Erythroniums for days

“The snake which cannot cast its skin has to die. As well the minds which are prevented from changing their opinions; they cease to be mind.” 

Friedrich Neitzsche

I got to visit the renowked plantswoman Diana Reeck this week to see her work on the Erythronium hybrid selections she has been developing. 

Diana Reeck Showing me the beds she is working on selecting through her various forms of the Walther Blohm hybrids 

Check out that beauty! I'm hoping she has another release to get on the market this year! Stay tuned. 

The weather has been all over the place this week, it was 80 degrees and blue skys and the next day it's 54 and pouring rain. But the nights do seem to be warmer now.

Cheers,
Mark

Fawn Lilies in Season

"I think there is a difference between the American Dream and the American Day Dream, in one you work hard to pull yourself, up by the bootstraps, and never give up the pursuit of it, in the other you chase the dreams of others, the movie stars, the influencers, the corporate wealth horders and the lot, by mass consuming what they are selling, but then the buzz of the time clock, reminds you that break time is over and its time to get back to work "

Mark Akimoff

Erythronium "Jeanine"
The Hoog introduction, by they breeding work of  Mr. Eaden of two California natives produced such a deep sulphur yellow color. It is pretty dramatic offset by The Scorpiris beauty Iris X 'Marjeh'.

Erythronium 'Pacific Sunset Strain'
This is the pink of Diana Reeck's introduction via Walter Blohm's breeding work. The Erythroniums hybridize well, as it seems to be one of those spring ephemerals for which much breeding and selection has occurred. I'm probably not going to have time to make any crosses this year, but my passion for breeding lies with the Fritillaria as it seems so much less has been done with that group of plants. 

It's been raining cats and dogs, I think we are up to a 1.5" this weekend alone, soggy lawns and now the white fleshed nectarine is starting to bloom and it doesn't look like much will be flying for pollinators this week. 

56 and pouring rain today, the ditch is full and flowing hard. 

Cheers, 

Mark

"Fawn Lilies Sir from over the bridge "

Life is eternal, and love is immortal, and death is only a horizon; and a horizon is nothing save the limit of our sight.  
Rossiter Worthington Raymond

Erythronium 'Pacific Sunset Strain'
From the amazing Plantswoman Diana Reeck, these are insanely beautiful little gems, you really should see her raised beds chocked full of them with hundreds of flowers.

I was thinking about those T. kurabayashii that seem to spreading now, just a thought, but someone that gets to do science should do some genetic work on those, my guess is T. kurabayashii is actually a spontaneous genetic sport of T. albidum that could perhaps be induced by some environmental factor like a changing climate. That would explain it showing up well outside of it's range all of a sudden and the population I found is intermixed with T. albidum. Let the plant mutations begin!

Rainy in the valley, but temperatures seem to have moderated to spring like, at least it's in the upper 50's. 

Cheers, 

Mark