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Few "bulbs" are as familiar yet as little known as the
spring
crocuses. Hybrids of C. vernus (Dutch
crocus) and C. chrysanthus (snow crocus) have long
been garden mainstays. But the spring crocuses have far more to offer
than these. For
mass planting and naturalizing, species such as C.
angustifolius, C. etruscus , C. korolkowii, C. x luteus , and C. tommasinianus equal or
surpass the common garden hybrids. And few genera of early-blooming
plants present such a wealth of possibilities for the rock garden and
other smaller garden niches. Give them well-drained soil and a
reasonable amount of sunlight, and they will reward you with years of
beauty. Their
only significant drawback is that squirrels and a few other varmints
consider their corms a delicacy. If such critters abound in
your neighborhood, consider planting C. tommasinianus
(in our experience the most pest-resistant species), or plan to provide
some protection (we suggest a few possibilities in the cultural
instructions that accompany each shipment, and would be happy to
discuss others by phone). |
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 Crocus angustifolius 'Minor'
~ A "very attractive and commendable" selection with "smaller, darker,
and somewhat later" flowers (Jelitto & Schacht). Deep orange-yellow
with bronze stripes; 2 inches tall; completely irresistible. Zone 4.
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1/$3 |
| Crocus antalyensis Sky-Blue Form
~
Large, fragrant flowers of a beautiful pale blue are reason enough to covet this close relative of C. flavus. Add to this an early bloom season (February/March) and a sturdy constitution, and you've got a crocus you can't refuse. Easily grown in full sun and well-drained soil, it prefers to be planted on the deep side (4 to 5 inches). Mediterranean; SW Turkey. Zone 6.
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1/$11 |
| Crocus candidus ssp. subflavus 'Little Tiger' ~ In this selection of this glowing yellow crocus (which Mathew assigns to C. olivieri), the typical beige stipplings have multiplied and merged into bronze stripes. Very floriferous and easy. Mediterranean/modified continental; NW
Turkey. Zone 6.
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1/$9 |
| Crocus etruscus
'Rosalind' ~ In contrast to the brash hues of many spring
crocuses, this sport of ‘Zwanenburg’ is adorned in subdued tones of
pearly lavender, with hints of pink. February/March bloom.
Mediterranean; W Italy. Zone 6.
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1/$1 |
 Crocus gargaricus
ssp. herbertii ~ No genus does yellow better than Crocus. In this exemplary case it
refulgently verges on orange. Remarkable also for its stoloniferous
habit and its love of summer moisture, this makes an ideal candidate
for the sunny peat bed. Modified continental/Montane; NW Turkey. Zone 5.
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1/$5 |
| Crocus korolkowii ~ Here's a chance to buy seed-grown corms of one of the earliest and showiest crocuses, whose luminous flowers of a glossy polished orange-yellow caught the eye of the Russian General Korolkow more than 125 years ago as he galumphed across the steppe somewhere in Uzbekistan. These beauties will show some variation in the amount of bronze stippling. Steppe. Zone
3/4.
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1/$1 |
Crocus korolkowii 'Kiss of Spring' ~ A selection
of especially high candlepower, with numerous large, dazzling yellow
flowers, only scantily marked with purple. February/March bloom. Vigorous, floriferous, and showy. Zone 3/4.
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1/$2 |
| Crocus korolkowii
'Lucky Number' ~ This winning number brings you a late-winter
jackpot of glossy golden flowers with maroon-brown throats. An excellent and rarely
available selection. Steppe. Zone 3/4.
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1/$2 |
| Crocus kosaninii
~
A recently described and highly ornamental species from that Crocus
hotbed, the Balkans. Bright lilac-blue, with dark violet feathering and
yellow throat. Late-blooming: March/April. Modified continental;
Kosovo. Zone 5.
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1/$4 |
| Crocus malyi ~ Crocus guru Brian Mathew praises this March-blooming Balkan species, bearing large, white,
yellow-centered flowers with undertones of rose. Yellow anthers and
orange stigmas add to the show. Vigorous and self-sowing, with
remarkable hardiness for a coastal Mediterranean species. Deserves much
wider use. W Croatia. Zone 5/6. AGM
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1/$2 |
| Crocus malyi 'Ballerina' ~ This clone dispenses with the yellow thoat, opting instead for pure white with touches of gray at the base. W Croatia. Zone 5/6.
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1/$4 |
| rujanensis
~ Crocuses do blue just as beautifully as they do yellow. This only recently discovered crocus does both – it's an ethereal purple-blue with a contrasting amber throat. Very nice. Modified continental/Mediterranean; Balkans. Zone 6. Enter quantity:
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1/$11 |
 tommasinianus 'Albus'
~ We are becoming more and more enamored with this vigorous and
self-reliant selection, whose starry white flowers with pearly
undertones combine wonderfully with other “tommies.” Rarely offered.
Zone 4. Enter quantity:
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1/$3 |
| tommasinianus 'Eric Smith'
~ This selection offers something extra – two "petals", to be precise (eight instead of the usual six). The white, purple-flecked flowers are thus fuller than those of other “tommies.” Another seldom-offered cultivar.
Zone 4. Enter quantity:
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1/$6 |
 Crocus tommasinianus
Lavender Striped
~ We're not sure whether it's pure tommy or a hybrid, but whatever its
pedigree it's a valuable addition to the roster of early-bloooming
spring croci. As the moniker suggests, the pale lavender flowers
are attractively streaked with dark purple.
Zone 4.
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1/$2.50 |
 Crocus tommasinianus 'Lilac
Beauty' ~ Colorful, gracile selection, whose elegant, slender,
starry "petals" are violet inside, light lilac outside. Choice "tommy"
for that special spot, and one of our favorites. Zone 4.
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1/$0.50 |
 Crocus tommasinianus 'Pictus'
~ E. A. Bowles' selection, and a splendid one at that, large and
lavender with deep purple tips. Comes true
from seed. Zone 4.
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1/$3 |
Crocus tommasinianus 'Roseus' ~ Another remarkable and rare E. A. Bowles
selection, with bright cyclamen-pink flowers (yes, that's right, pink).
Robust. Zone 4. AM
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1/$1 |
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Crocus vernus ssp. heuffelianus ~ This large pearly-lilac selection with rich purple inner segments and purple-tipped outer segments is a splendid exemplar of eastern European forms of C. vernus, most of which once went by the above subspecies name. A good colonizer, it is beloved by all who grow it. Modified
continental/montane; C & E Europe. Zone 3/4. Enter quantity:
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1/$2 |
| Crocus vernus ssp. heuffelianus 'Carpathian Wonder' ~ After decades of scouring Europe and central Asia for beautiful bulbs, the great Janis Ruksans still counts this 1978 discovery (from Uklin Pass) among his most outstanding introductions – "I never again found a crocus like this". The flowers are pristine white, but for a bold deep-purple blotch at their tips which tapers into a narrow midstripe that continues to the purple floral tube. Modified continental/montane; Carpathian Mountains. Zone 5.
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1/$16 |
| Crocus vernus ssp. heuffelianus 'Dark Eyes' ~ This is a spectacular midnight-purple-blotched form of the classic purple crocus. A Janis Ruksans introduction. Modified continental/montane; Carpathian Mtns. Zone 5.
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1/$7 |
| Crocus vernus ssp. heuffelianus 'Wildlife' ~
Another striking Ruksans selection, with large flowers of a misty lilac-blue, their outer "petals" adorned near their tips with a purple chevron. Modified continental/montane; Carpathian Mtns. Zone 5.
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1/$7 |
| Crocus vernus 'Michael's Purple' ~ This is not a hybrid Dutch Crocus; it's a new clone deriving from wild-collected seed. Rich, deep-purple blooms with even deeper purple tips are perfectly complemented by the orange stigmata – interior decoration at its best. It likes summer moisture. Modified continental; Ukraine. Zone 3/4.
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1/$5 |
| Crocus vernus 'Tatra Shades' ~ This gives the impression of a C. vernus doing an impression of C. tommasinianus 'Pictus'. Silvery lavender flowers daubed at their tips with rich violet-purple. We're impressed. Montane; Carpathian Mtns. Zone 5.
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1/$5 |
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Crocus vernus 'Uklin Strain' ~ In Uklin Pass in the Carpathians, Janis Ruksans collected some of the most pulchritudinous members of a particularly colorful population of the species. These seed-grown corms descend from that collection. Modified continental/montane; Ukraine. Zone 5. Enter quantity:
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1/$5 |
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Crocus versicolor JMH.8215 ~ One of the favorite garden bulbs of yesteryear (with dozens of clones in cultivation in the early 19th century), but rarely offered today except in the
form of 'Picturatus,' this variable species bears good-sized flowers
in a range of colors from lilac to white, all with purple stripes
and pearly undertones. Some real beauties here. February/March bloom.
Mediterranean; SE France. Zone 5.
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1/$6 |
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Crocus vitellinus ~ For those of you not into Latin, the specific epithet means "egg-yolk yellow," which pretty much sums it up except for the hints of beige on the outside
petals. Fragrant, easy, March-blooming, and a good forcer. Mediterranean;
Turkey to Lebanon. Zone 6.
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1/$5 |
 'Alionka'
(Reticulatus hybrid) ~ One of a new and exciting class of crocus
hybrids derived from the estimable C. reticulatus, this
little love (whose other parent is C. angustifolius
'Minor') bears inch-long, lemon-yellow, purple-striped flowers in
February and March. Its cute quotient is off the charts. Zone 4.
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1/$4.50 |
 'Early Gold'
(Reticulatus hybrid) ~ Meet 'Alionka's big brother. The flowers are of
similar coloration – lemon-yellow with vertical aubergine stripes – but
nearly twice the size (reflecting the fact that C. angustifolius
rather than its dwarf cultivar 'Minor' is the other parent). The
flowers arrive in quantity – as many as 14 per corm
– in late February. Zone 4.
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1/$4.50 |
 'Ego'
(Reticulatus hybrid) ~ The flowers – the largest of the reticulatus
hybrids – are creamy yellow with broad external featherings of
midnight-purple. Their interiors are golden-yellow. Another superior
introduction. Zone 4.
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1/$4 |
| 'Goldmine'
(Chrysanthus hybrid) ~ Even if it weren't the only double-flowered
(semidouble, actually) crocus, it would still be well worth growing for
its vibrant orange-yellow blooms, which appear in abundance in late
February. But those extra "petals" are the difference between a
standout crocus and a knockout crocus. Kerpow. Zone 4.
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1/$13 |
 'Janis Ruksans'
(Reticulatus hybrid) ~ In this very floriferous (as many as 8 flowers
per corm) and highly commendable reticulatus hybrid, the customary
external featherings – superimposed on a lemon-yellow background – have
merged into nearly solid bands. Zone 4.
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1/$4 |
| 'Little Amber'
(Reticulatus hybrid) ~ From the same cross as 'Alionka', this sprite
bears somewhat larger flowers of a stronger yellow color. The two would
look great together in the rock garden. Zone 4.
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1/$4.50 |
 Crocus 'Nida'
(Reticulatus hybrid) ~ Here is the earliest of the reticulatus hybrids.
The creamy, purple-striped flowers debut as early as mid-February. Zone
4.
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1/$4 |
 Crocus 'Uschak
Orange'
(Chrysanthus
hybrid) ~ If your garden lacks zing in the weeks before spring, you
might want to consider an application of this, the orangest and among
the earliest of the chrysanthus hybrids. Zone 4.
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1/$4 |