No Frost on the Pumpkins.......yet.

Happy Halloween No frost on the pumpkins, I was walking around last night at dusk and I thought for sure the chill was settling in good enough for a hard killing frost. But I got up this morning and the outside thermometer was reading 40 degrees. Oh well, I'm fine with the killing frost holding off for a bit longer. I mowed the grass in the field last night because I didn't get to it on the weekend and now I guess I do wish it would freeze up a bit so I can put the mower away for the winter. The average first frost Date for my location is October 11-20th. so It's not likely to be far off now. But  good long growing season is fine with me.

Colchicum 'White Waterlily"

I hope it's ok to repost something off the Pacific Bulb Society archive, because I was trying to find some details on the above shown cultivar and I ran across this gem from Jim Mckenney posted on the PBS in 2009.

" Colchicum 'Waterlily' itself is said to have resulted from a cross between Colchicum speciosum 'Album' with a double, white-flowered form of C. autumnale in a effort to get a large double-flowered white colchicum. 'Alboplenum' is not a sport of 'Waterlily'; if anything, it might be the double white autumnale form used to produce 'Waterlily'. However, as you noticed, it has only a few anthers. Bowles recorded another less double white-flowered form of autumnale; and if that form has more anthers, then perhaps it was used to produce 'Waterlily'.  It might be worthwhile to re-do these crosses using the white-flowered Colchicum 'Innocence' aka 'byzantinum album' instead of Colchicum speciosum 'Album'. "

Jim McKenney

Sunny and highs in the 60's for the Trick or Treating kiddos this Halloween.

Cheers,

Mark