Winter Greenhouse Goodies

On a cold winters day nothing warms your heart more than seeing changes in the plants in the greenhouse. Over 1 week ago the buds of  Colchicum kesselringii emerged.  My greenhouse is kept heated at 3-8 Celcius , and when the sun shines it can reach 15 Celcius. I have a fan to cycle out warm air so it remains cooler. For the last week plus we have had sub-zero temperatures.

The plants I grow in the greenhouse vary from South African bulbs, to other bulb genera such as Crocus, Tecophilaea, Calochortus to name a few. I also grow alpines, Onco, Juno, and Reticulate Irises, and Asarum. The list goes on. Featured here is C. kesselringii, a late winter blooming Colchicum. This Colchicum is found in Tajikistan and Afghanistan. The colour of the exterior petal is extremely variable. Mine are varied in colour as seen below. It blooms when leaves are present, and is a small Colchicum, 3-4" in height. There are two corms in the pot, and I will likely add to this post, once there are more flowers. More greenhouse goodies to come......

 

Winter 2013

Happy New Year! Awww Winter in the Northern Hemisphere! I quite enjoy Winter, the snow, the crisp clean air. We have had a nice amount of snow thus far which was sorely missed ( at least by me) last winter. It was a very dry, milder than normal winter.  Well, it certainly looks, and feels like Winter out there. The days are slowly getting longer now. I went out along Lake Ontario to do some birdwatching. Unfortunately I don't possess the best camera for photographs that are distant. Below are some images from this foray.

Bufflehead

Common Goldeneye

Mallard

Hooded Merganser

Red-Breasted Merganser ( Male and Female)

Greater Scaup (Male and Female)