Crazy

There are lots of Summer Glads growing on the plot, where the pollen parent is frozen tristis pollen from Winter Glads. Most are unusable because the flowers tend to be the normal size, but the flowering stem is too thin. Most have a low bud count, you need at least eight minimum. Another fault is a lack of vigour in producing offsets. But despite that, a few do get selected and they are crackers.

But this appeared today, it has some of the aforementioned negative attributes, but the colour is something else

Breaking ground

I've very generously been loaned a piece of land in the Arreton Valley. This now takes me to borrowing three pieces of land across the island. This plot will be used for third year trial Crocosmias, second year Gladiolus and building stock of existing cultivars.

Just needs to be rabbit proofed and then we're off!

A star is born

The flower beds are really starting to get moving now, all the earliest to flower are the primulinus x huttonii hybrids. The vigour is unbelievable and the variation all from one cross and in some cases the same seed pod is incredible.

The main aim has always to be reduce the plant and flower size in proportion and make it into a garden plant. I've never been so close and we are only about twenty plants into the flowering season.

Getting a range of plants together with shared characteristics, but with variations on flower colour has proved elusive until I embarked on this cross with the species tristis.

Lots more to follow!