It is still very early in the Kiwi season but several growers have a range of Daffs showing their noses and flowering .Northern growers may relate to the earliness of the season by placing these flowers as flowering just before the shortest day , — pre Christmas in your timing , very early in any hemisphere and an exceptional breeding achievement .
Just as Robin Hill has assembled a very good collection of bulbicodium and cantabricus hybrids , John Hunter is flowering a large range of seedlings with species viridiflorus pedigrees .John started working in this field over 20 years ago and has a good range of colours and forms from these early crosses .Emerald Sea is the best known ; , – here are a few other interesting flowers .
Loch Loyal – x – viridiflorus has given JAH 25 – 90C , 8 W – YO , a tall stem and usually 2 – 3 flowers per head .
This nice 8 W – Y is from the same cross ; Loch Loyal – x – viridiflorus , a very attractive flower .
John, maybe you can help. I understand that a plant is classified by the look of the flower but I don’t understand how a cultivar of Loch Loyal (Div 2) crossed by viridiflorus (jonquilla) can be classified as a tazetta even though the flower looks like a tazetta. Is this just a quirk of the classification system?
I think that the 8W-Y looks a fabulous flower. Is it fragrant?
Dave
Hi Dave ,
My error , yes they should be Div 7 .with only the viridiflorus influence .John Hunter had sent me the photos and the pedigrees but he had NOT colour coded them . I was sorting a few other of his beautiful viridiflorus seedlings and was admiring the beautiful 8W – GW W , EMERALD MONARCH ..I am a great admirer of these flowers and will post a few more as they are very early and early flowers are a strong interest to me
Cheers John ..
Good Morning John,
In the US raisers are finding that the viridiflorus seedlings have an extended vase life. As a cut flower grower these seedlings may be very useful to you for sale and for further breeding.
It would be good if some were flowering late enough for us to see in September.
Dave