Question about Mr.Fokker

Hi All...new here.
I have a question about Anemone coronaria (hope I spelled this correctly). My aunt came over in late Sept. and planted the above mentioned corms (?) in my garden. They are growing, lots of foliage, but that's not the concern right now. What is puzzling me is that my neighbor says there's no way they will survive the winter (zone 5b here) by what she's heard about them. My aunt says don't fret wee woman, they'll do just fine. So who's right? Do I dig them back up or leave them be?

Thanks in advance,
Erynne

I was curious, so I checked the Plant Files http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/1087/index.html

Two people in IL (zone 5a/5b) reported that sometimes these overwinter, and sometimes not.... I guess you'll know in spring! They are gorgeous, though. I've often admired them, although I haven't planted any here (yet).

Thanks critter. That's where I'm confused too; I hear two different opinions and read different opinions so maybe I'll just leave them and hope for the best. And yes, they are very pretty and they would fill in an area of my bed so well.....nice foliage!

I planted some of these, too. I put them in a very protected area and I will mulch heavily. Hopefully, they'll survive!

When you're "pushing" a zone for overwintering, sometimes little undefinable things get into the equation, so you have to just roll the dice... I got some naked lady bulbs this fall, and I'm not sure if they'll be hardy for me or now (conflicting reports, just like with your anemones), so I'm planting them in a few different spots and mulching them well... we'll see what happens!

I see naked ladies all over the place here in people's yards, so I'm sure they'll be fine in 6b.

Good to know! I have higher hopes now for the ones I just planted in the middle of the more "exposed" daffodil & daylily bed! Maybe I'll stick one big one out in the front garden.....

Lol, I'd never heard of naked lady bulbs and my eyes happened to fall upon your post first Kylee......well you can imagine what I initially thought...hehe.
When I get home tonight, I'm going to mulch extra good on Mr.Fokker....hate to lose them......now I must go check out those naked ladies...

Erynne

LOL!!!!

hahaha! I think there was a thread over in the photo forum maybe, titled "Naked Ladies After Dark!" That got DH's attention when he was peering over my shoulder... and now, there are naked ladies in "his" daffodil bed!

critter - do you know what kind of Naked Ladies you planted? There are a few types that come to mind that are called by that name ~ a couple (such as Belladonna lily http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/2377/index.html ) like warmer climes than ours and need to be planted with their 'noses' above soil level. Lycoris squamigera can handle cooler zones and the "spider" types are in between, I believe.

The common Lycoris that everyone has around here looks like a giant tulip bulb and needs to be planted deep. They're not fond of being disturbed, so give them a couple of years to settle before giving up on them.
http://davesgarden.com/pf/adv_search.php?searcher%5Bcommon%5D=&searcher%5Bfamily%5D=&searcher%5Bgenus%5D=lycoris&searcher%5Bspecies%5D=&searcher%5Bcultivar%5D=&searcher%5Bhybridizer%5D=&search_prefs%5Bsort_by%5D=genus&images_prefs=both&Search=Search

Edited to correct link

This message was edited Nov 21, 2005 7:11 PM

This is the one I was talking about: http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/517/index.html

Do you know, I have no idea! They came from a DGer in CA, and I just checked through my e-correspondence with her, and she always just called them "naked ladies." I'll have to try to get in touch and see if she knows. She did say to plant them deep, so that probably means they are Lycoris? Either way, the 3 largest bulbs should be OK because I planted them near the sheltered south side of the house, against a large boulder that will act as a heat sink (I'm sure that spot is a micro-zone 7a, probaby 7b). Well, they should be OK in terms of zone... if they need to be planted with their noses sticking out, then they are in trouble!

I should have taken a picture of the bulb to help ID it. They were HUGE (some the size of my 2 fists together -- I'd say 20 to 30 cm), and they were a little more elongated than I think of tulips being.

If it helps with their ID, the naked lady bulbs look almost *exactly* like some Zephyranthus grandiflora bulbs I got as a bonus -- only about 50 times bigger! Hmm, since those pink rain lilies are in the Amaryllis family, perhaps my naked ladies are Amaryllis belladonna after all....

Oh dear, *please* don't tell me I have to dig them up and plant them with their necks sticking out of the ground! It's started raining again here, and snow is expected soon!

kbaumle, yep that's the one I see all over the place too. Including my yard. Thanks for posting the link.

critter, it will be interesting to see what your trader tells you. My bulbs do have a very long nose compared to a tulip, I should have also mentioned that they have a papery tunic like tulips. I have some good sized bulbs, but I've never seen one as big as you describe! :)

Um....how soon til you might hear from your trader? lol See if this looks like your bulb ~ http://davesgarden.com/pf/showimage/3392/

Some of them were only as big as one fist, but there were several "monster" bulbs in that box! The person who sent them hasn't been in touch with me or on DG for a while, which is why I'm happy to have additional input here. Thanks!

That is a *gorgeous* photo! WOW! I can only hope my bulbs will settle in and bloom like that some day!

edited because we were posting simultaneously.... yeah, I did see that photo in PF.... and I still don't really know! Maybe the Lycoris bulbs just get really big in CA.... My bulbs didn't have a dark covering like on my holiday Amaryllis, more of a buff color.... the mystery deepens... LOL

This message was edited Nov 21, 2005 8:37 PM

My Lycoris bulbs have a brown tunic on them. A good sized one is about 2 in. across the bulbous part and 5 - 6 inches tall.

Just planted a holiday Amaryllis (light colored) with a tan tunic. Hmm.....

Critter - It's most likely that you got Amaryllis belladona. That's the bulb that's referred to as "Naked Lady" here. The bulbs ARE huge, and here they're planted with the top 1/4 -1/3 of the bulb above ground. I'm sure you need to plant them below ground where you are. The blooms are typically like the first three pictures in the PlantFiles link Moby gave you.

Marilyn

Thanks, Marilyn! Now I can stope guessing about their ID, at least!

I planted them with their tops about 3 inches below ground, with an additional inch or two of mulch on top of that. I surely hope I didn't bury them too deep, but I'm sure you're right that they shouldn't be planted partly above ground in my zone. I guess if they don't make an appearance in spring, I may go digging for them, but for now I will leave them down under.

I think A. belladonna generally is listed as zone 7. The bulbs I planted in the daff bed are in the middle of the yard, but they still have a fairly warm southern exposure and lots of nice mulch, so they may be OK. I think those I planted against the big boulder in the shelter of the house should be fine.

You're welcome. They might be planted too deep, but for now that's better than too shallow because of your zone. My book on bulbs states that if they are planted 5-6 inches deep with a 3-inch layer of mulch they can withstand temperatures down to 10F.

I also found the following article re the different kinds of "Naked Ladies" while I was researching this online.

http://www.bellaonline.com/ArticlesP/art36474.asp

That's an excellent article, pekasky! Thanks for sharing it.

Wow, what a fabulous article!! That pretty much answered all my questions about the various "Naked Lady" bulbs! Thank you very much for posting that link.... I promptly added it to my bookmarks. :-)

You're welcome. I bookmarked it too. I've seen the same question come up several times in the time I've been here. Now we can answer it with some authority! LOL

I just bought Anemone coronaria, "Mr. Fokker" on sale and plan to plant these bulbs on the Southside of my garden next to my house. Hopefully, the combination of sun and wind protection will help these bulbs survive our Winters. I hope I can share these beautiful blooms with all of you next Spring!

Ooh! I *am* looking forward to seeing those next spring!

... and I'm glad somebody returned us to the original topic of this thread, LOL!

A brief update......Mr.Fokker has made it through the winter in my zone 5b! I think good mulching and a milder winter might have been factors but who knows for sure. I spied an open flower and one about to open this morning....not alot but some is better than none. This plant gets south/west exposure for the better portion of the day, in regular soil that tends to stay on the drier side.
I will try to get a pic this evening.

Erynne

Happy to report that most of mine made it! :-) But we did have a much milder winter than usual.

Here's a pic of a newly opened bloom:

How gorgeous is that??? I can't wait to see mine bloom. I don't even see signs of flower buds yet.

The flower buds kinda sneak up on you. One day I didn't see anything and the next day a little purple caught my eye. This morning three more buds were getting ready to do their business. Yep, it's quite pretty and the original blooms from a week ago are still going strong....no fading but seem to be a bit bigger in diameter. I love this plant and will definitely put more in this year.

kbaumle wrote:
"I see naked ladies all over the place here in people's yards."

I'm moving to Ohio! LOL and thanks for that!

Robert.