Cold Climate Gardening

Colchicum autumnale ‘Nancy Lindsay’ bloomed quite a while ago. She only threw forth two exquisite blossoms, and I somehow didn’t get out there with a camera in time. It would have been worth it, for Russell Stafford rightly describes her as having “abundant, bright-pink, purple-stemmed blooms . . . in September and October. Vigorous.” Yes, she has the elusive purple perianth tube that I have long sought in C. speciosum without success thus far. Bloom time was mid-September, after ‘Autumn Herald’ and the two ‘Queens,’ but before C. byzantinum, if I remember correctly. But bloom times seemed to be off this year, so don’t hold me to it. She certainly didn’t bloom into October, but if she turns out to be as abundant and vigorous as described, I have hope for the future. Get this one if you can, and plant it where you will be sure not to miss it.
She must be of fairly recent origin, as Bowles makes no mention of her, not even under the spurious (according to Bryan) name of C. pannonicum.

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