Colchicum cilicicum: Photos of Flowers, Leaves and Bulbs

Colchicums are fall-blooming bulbs that send out their leaves in the spring, then bloom with lavender-pink or white flowers while their bulbs are dormant (with no leaves or roots growing). I have 2 or 3 types of Colchicum growing in my yard. The information and photos in this post are about Colchicum cilicicum.



Catalogs usually show a picture of the flowers, but not the leaves. So when these tulip-like leaves started peeking up this spring, I could not figure out what they were.



Gradually I remembered planting Colchicums last year (obviously I didn't keep good records, oh well). Their leaves are often described as similar to hostas. I'd say they're like a mix of hosta and tulip leaves.



Here are the leaves in full growth. They stuck around through June, then started dying back.



Now - in September - the flowers are starting to appear. Although Colchicums are deer-resistant, the flowers I having growing outside appear to have been nibbled on by slugs. So these photos all show another batch that I ordered and didn't get planted yet. Since they bloom while dormant, these new ones are happily blooming on my windowsill, without needing water or soil.



The bulbs look like distorted tulip bulbs. Eventually they can grow to be very large, and some types put out up to 25 flowers per bulb.



These new bulbs are blooming with 5-7 flowers each. The flowers grow to about 6 inches high and have a faint scent. They should be planted somewhere special where you'll notice the floral surprise in the fall.



Colchicum cilicicum is hardy in zones 5-8 and prefers well-drained, fertile soil and shade from intense sun. These bulbs aren't inexpensive, unfortunately, but they do come back year after year if they don't rot in waterlogged soil. I ordered mine from Brent & Becky's Bulbs.



If you're looking for something a little unusual or just want some fresh flowers in the fall, check out the Colchicums. There are a number of different types - some double - and their flowers are all exquisite.

Time to Order Peonies

Along with bulbs, autumn is the time to plant bare root peonies. I have a few on order already: the herbaceous 'Kansas' from White Flower Farm and two 'Capital Red' tree peonies from Cricket Hill Garden. Last year I planted several from Swenson Gardens. Above and below are pictures of the first bloom from 'Paula Fay', which I picked up in a pot at Home Depot this spring. Once the plant matures, the blooms should show more of the yellow anthers in the middle.



I've gone peony-crazy in the past year. For a while I held back on buying any because I thought they all flopped over while blooming. But then I spent some time on the Swenson Gardens website and picked out a bunch of herbaceous peonies that don't need staking to stand up straight. I also splurged on a couple of herbaceous-tree hybrids, known as Itoh or intersectional peonies, and these plants don't need staking either. Finally, I decided to attempt some tree peonies (no staking!) from Cricket Hill. I've enjoyed looking at the gorgeous peony pictures at Peony's Envy and might order a few tree peonies from them in a few years. The floppy peonies that friends have given me will grow in the cutting garden and be enjoyed in vases. Oh, and I brought home a couple of potted peonies from my local nursery this spring. Yeah, totally peony-crazy.



Besides the staking problem, the other drawback to peonies is that they only bloom for a few weeks in late spring/early summer (they are hardy in USDA zones 2-8). But I've realized that everblooming plants with large flowers require A LOT of deadheading. I don't have time to keep up with too much of that, so I'm going to plan my gardens to enjoy different flowers at different seasons. Long-blooming plants that don't need deadheading (like 'Rozanne' hardy geraniums) are certainly welcome, too. Above is a no-name red peony that came from my husband's grandmother's garden after she passed away.



Peonies make fabulous cut flowers, lasting a week or so in the vase. Above is a bloom from 'Petite Elegance', one of those non-staking herbaceous peonies from Swenson Gardens. Peony foliage is a nice addition to the garden even after the flowers fade. During the summer, peonies are somewhat drought tolerant (though they'll grow more leaves and flowers with regular water, especially during the first few years). Peonies live a long time without needing dividing, so they're a great addition to the garden of a lazy or overwhelmed (ahem) gardener! They do take a few years to fully settle in and bloom heavily, but after that you can neglect them a bit and still enjoy a show.



These last two photos show the first bloom from 'Casablanca', also from Swenson Gardens. You can see that the giant flower is very upright without a stake. Swenson Gardens recommends that you cut the buds off for the first year or two to allow the plant to establish itself better, but I was too impatient to see the flowers. Eventually this plant will be 40" tall by 48" wide and covered with fragrant, pure-white flowers in June. Then it will provide pretty green leaves as a background for my summer-blooming flowers. Divine!



Here is the slightly out-of-control list of peonies in my yard. Many were purchased within the last year, and some of those haven't bloomed yet. Several have come from friends or relatives. Even the older ones have been set back by transplanting (sorry plants). But in future years I should enjoy an abundance of peony flowers in May and June.

Herbaceous Peonies
Casablanca (white)
Cindy's Pink
Cindy's Red
Coral Supreme (coral)
Felix Supreme (magenta)
Grandma Margaret's Red
Grandma Margaret's White
Guidon (mid pink)
Kansas (magenta)
Kathy's Pale Pink
Kathy's Pink
Paul M. Wild (crimson/magenta)
Petite Elegance (pale pink)
Pink Parfait (mid pink)

Itoh/Intersectional Peonies
Keiko (mid pink)
Kopper Kettle (copper/peach/rose)

Tree Peonies
Capital Red/Luoyang Red (to be planted this fall)

Daylilies in Pink and Peach

My favorite daylily this year is 'Frances Joiner', shown above and below. The rich peach color has looked especially good nearby lavender 'Rozanne' geraniums and vivid 'Pink Double Delight' coneflowers.



Here is Frances, glowing in the sunset. Really a pretty flower.



I continue to be impressed with 'Hush Little Baby', above, and am thinking of removing the 'Apricot Sparkles' daylilies in the west bed and dividing HLB to fill up that area instead. AS has put out a disappointing number of blooms - perhaps it really needs full sun to make much of a show. Yet HLB manages to bloom despite partial shade. And you can see its color is gorgeous.



Here is 'Millie Schlumpf', which is a prolific bloomer. As I write, the last few flowers from the first flush are finishing up, and new scapes are already appearing for a second flush of bloom. The pale color looks a little washed out in the summer sun, though.



This photo doesn't do a great job of capturing the rich colors of 'Autumn Wood', but it's going to have to do for this post. I really like the way this daylily fits into the front yard color scheme.



'Elizabeth Salter' is orange sherbet on a plant. Its color of peach is a bit softer than 'Frances Joiner' but still pretty.



Above and below are shots of 'Dublin Elaine' after a day of intense sun. The color fades somewhat through the day.



So far 'Dublin Elaine' has proven to be vigorous in its growth of both leaves and flowers. It is a recent All-American Daylily winner.



I'll finish with a picture of 'Jolyene Nichole' from morning, before the color fades at all. You can see lots of buds in the background - this pink daylily was a prolific bloomer this year. I hope to be able to say that about all of daylilies as the plants mature . . . but we'll have to wait until next summer to see.