COLCHICUM 



THE BUI.B BOOK 



COLCHICUM 



be lifted when the leaves have died 

 down in summer — about July — and 

 replanted, separating the smaller 

 corms from the larger. 



Colchicums may also be raised 

 from seed, but it takes from three to 

 four years to produce flowering corms 

 in this way. The seeds should be 

 sown when ripe in a specially pre- 

 pared bed, and covered with about 

 3 in. of fine gritty mould. Each year 

 after the leaves have withered, a 

 little more soil should be placed on 

 top of the young plants, and at the 

 end of the third or fourth year the 

 corms may be lifted and transplanted. 



The following are amongst the best 

 Colchicums grown. 



C. agrippinum {C. tessellatum). — 

 A very old species or variety of C. 

 variegatum, native of S. Europe, 

 having purple flowers in August. 



C. alpinum (C. montanum). — This 

 Apennine species produces its purple 

 or deep rose flowers in September 

 and October. 



C. autumnale. — This is a common 

 Meadow Safi'ron often met with in a 

 wild state in various parts of the 

 Kingdom. It has large egg-shaped 

 corms and lance-shaped leaves, 6 to 

 10 ins. long, produced in spring. The 

 bright purple cup-shaped flowers 

 appear from August to October and 

 November. There are many varieties, 

 such as album, white ; album Jlore 

 jyleiw, white, double ; crocijlorum 

 {Bot. Mag. t. 2673) maximum, 

 purple ; ^^Mjyjjwejwi, purple - rose ; 

 striatum, striped red or lilac on 

 white ; there is also a double form, 

 roseum ]ilenum, with rose-coloured 

 flowers ; amabile, rose-coloured, some- 

 times faintly chequered. 



C. B i V o n 88. — A strong-growing 

 native of S. Europe, with linear 

 grooved leaves produced in spring, 

 and flowers in autumn prettily 

 chequered with white and purple. 



C. Bornmulleri. — A fine species 

 from Eastern Europe, closely related 

 to G. sjyeciosum, having beautiful, 

 cup-shaped, long-tubed flowers of 

 rosy-lilac. 



Fig. VJ.—Colchicum autumnale. (i.) 



C. byzantium. — A vigorous species 

 from the Levant, having large, round- 

 ish, depressed corms, often producing 

 in autumn clusters of twelve to fifteen 

 pale rose flowers larger than those of 

 C. autuvmale. The leaves appear in 

 spring, and are broad, wavy, and 

 plaited. The variety cilicicum has 

 flowers as large as those of C. 

 sjKciosiim. There is a form with 

 finely variegated foliage, and another 

 one called veratrifolium, having 

 longer floral segments and 



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