Colchicum byzantinum

– Posted in: Miscellaneous
2 comments

These colchicums were growing here when we moved in, and have multiplied freely. They are very adaptable, as you might expect from a bulb that has been in cultivation for over 300 years. The botanist who named them got his from two Viennese ladies who got them from someone in Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine empire. They are almost always my earliest blooming colchicum.

About the Author

Kathy Purdy is a colchicum evangelist, converting unsuspecting gardeners into colchicophiles. She gardens in rural upstate NY, which used to be USDA Hardiness Zone 4 but is now Zone 5. Kathy’s been writing since 4th grade, gardening since high school, and blogging since 2002. Find her on Instagram as kopurdy.

When dealing with frost it is always best to be paranoid. In the spring never think it is too late for one more frost to come. And in the fall never think it too early.

~Rundy in Frost

2 Comments… add one

Kathy Purdy September 17, 2008, 8:04 am

Yes, Kerri, we gather elderberries and make elderberry-apple pie with them.

kerri September 16, 2008, 10:59 pm

Love those colchicums Kathy! They look very pretty peeking through the grass and the sedum. How nice to see them in Carol’s garden too 🙂 I just planted caryopteris Blue Beard, a passalong from our son and wife. Theirs produces seedlings readily and thrives in Rochester.
Oh my, that grape pie looked wonderful. I’ll bet it didn’t last long! We have quite a few concords this year. Jelly making time! I also make elderberry/apple. It’s delicious. Do you gather elderberries?

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