risk of any planting in my garden is from squirrels incessantly digging holes in the garden; in the fall they bury a million acorns in every part of the garden and the rest of the year they dig a billion holes looking for them.  Some days in spring when I go out, it looks like a war zone in miniature, with hundreds upon hundreds of small "craters" from squirrel digging; this drives me absolutely batty!  I do trap and relocate squirrels, but chipmunks and squirrels are like gas... similar to a gas that expands to find equilibrium with the density of air, so too will these varmints spread into the landscape, no matter how much trapping is done.

Of course, the acorns germinate, and there isn't a day that I don't pull ten or more sprouting oak trees, including from potted plants and flats unless protected with a wire cover.  

Once the seedlings are a year old they are well enough established that they survive the infernal squirrel diggings (such as in this view with 1-2 year seedling plants), when seedlings are newly planted they do run the risk of being uprooted as a collateral casualty of squirrel digging, but not as food.

PS: good idea about putting your E. ilicifolium up on an embankment to see the plant form better; I need to situate a couple epimediums that could also benefit from better visibility.

Seems we have all our own war to fight, Mark!

Your planting is even more regular than I manage to do in my kitchengarden, very impressive ;D

I enjoyed your story of those miserable neighbours in your war zone-garden.

Some Eppies look better on an embankment indeed. Especially all those Epimediums from the x omeiense group. Not only Epimedium ilicifolium (with one l indeed).

Mark, you mentioned E.wushanense 'Spiny leaved Foprms'. In the catalogue of GVN it is listed for a 125$. Does it bloom at yours now? And please when it does post a picture. It is the only wushanense-form at GVN. I wondered why, because here in Europe we can order easily all E.wushanense species. including the 'Spiny leaved Form', which is a Darell Probst introduction.
I didn't buy this one for 12 euro (15$) and I regret.

gerrit wrote:

Mark, you mentioned E.wushanense 'Spiny leaved Foprms'. In the catalogue of GVN it is listed for a 125$. Does it bloom at yours now? And please when it does post a picture. It is the only wushanense-form at GVN. I wondered why, because here in Europe we can order easily all E.wushanense species. including the 'Spiny leaved Form', which is a Darell Probst introduction.
I didn't buy this one for 12 euro (15$) and I regret.

I didn't take many photos of E. wushanense "Spiny-leaved forms" this year, and the ones I did take, didn't come out well.  I don't have it situated well; unlike normal E. wushanense with upright flower stems, the spiny-leaved form that Darrell selected is low growing and the flowers are produced on nearly horizontal stems that tend to be hidden under the leaves.  The plant is another one that would benefit from being planted high up on a mound or embankment to see the flowers better.  The photo I show is poor, because the creamy white flowers with yellow centers invariably come out overexposed when using my cheap entry-level Nikon camera.  I'm going to move and divide it shortly... currently it is planted on the backside of a sloped garden bed, now getting swamped by an enlarging clump of Jeffersonia diphylla.

Epimedium season is not yet over, as long as you grow E. membranaceum, one of the few everblooming species.  With sufficient moisture this summer, this species, and it's hybrids, just keep on going!

Out of numerous hybrid seedlings, only a few show prolonged summertime colorful foliage.  This one is the most pronounced, with strong red leaf coloring since spring.

McDonough wrote:

I'm going to move and divide it shortly... currently it is planted on the backside of a sloped garden bed, now getting swamped by an enlarging clump of Jeffersonia diphylla.

How regrettable... to have plants swamped by overlarge Jeffersonia diphylla...  ;D ;)
I must go searching for E. membranaceum - the repeat bloom looks wonderful!
Thanks for finding time in your busy schedule to post these mouth-watering plants, Mark!

I am never that lucky to have plants swamped by species I actually love to grow!
I hope it is possible to get E. membranaceum here too :)

Still thinking about Epimedium, there are literally hundreds of self-sown seedlings springing up here and there, and everywhere.  Usually I dig them up, row them out in flats, and label them to include under what Epimedium they were found.  I didn't do that this year, no time, but the seedlings will be fine until next spring, but I will need to pot them up and move them to keep my named forms clearly identified.  I should probably weed them out, but I don't have the heart, I have enough room to grow on these cute seedlings for years to come (photo on left shows a couple seedlings).  The middle and right-hand photo show E. youngianum 'Liliputian' in the front, with various other hybrid Epimediums; a nice hybrid E. sempervirens on the right in the middle photo, these photos taken to show the incredible plant size difference available in Epimedium.

Late this afternoon, with the afternoon sun back-lighting a hybrid Epimedium that has shown bright red leaves all summer long (both photos), growing below Magnolia sieboldii (Korean form) grown from seed.  In the right photo, there is a Magnolia seedling that I came across today... can't be M. sieboldii as my young trees only bloomed for the first time this year, unless it is a late-germinating seed after 4 yrs; more likely it's a seedling from a nearby Magnolia... oh, such weeds to have ;)

I know I keep showing E. membranaceum (photo on the left), but it just keeps on going and flowering into autumn, there will be waves of blooms.  Hybrids from it will do the same thing. I still have lots and lots of Epimedium seedlings to row out from my great "year-of-unemployment-2010-hybridize-Epimediums-like-crazy" year, where I sowed nearly 50 flats of hybrid seed.  The photo on the right shows seedlings planted out late this afternoon (while battling a fresh brood of small but zippy & ravenous mosquitoes), left row#1 is E. membranaceum (open pollinated seed), row#2 is hand pollinated seedlings from a selected E. membranaceum x brevicornu cross x hand crosses, row#3 is E. x 'Lemon Zest' (open pollinated), and row#4 is E. x setosum - various hand crosses.

Regarding the red leafed hybrid, Mark: is that the second flush of leaves, or are all the leaves red at a younger age?

RickR wrote:

Regarding the red leafed hybrid, Mark: is that the second flush of leaves, or are all the leaves red at a younger age?

It was a second flush (although the first flush was red too).  It's fairly unique, because the red color in the 2nd flush lasted all summer, it never faded to green as most others do.

Very cool, Mark.  I have always found the second flush anomalies very intriguing in plants.  What would make them so different from any other new growth?

Here it is October 1st, and E. membranaceum and its hybrids are still flowering.  On the left is a self-sown hybrid of Epimedium membranaceum, about 6' (2 m) from the mother plant, which tells me that the ants, who are attracted to the starchy elaiosome on the seeds, can carry them away some distance away.  This one has been throwing spray after spray of flowers all summer, and still has more buds coming.  On the right is one I've showed previously, a hybrid that I selected for it's all-summer red foliage, which still looks as bright as ever.  It'll be evaluated to see if this characteristic is retained in further years.

McDonough wrote:

Here it is October 1st, and E. membranaceum and its hybrids are still flowering.  On the left is a self-sown hybrid of Epimedium membranaceum, about 6' (2 m) from the mother plant, which tells me that the ants, who are attracted to the starchy elaiosome on the seeds, can carry them away some distance away.  This one has been throwing spray after spray of flowers all summer, and still has more buds coming.  On the right is one I've showed previously, a hybrid that I selected for it's all-summer red foliage, which still looks as bright as ever.  It'll be evaluated to see if this characteristic is retained in further years.

Very nice, Mark,

I love that intense red coloration of the leaves.

Here it is just a week before Christmas, the ground is frozen for an inch or so, the ground is bare and nothing in bloom, but as I walk around the wintery garden, Epimediums continue to delight the eye with autumn/winter color.  Epimediums are plants that give so many seasons of color and interest, the evergreen to semi-evergreen ones especially so.

E. x warleyense stays green when in shade, but colors strongly both in spring and in autumn.  This large patch is growing in full sun, the mass of tatty dried sticks surrounding the plant are remains of Alliums, but the Epimedium stands out amongst the drab surroundings.  It also flowers prolifically in full sun, but much less so in shady conditions.

Epimedium diphyllum 'Variegatum' (above, right)is always neat and attractive, with white-spotted leaves on a smallish upright plant, but the autumn color is among the brightest of all.  While not an evergreen species, the foliage on many "diphyllums" tends to persist into winter.

Two views of Epimedium x setosum  (diphyllum x sempervirens). I have come to regard this Epimedium as one of the best of all, charming in every aspect.  It grows as a slow pancake, my old plant now a circle 16" across but just a few inches tall.  I like the fall/winter appearance, a low brace of overlapping bronze leaves.

Epimedium sempervirens is true to its name, one of the evergreen species, quite often remaining in good leaf form throughout our New England winters.  Some stay green all winter, others color up brilliantly.  This one is E. sempervirens 'Secret Arrow' (on the left), probably the best for late season color.

Above (on the right) is a hybrid seedling that shows strong E. sempervirens influence, coloring up now with Christmas green and red tones, but it eventually turns a striking near black color. I'm watching this one, the flowers have pure white sepals and yellow petals.  Here's what it looks like in flower:
http://nargs.org/smf/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=630.0;attach=15847;...

An Epimedium winter view on the left below.  It should be noted that I have already sheared off the leaves and stems of the purely deciduous species, leaving just the evergreen and semi-evergreen ones to enjoy their late color.  On the right is E. leptorrhizum, a low spreading species that I must relocate to a more suitable spot, where it can spread as it wants to. It colors up very late with rich red coloration.  The dried leaves are that of Iris minutoaurea.

Many evergreen species just stay a nice healthy green during winter.  The familiar species E. pinnatum ssp. colchicum is one such species which makes a wide carpet of perfectly evergreen leaves in New England, but I particularly like the Darrell Probst selection known as 'Thunderbolt' where the leaves get a deep mahogany coloration (eventually almost black) yet with the strong green venation.  My plant is now a yard across.

More Epimedium "evergreeners", all photos taken on December 17, 2011.

Epimedium ilicifolium is one of the finest species, also low and slow growing, reliably evergreen in New England.  In the photo on the right is a division of E. ilicifolium, and behind it a hybrid of E. grandiflorum 'Dark Beauty' with mocha spring foliage, but this particular hybrid seedling with dark red foliage in late autumn that ages to near black-red leaves.

On the left (below) is E. x youngianum 'Otome' on the left, one of the most interesting of the so-called "youngianums"... I think this one is a hybrid that obviously has some sempervirens blood in it.  The leaves are wonderful year round, are glossy and deeply textured.  On the right in the same photo is E. diphyllum "Large Leaf Form" which exhibits some worthwhile color.  In the photo on the right is Epimedium brachyrrhizum, certainly among the top 10 of all Epimedium.  The foliage is reliably evergreen, the plant is tight and hummocks up nicely, the leaves are lustrous and textured.  In spring, it is a sight to behold when in flower.

On the left-hand photo below is a view showing evergreen E. pubigerum, probably the most reliably evergreen species in New England.  I consider it a favorite species, I grow 4 forms of it.  Flanking E. pubigerum on the left is E. grandiflorum f. flavescens 'La Rocaille', which needs to have the dead leaves sheared off, and E. x youngianum 'Capella' flanking on the right (also needing a haircut soon).  The photo on the right (below) is Epimedium wushanense "Spiny-leaved form", also reliably evergreen and always just green.

On the left (below) is E. x versicolor 'Versicolor', which is among the most striking "eppie" for autumn/winter foliage color, just a deep smouldering coppery red color.  It is a semi-evergreen plant, so if weather and limited snow cover allow, I'll cut the foliage off mid winter, otherwise the haircut comes in early spring.  The photo on the right (below) is Epimedium x 'Domino' in the center (among other epimediums), which attempts to stay evergreen... notice the lower first flush of foliage and upper flush of larger foliage, all a plain green in winter, though it does show mottled leaf color in spring.

Last is Epimedium stellulatum... brilliant hot mottled foliage colors in spring, in winter a dark brooding suffusion of black over green, another slow and low well-behaved species.

Evergreens and especially colouring ones are always welcome in the garden, Mark!
I am still looking for sources and have found one or two ;) I hope to increase my stock in years to come. . . .

What an amazing Epimedium encyclopedia you are building here, Mark!

This last installment is especially eye-opening with characteristics seldom shown or talked much about.  Thank you so much!  (Not to mention the beautiful photos and plants themselves.)

I'll show pictures from the Epimediums in my garden with their fall foliage.
Since we have mild temperatures (between 5 and 10 degrees C) here in the Netherlands at the shore of the North Sea the colours are slowly changing. And the plant remain in a good shape.
First the leaves of the grandiflorums who are particular showy. Soon they will need a 'haircut' as Mark said.
More to come.

E. gr. 'Mount Kitadake'
E. gr. 'Queen Esta'
E. gr. 'Lilafee'
E. gr. flavescens 'La Rocaille'
E. gr. 'White Queen'

I'll try to post here pictures of my Epimediums, the same as in New England in Mark's garden, just to compare.

Epimedium stellulatum 'Long leaf form'.
E. x setosum, a charming small plant suitable for Rock gardens.
E. ilicifolium, one of my favorites, a very slow growing plant with very nice foliage.
E. x versicolor 'Versicolor. Just fine for its foliage, in spring and summer.

gerrit wrote:

I'll try to post here pictures of my Epimediums, the same as in New England in Mark's garden, just to compare.

Epimedium stellulatum 'Long leaf form'.
E. setosum, a charming small plant suitable for Rock gardens.
E. ilicifolium, one of my favorites, a very slow growing plant with very nice foliage.
E. x versicolor 'Versicolor. Just fine for its foliage, in spring and summer.

Hello Gerrit, isn't it nice to have small evergreen plant species in the garden, where they can be enjoyed in the winter landscape (particularly if it stays free of snow).  Sounds like your autumn season has been like ours, abnormally mild (today it will be 54 F, 12 C), and the Epimediums have been in no rush to color up, and what color has appeared is lasting a very long time.

Glad you too like E. x setosum, a real charmer.  Even though it has small flowers, they are held daintily above the foliage; I have earmarked this species for hybridization for it's low habit, densely clothed overlapping leaves, near evergreen habit, and fine fall/winter foliage color.

I must get the "long leaf form" on E. stellulatum, really nice spiny foliage, and the spring show of mottled leaves and hazy mass of white flowers make this another first class "eppie".  That form is available here.  I'm most attracted to species that slowly clump, rather than the spreaders, so E. stellulatum fits in perfectly, making a fine slow-growing low mass of evergreen leaves.

My "grandiflorums" all need their haircut now, we did have a few nights with temperatures well below freezing, down to 12 F (-11 C).

Did you collect and sow any eppie seed this year?  That's the fun part, seeing what sort of hybrids one gets :D

RickR wrote:

What an amazing Epimedium encyclopedia you are building here, Mark!

This last installment is especially eye-opening with characteristics seldom shown or talked much about.  Thank you so much!  (Not to mention the beautiful photos and plants themselves.)

Thanks Rick!  More and more, I've come to the realization that photographing plants "off-season" (when they're not flowering) is important too. With Epimediums specifically, what I've seen all over the place, is a tendency to only show closeups of the little flowers (check out any nursery offering for Epimedium, only closeups), but these plants are such great garden plants and foliage plants at all seasons, I like to highlight that aspect of the genus.  Same is true of other plants in the "off season", I find it educational to follow the topics about seed germination, and early transition of seedling plants to garden, or plants in their winter resting mode.

It is smart of you, Gerrit, to show how the same plant might differ in different climates.  Thanks.  Especially if one in unfamiliar with a plant, we tend to expect the same growth patterns where ever it is grown, when if fact, that is often not the case.

McDonough wrote:

Did you collect and sow any eppie seed this year?  That's the fun part, seeing what sort of hybrids one gets :D

Well Mark, you mentioned this, but it's rather painful to me, because of the failure. Let me tell: My aim was, to create new dwarf hybrids with my 'champion' E. davidii 'Dwarf Form' as my first parent. Well, in spring this year the davidii was very flowerful. So I pollinated by hand various second parents such as E. brachyrrhizum, E.ogisui, E.'William Stearn' and others. When the seeds came down spontaineously, I gathered them and sowed immediately. But unfortunately no germination. What went wrong. Maybe my plants are not mature enough? (3 years). Nevertheless, I don't give up, next year new chances.

RickR wrote:

It is smart of you, Gerrit, to show how the same plant might differ in different climates.  Thanks.  Especially if one in unfamiliar with a plant, we tend to expect the same growth patterns where ever it is grown, when if fact, that is often not the case.

Comparing the 4 plants Mark and I are sharing, I must say Rick, I see no difference. Except E. stellulatum, but mine is a variety of the form, stellulatum 'Long leaf form. What I see is, Mark's plants are touched by the frost. But thanks for calling me 'smart', doesn't happen very often ;D

gerrit wrote:

Comparing the 4 plants Mark and I are sharing, I must say Rick, I see no difference. Except E. stellulatum, but mine is a variety of the form, stellulatum 'Long leaf form. What I see is, Mark's plants are touched by the frost. But thanks for calling me 'smart', doesn't happen very often ;D

Showing that plants look the "same" in different climates has value, too.

Anyone who:
--- wants to learn
--- wants to share knowledge or experience
--- wants to share knowledge or experience and learn
is smart in my book. 

That is pretty much everyone here!  ;D

gerrit wrote:

McDonough wrote:

Did you collect and sow any eppie seed this year?  That's the fun part, seeing what sort of hybrids one gets :D

Well Mark, you mentioned this, but it's rather painful to me, because of the failure. Let me tell: My aim was, to create new dwarf hybrids with my 'champion' E. davidii 'Dwarf Form' as my first parent. Well, in spring this year the davidii was very flowerful. So I pollinated by hand various second parents such as E. brachyrrhizum, E.ogisui, E.william t. stearn and others. When the seeds came down spontaineously, I gathered them and sowed immediately. But unfortunately no germination. What went wrong. Maybe my plants are not mature enough? (3 years). Nevertheless, I don't give up, next year new chances.

Gerrit, nothing has gone wrong yet; like many ephemeral seed species, the seed is sown right after it is ready, typically late spring for Epimedium, but no seed will germinate until the following spring.  So, keep your seed pots and leave them exposed to winter weather, and when it warms up in spring you should get germination.  Previously I asked Darrell Probst if there is any way to hasten seed germination in Epimedium, as he has a huge greenhouse and grows many eppies inside (many so that he could hybridize them), he said nothing works to speed up germination, you pretty much need to wait until they germinate the following spring.

So far as Epimedium 'William Stearn', I'm not familiar with it, but see it is a hybrid available in Europe... found a couple links.  Do you know what Chinese species might be among the parents?
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lapommangels/6053574716/
https://www.edrom-nurseries.co.uk/shop/pc/Epimedium-William-Stearn-20p95...

More eppies to come now. With, in my eyes, very attractive winterfoliage. I agree totally what Mark wrote: Epimediums are such versatile plants for the garden. Which genus has similar foliage as Epimedium. Each species has different leaves. And the Chinese species are not deciduous.

Epimedium 'Kaguyahime'.
E. acuminatum 'Night Mistress'. Evergreen glossy leaves on this superb plant with wunderful flowers.
E. 'Akane"
E. fire dragon. Fine winterleaves. Turning into bronze.
E. ilicifolium and the following three with spinny leaves, which remember us to the lineage of Mahony.
E. spine tingler. slow growing with beautiful tiny yellow flowers. Horizontally growing, so put it on an
                      embankement.
E. x wushanense 'Caramel'. With spinny foliage too. Very special choclate flowers.
Epimedioum 'Black Sea. A European species, vigorous, a spreader, with dark winterfoliage.
Epimedium davidii 'Dwarf Form'. This is my 'champion'. Blooming all autumn untill now as you see. No particular fine winterleaves.

Epimedium 'William Stearn' is a cross between E.membranaceum and omeiense. This is a link to the VRV-forum, where Wim and myself participated last year an where you see in answer 42 my new acquisation,the wonderful William t. Stearn. Look at the colour and the spinny leaves. Really a plant to hybridize with. If you like, I'll get you some seeds (if tolerated by law).
http://www.vrvforum.be/forum/index.php?topic=346.msg10315#msg10315

That was the happy part, and now the sad one. I threw away all of my seedpods, not aware of the neccesary overwintering of eppie-seeds. @#*&$!%.

Gerrit, sorry to hear the sad part about the seeds. :(

You certainly have some very fine Chinese evergreen species and cultivars.  I finally got 'Fire Dragon' in 2011, and the foliage has turned impressively dark red-purple now, although mine is still a small plant.

Thanks for the information on Epimedium 'William Stearn', I really must get E. omeiense, seems to lead to so many wonderful hybrids.  Your photo on the VRV Forum shows off 'William Stearn' well:
http://www.vrvforum.be/forum/index.php?PHPSESSID=afbjh5oh714d2o3esl3ps30...

Regarding Epimedium 'Black Sea' is actually regarded as a hybrid; E. pinnatum ssp. colchicum and E. pubigerum.  While characterized as a spreader, it increases relatively slowly, more of a slowly spreading clumper.

By the way, what can you tell us about Epimedium x omeiense 'Pale Fire Siblings' that I see on VRV Forum?  It's a beautiful plant.
http://www.vrvforum.be/forum/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=346.0;attac...

Lastly, here's a new one to my collection, Epimedium elachyphyllum, only introduced a few years ago by Darrell Probst.  It's a very small species only growing 6" (15 cm) and producing small simple leaves.  It has tiny white and yellow flowers, which I have not seen yet.  Appears to be an evergreen species.  It is from N. Guizhou province, China.

Epimedium x omeiense 'Pale Fire Siblings' is a cross between acuminatum x fangii. About E. fangii writes Garden Vision Epimediums in their catalogue: Darell Probst found this species " on the ridge of cliffs, i.e. two sides of that ridge were vertical abysses".
That's why I think all members of the x omeiense family tend to grow down with the flowers underneath.
Look at my pictures of: Myriad Years, Akane,(flowers above leaves) Stormcloud and Pale Fire Siblings.
http://www.vrvforum.be/forum/index.php?topic=346.75

gerrit wrote:

Epimedium x omeiense 'Pale Fire Siblings' is a cross between acuminatum x fangii. About E. fangii writes Garden Vision Epimediums in their catalogue: Darell Probst found this species " on the ridge of cliffs, i.e. two sides of that ridge were vertical abysses".
That's why I think all members of the x omeiense family tend to grow down with the flowers underneath.
Look at my pictures of: Myriad Years, Akane,(flowers above leaves) Stormcloud and Pale Fire Siblings.
http://www.vrvforum.be/forum/index.php?topic=346.75

Thanks Gerrit, I find it so interesting to see crosses between known species, to learn what sorts of qualities may be imparted to siblings.  I do grow E. fangii (obtained from Garden Vision Epimediums), I really like it for the growth characteristic, low growing, substantial 3-part leathery oval leafs, make it immediately recognizable.  It is not very showy in flower, doesn't produce many flowers.  It's a spreader, so this coming spring I'll probably have to move it to avoid the shoots intertwining with other plants.  Could be useful in a hybridization program for its foliar aspects.

http://www.hethoutenhuis.eu/index.php/p2/z5/e/169/0/0/1116/53

Is this the same plant as in your collection? Epimedium elachyphyllum?

gerrit wrote:

http://www.hethoutenhuis.eu/index.php/p2/z5/e/169/0/0/1116/53

Is this the same plant as in your collection? Epimedium elachyphyllum?

Could be... I have not seen flowers on my young plant yet.  The photo on that link is for E. elachyphyllum 'Paper Dolls'; not sure what's different about that named form, and when I research the name, it only seems to trace back to www.hethoutenhuis.eu site, so it must be a form named by that nursery.

What glorious photos of epimediums! I especially like Mark's picture taken in young woodland. A friend many years ago was developing a woodland planting under coppiced hazel (Kent is renowned for coppice and it carries a wonderful understory of anemone, celandine and bluebells in spring). As far as I know 'William Stearn' was raised by Robin White at Blackthorn Nursery, and I remember Robin showing it to me in a polytunnel completely full of epimediums some years ago. Quite a sight.

Good wishes for Christmas and 2012!

I took many Epimedium photos in spring 2011 that I never had the chance to assimilate. Now in the winter months, I can reflect on some epimedium species and hybrids from the past season, as well as, recap some of the "developments" this past season. I have already expressed my admiration for Epimedium x setosum (E. diphyllum x E. sempervirens), shown here in its recent fall/winter garb: http://nargs.org/smf/index.php?topic=630.msg13377#msg13377

Here are a few photos of this tiny-flowered charmer in early May 2011, from it's initial amber-leaf emergence:

One to two weeks later, the plant plumps up into a low forest of trim vertically-held leaflets like little shields, and clouds of little white flowers above.

In keeping with small flowered types, the next two photos are of a small mounding hybrid with amber spring leaves and nice leaf speckling.  I think there are definite hybridization possibilities with small flowered types.  The speckling comes from either E. x youngianum 'Liliputian", but amplified in this hybrid, or from E. x youngianum 'Freckles', but with more regular speckling and fewer mottled patches.

McDonough wrote:

I think there are definite hybridization possibilities with small flowered types.  The speckling comes from either E. x youngianum 'Liliputian", but amplified in this hybrid, or from E. x youngianum 'Freckles', but with more regular speckling and fewer mottled patches.

I agree, Mark. Although flowers are a plus, this genus have so many species with beautiful leaves of many kinds.

Tim wrote:

As far as I know 'William Stearn' was raised by Robin White at Blackthorn Nursery, and I remember Robin showing it to me in a polytunnel completely full of epimediums some years ago. Quite a sight.

Tim, what you wrote is right. This Epimedium was created as a hybrid between E.membranaceum and x omeiense, at Blackthorn Nursery, by the renowned plantsman Robin White. The name he gave was a tribute to William Stearn, the author of "The genus Epimedium". The nursery has been closed now and Mr. White is a gardener in is own garden.
2 pictures taken in spring. My new acquisition of this beautiful plant with its proud name, Epimedium 'William Stearn"

Epimedium 'William Stearn' is certainly worthy of its name, a most handsome of Epimedium, with such rich color flowers that are well presented and clear of the foliage.  It is clear when observing this cultivar, it has inherited E. membranaceum genes, a species that displays its flowers proudly along long arching stems well above the foliage.  I have put this fine cultivar on my watch-list in hope that it arrives in USA nurseries.  Gerrit, does this cultivar also have a long season of bloom and rebloom?  My personal experience with E. membranaceum hybrids is the progeny inherits some degree of the unique everblooming characteristic of that species, often blooming into August when most "eppies" are done by the end of May.

On the other hand, I'm often left disappointed with some of the named cultivars of Chinese evergreen species, like Epimedium 'Kaguyahime'.  The foliage is beautifully mottled in spring, but the foliage soon surpasses the flowers which hides and diminishes the display.  Here's a photo taken in 2010, early enough in the season that the flowers are just starting to open and are visible but within a week they are largely obscured by foliage.  A primary hybridization goal for me is to get the flowers above the foliage.

I've shown the following hybrid before from a side angle, here it is from an overhead viewpoint; an E. membranaceum x brevicornu hybrid.
http://nargs.org/smf/index.php?topic=630.msg9257#msg9257
This one shows a stronger resemblance to E. membranaceum, except with the telltale fuzzy stems and pedicels attributed to E. brevicornu. But one can also see, this is a more compact plant with shorter, more in-proportion stems with lots of big yellow flowers... an improved characteristic.  It bloomed well into summer, as most E. membranaceum hybrids do.

Epimedium brevicornu continues to be one of the best all-around species, making such perfect rounded clumps of mottled foliage and a haze of little white and yellow flowers.  It is most fertile and hybridizes readily.

I have numerous hybrids between E. brevicornu and E. membranaceum; until a recent plant relocation in 2011 I had these two species growing so closely together that their stems intertwined, accounting for many hybrid seedlings.  This is one of the better hybrid seedlings; just keeps on blooming well into August with a flurry of little white and yellow flowers, the flowers about 3x larger than E. brevicornu, but still very small flowers when compared to E. membranaceum.

I've shown the following two yellow-flowered hybrids before, but here shown from a different vantage point and new emphasis. On the left is a hybrid between E. davidii EMR x (probably) E. brevicornu, with very small chunky flowers of yellow and pinkish sepals... rather floriferous, and behind it on the right is an E. davidii EMR hybrid, appearing much like the parent, but much more floriferous and making a good show.

A season 2011 closeup of E. davidii "Woolong Select", a dwarf form that Darrell Probst introduced that is small enough for a trough, but with large boxy bright yellow flowers; the flowers keep on coming long into the season with lots of rebloom.  I target this one as a stud.

Perhaps incongruous to this current line of Epimedium thought, but previously I struggled to get a good photo of the E. grandiflorum 'Cranberry Sparkle', not a hybrid, but an alpine selection of E. grandiflorum with the darkest red-purple flower color of any grandiflorum.  It is probably too leafy or shy of bloom to be first class, but its very late emergence in spring (thus extending the season a bit) and the ultra-dark flower color, suggest unique qualities for use in a hybridization program.

Mark, if you ever get more seeds than you have space to grow, I can offer some space here ;D

I am really encouraged to try harder with epimediums. I have found them quite slow to establish and wonder whether this is because they resent being divided into too small a pieces? Our climate is also relatively summer dry, but having said this a number of species like wushanense have grown well. With such a variety Mark you must have the prospect of some really exciting hybrids arising in the garden! I like the dwarf form of davidii very much - will be very interesting to see its potential in hybridising with other epis.

McDonough wrote:

Epimedium 'William Stearn' is certainly worthy of its name, a most handsome of Epimedium, with such rich color flowers that are well presented and clear of the foliage.  It is clear when observing this cultivar, it has inherited E. membranaceum genes, a species that displays its flowers proudly along long arching stems well above the foliage.  I have put this fine cultivar on my watch-list in hope that it arrives in USA nurseries.  Gerrit, does this cultivar also have a long season of bloom and rebloom?  My personal experience with E. membranaceum hybrids is the progeny inherits some degree of the unique everblooming characteristic of that species, often blooming into August when most "eppies" are done by the end of May.

My first experience with this hybrid is an extended blooming period indeed. Just like his parent membanaceum. But I must be careful. My young plant was planted in May in a very fertile bed with deep leaflitter just like many other new acquisitions. So perhaps my plant rewarded me with new stems. The other new plants did not flower, so I'm hopeful.

McDonough wrote:

I've shown the following hybrid before from a side angle, here it is from an overhead viewpoint; an E. membranaceum x brevicornu hybrid.
http://nargs.org/smf/index.php?topic=630.msg9257#msg9257
This one shows a stronger resemblance to E. membranaceum, except with the telltale fuzzy stems and pedicels attributed to E. brevicornu. But one can also see, this is a more compact plant with shorter, more in-proportion stems with lots of big yellow flowers... an improved characteristic.  It bloomed well into summer, as most E. membranaceum hybrids do.

This is probably what you wanted to get. An almost everblooming compact plant with rather big flowers. Coloured leaves in spring and a very showy second flush. Now you only have to clone it giving a name and introduce on the web.

McDonough wrote:

A season 2011 closeup of E. davidii "Woolong Select", a dwarf form that Darrell Probst introduced that is small enough for a trough, but with large boxy bright yellow flowers; the flowers keep on coming long into the season with lots of rebloom.  I target this one as a stud.

I've seen this one before and wasn't impressed, but now I do. This is one to watch and to hybridize with. You know Mark: as a rockgardener I'm fond of small sizes, and I'm exited by the idea to create, if possible  dwarf-forms at all wellknown E.-species.
Very big flowers in comparing to it's size. It's a natural found hybrid, promisely.

gerrit wrote:

McDonough wrote:

I've shown the following hybrid before from a side angle, here it is from an overhead viewpoint; an E. membranaceum x brevicornu hybrid.
http://nargs.org/smf/index.php?topic=630.msg9257#msg9257
This one shows a stronger resemblance to E. membranaceum, except with the telltale fuzzy stems and pedicels attributed to E. brevicornu. But one can also see, this is a more compact plant with shorter, more in-proportion stems with lots of big yellow flowers... an improved characteristic.  It bloomed well into summer, as most E. membranaceum hybrids do.

This is probably what you wanted to get. An almost everblooming compact plant with rather big flowers. Coloured leaves in spring and a very showy second flush. Now you only have to clone it giving a name and introduce on the web.

Well, it remains to be seen with such first generation crosses, while improvements might be seen, I'm in no rush to name every such hybrid... they really must be something of exceptional merit, and must pass a number of years of observation.  Many of these hybrids will serve in further hybridization efforts.

Year 2012 will be here soon, so I reflect on some of the better Epimedium hybrids showing up in my gardens and revelations of the 2011 season.

First up is a small Epimedium x youngianum type with good deep pink flowers and a broad white stripe down the center of each sepal, very showy.

Next are the variable hybrid seedlings from E. x youngianum 'Liliputian'.  They varied quite a bit, all were nice, but one in particular was extraordinarily floriferous.  I will continue to evaluate this one, but have to say I think it by far the most floriferous dwarf Epimedium I've seen to date, and will earmark this one for division and propagation in 2012.  In te view on the right, several 'Liliputian' hybrids can be seen, including the super-floriferous one.

I selected two seedlings that showed extra-bold-and-pointed star-like flowers, not sure what contributed to the end result, but who am I to argue with the result ;D. Fellow Epimedium aficionado, and frequent NARGS & SRGC Forum contributor Wim Boens dubbed the following plant as 'Mark's Star'.  For the time being, I am referring to this plant as that name (first two photos on the left below).  It has olive-bronze spring foliage and extra spiky pastel flowers, near white with lavender pink edges.  On the right is a sibling seedling that is paler, but with the same extra spiky star-like flowers.

Sometimes one selects a hybrid seedling, just because you like it.  The following one is a small x youngianum type, with lots of small uniquely shaped flowers, most flowers only had 2 sepals, so I dubbed it 'Bipolar'.  I often apply such "working names", not necessarily a name to be used if I were ever to actually introduce such a plant.  It's a little sweetie.

Part of the process of hybridization is to closely observe the results.  Most of what I show so far represents bee-pollinated hybrids; thus the neighboring Epimediums become very important.  Darrell Probst suggested one way to get worthy hybrids is to plant selected parents very close together, then select the spontaneous hybrids under those plants or sow seed collected from such plants.  One of the more remarkable Epimedium cultivars for intense dark foliage coloring in spring is E. grandiflorum 'Dark Beauty'.  Hybrids from this plant all show a propensity for stunning spring foliage in shades of chocolate and hot toffee.  The trouble with the hybrids I show you, is that the Epimedium neighbors all had pale flowers (E. grandiflorum 'Larchmont', E. grandiflorum f. flavescens forms, E. x sasakii, E. sempervirens).  The foliage is very showy, plant growth is low in their first flush, but flower color is washed out.  Lesson learned.

Now imagine the possibilities if such a plant were crossed with a bright yellow Epimedium, or bright red, or other eye-catching color.  The following 4 photos show such pallid 'Dark Beauty' hybrids with great foliage but lousy flowers.  I hope to rectify this situation.

The following hybrid is being watched for a couple of reasons; it has attractive flowers of inverted color (long and pale star-like reflexed sepals, and much darker petals at the center) and bright red foliage in summer and later in the season that make it a stand-out foliage plant.

And lest we forget the existing varieties, some older cultivars and species are truly superb garden plants.  On the left is E. youngianum 'Jenny Wren', which has excellent foliage, compact habit, and showy masses of light pink flowers.  On the right is plain ol' E. grandiflorum, as sold by Garden Vision Epimediums for a mere $6 a plant... not among the many dozens of named cultivars, but a superb plant in its own right with large and abundant flowers held well about the neat foliage.  Everytime I visit Garden Vision, I buy another of this one, just because it is so attractive yet inexpensive.

Looking forward to Epimediums 2012.. Happy New Year!

Many great pictures. It must be delightful roaming around in your woodland, discovering all those treasures. Look at the display in the last picture. That make me looking forward for the spring of 2012 indeed.

First of all, that floriferous E. x y.'Liliputian'. You showed it before. An amazing plant. I agree, this is one to divide and sell.
The one with the broad white line in the middle, very showy indeed, beautiful. Another x youngianum. You called it a revelation. I think, maybe this one is even better than Mark's star
About the crosses with 'Dark Beauty. You seem disappointed about the final result. You had high expectations. Me too. Children of a parent so superb must be fine. Not always, as proved here. You need 2 parents. So Mark, you have to divide your "Dark Beauty" or to move or handpollination. (didn't you do it?)
Do they sell their unnamed hybrids at GVN? almost for free? If so, it seems to me like an 'eppie-heaven'

See you back in 2012, hopefuly you overcome the devestations of the Halloween-storm. (saw the thread yesterday)

Gerrit

gerrit wrote:

Many great pictures. It must be delightful roaming around in your woodland, discovering all those treasures. Look at the display in the last picture. That make me looking forward for the spring of 2012 indeed.

First of all, that floriferous E. x y.'Liliputian'. You showed it before. An amazing plant. I agree, this is one to divide and sell.
The one with the broad white line in the middle, very showy indeed, beautiful. Another x youngianum. You called it a revelation. I think, maybe this one is even better than Mark's star
About the crosses with 'Dark Beauty. You seem disappointed about the final result. You had high expectations. Me too. Children of a parent so superb must be fine. Not always, as proved here. You need 2 parents. So Mark, you have to divide your "Dark Beauty" or to move or handpollination. (didn't you do it?)
Do they sell their unnamed hybrids at GVN? almost for free? If so, it seems to me like an 'eppie-heaven'

See you back in 2012, hopefuly you overcome the devestations of the Halloween-storm. (saw the thread yesterday)

Gerrit

Thank you Gerrit for your kind words. 

Regarding the E. grandiflorum 'Dark Beauty' hybrid plants, sorry I didn't make it clear, the plants shown were all from bee-pollinated seedlings that pop up under the mother plant, and due to the fact neighboring epimediums on each side of 'Dark Beauty' are pale flowered, all one gets is pale flowered hybrids.  Yes indeed, I did make hand crosses with Dark Beauty, and those seedlings are only into their first year this summer, so it'll be 2 more years before we see the results.  I too am looking forward to a great Epimedium year in 2012, the anticipation is the best part.

In answer to your question, I don't know what Garden Vision Epimediums does with their excess seedlings.

Looking forward to continuing this discussion in 2012 :)