Bittersweet Sight

Colchicum autumnale, autumn crocus, signaling the end of another year in the garden. They're like a floral bookend to the growing season, which began with the first true crocuses of spring.



Here's the full shot from which I took the banner.



I'm not sure what the insect visitor is in the bloom on the left. Some kind of fly, I think.

Beautiful banner Elizabeth!

Love the crocus not only for their diminutive beauty and the way you've captured their beauty for the banner. "Unfortunately the Autumn Crocus is highly toxic and can cause severe vomiting, gastrointestinal bleeding, liver and kidney damage, and respiratory failure." (per Google) Not from which you want to take the saffron.

Lovely! Do you grow these in your garden, Elizabeth? I've been thinking about trying them for a little end-of-the year bloom. Approximately when do they bloom? Is there anything else that blooms at the same time?

Pretty banner Elizabeth!

lauriemorningglory said:Lovely! Do you grow these in your garden, Elizabeth? I've been thinking about trying them for a little end-of-the year bloom. Approximately when do they bloom? Is there anything else that blooms at the same time?

No, I don't grow them. Around here they seem to bloom anywhere from late September through mid October, depending on the year. Lately, with the wacky weather patterns, bloom seasons for almost everything can vary by several weeks. Currently Ann Arbor is listed as zone 6a, though not so long ago it was in zone 5b. Bearing Fleur569's warning about toxicity in mind, I'd encourage you to try some of them. One of the places I see them growing is on a wooded hillside at Hidden Lake Gardens which hosts a large collection of hostas that are planted among cultivated or naturalized woodland spring wildflowers like bloodroot, trillium, wild ginger, Dutchman's Breeches, etc. In such an environment, they're 'the only game in town' when they bloom. There may be a few hostas still in bloom, but they're pale in color. So the clumps of autumn crocus provide lovely oases of color in a sea of green. The point is, they seem to tolerate a fair amount of shade and to grow happily, say, around the bases of trees.

Quite a few sun-loving garden plants that have been blooming all summer (the usual suspects) are still in bloom when the autumn crocus blooms, and continue to bloom up 'til the first frosts, and some hydrangeas are still going strong at that time of the year. There are a few autumn blooming trees, of course, most notably Seven Son Flower tree, Heptacodium miconioides, and some wildflowers (now routinely cultivated) like goldenrod and asters, that bloom from late summer through the fall season. Mustn't forget dahlias, either, as late bloomers. But I don't know any other flower that begins its blooming season as late as autumn crocus. I'd love to hear about other people's experiences in this regard. Always eager to learn more about the natural world.

Just beautiful!

Thanks, Elizabeth. Thought I might try them among some short ornamental grasses to provide a little color---though they might prefer a little more moisture than the grasses. I have October Skies aster, which blooms in October, and the pink of the colchicums would probably look good with the blue of the aster.

Thanks to everyone who left 's, 's, and lovely comments. All are much appreciated.