Need advice on Colchicums

18 years ago

I have a small group of colchicums, whose name I've forgotten, but may be 'Autumn Herald'. I put them in about 4 years ago and though they come up every spring, they never bloomed after the first year. (They're not overcrowded.) My soil is very light and sandy. I'm thinking of moving them to an area in the yard with slightly heavier soil. When should I do this--when I first see the leaves, when the leaves are almost died back?

Comments (3)

geoforce
18 years ago
Not sure what your problem could be as my soil is also a light sandy loam with nigh perfect drainage, and also quite dry in Summer. I give them full sun, although in their location, they go into shade from the terrain about 2 pm. Move about a month after the leaves die down. They should be nicely hardened off then, about like tulip bulbs. Generally, they don't mind crowding, and bloom well even if undivided for years. The last ones I moved (just to spread them around) gave 14 bulbs where one had been planted and they had had 15 or so flowers the previous fall.

George
shrubs_n_bulbs
18 years ago
Try a general fertiliser this spring. They might not be bulking up well enough to flower in summer. I have to say it is hard to stop a Colchicum flowering unless you have really tiny bulbs.
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Sorry iris gal, if it makes you feel better there's a good chance the gophers died doing it :/ but I'm sure reinforcements have already come in to fill the ranks. Dbarron, how dare you not think my child is the cutest thing!? I like the checkered look enough, but this one has nice big blooms that stand up well, so it looks good even with the plain pinks nearby. You only really notice the pattern when close up, bUt of course who wouldn't want to sit down next to it for a close up anyway? Pitimpinia- you've seen through to my colchicum problems. I have trouble finding something to plant it with. A ground cover would be nice, but I need a tough short one that won't mind the spring leaves on the colchicum. As it is now I'm looking at mulch most of the summer!
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I actually don't mind the leaves, I find daffodil leaves FAR more offensive than colchicums. But yes, it's best (imo) to buy from a specialist and remember that they do multiply at a pretty good pace, so you don't have to buy a hundred if you want a hundred, three years from now, your fifteen will probably be a hundred, if you treat them well. Some varieties multiply faster than others, of course. I'd recommend (heartily) Odyssey Bulb (which just opened for this years orders...I think last week)...they have the largest compliment of colchs that I'm aware of. Don't wait too long, they'll be gone (I speak from experience)..and it's best to plant them before tulips and crocus are available locally. Then you get blooms this year for sure.
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chrismd
18 years ago
Just in general, I've noticed that the fall blooming crocus and colchicum DON'T if they don't get water at the proper time. Seems to be they need a good soaking to flower well. If that doesn't happen, they will put out the flower spike anyway, but it will be too weak to break ground, and the bulb will use up its water reserve and die.

Just my unscientific, unproven opinion.

Need advice on Colchicums

Comments (3)

geoforce

shrubs_n_bulbs

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chrismd

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