Topic: Why don't my Eranthis survive?

[gray1720]

Once again, they should be up and flowering, and my winter aconites have gone. They grow wild round here, as far as I know the soil is little different, so why does every one I put in cark it?

[saddad]

Do you put them in "the green" or as bulbs... snowdrops rarely establish from "dry" bulbs Eranthis may be the same...

[gray1720]

I put them in green, usually about now as I see them and think "Oooh, I must have winter aconites!"

[Palustris]

They do seem to be particular as to where they will grow. They thrive in my acid clay, but do nothing  in our neighbours garden which is supposedly the same type of soil. No help, but ..............

[gray1720]

They do seem to be particular as to where they will grow. They thrive in my acid clay, but do nothing  in our neighbours garden which is supposedly the same type of soil. No help, but ..............

That's inspired me to look at the soil - the RHS reckon they aren't too fussy, but prefer alkaline, which ours is. Bother, nothing there.

[Palustris]

They grew like weeds in our son's garden in Cambridgeshire which was clay over chalk, so very different to ours here.
Have you ever tried growing them from seeds? The seed needs to be sown when green for good germination.
They need fertile, humus-rich soil that remains moist in summer. Odd, my soil is poor, humus lacking and dries out in summer. No understanding of it.

[Tee Gee]

Might be my imagination but I am putting similar instances down to the time spring bulbs die back,i.e. the period they replenish their bulb/ corms for the following year.

I have noticed that in recent years the period from mid- March to mid- May (what used to be the normal die back period)has been much warmer than it used to be, and the ‘ Die back process’  is much quicker.

In my opinion the bulbs are not being adequately replenished because of this resulting often in poorer growth/ more blind plants.

In the past I used to work on around a 6 weeks die back period now I have seen it at less than 3 weeks.

As I say this is only an observation, what do you think?

[gray1720]

An impressive set of places they will grow, except my flippin' garden! I'm beginning to suspect the tree rat.

You may have a point Tee Gee - right now I have tulips out alongside crocuses, and two weeks ago I found two spears of asparagus. It's mad!