Amateur Gardening – 13 July 2019

Plant the dry corms when dormant –
usually in mid or late summer. Do not
make the mistake of thinking that they
should be planted in autumn like so
many other bulbs.
Choose a site with rich but well-drained
soil; poor soils should be improved with
weed-free organic matter before planting.
In heavy soils, working in some grit
will really boost the drainage.
Most colchicums flower more
prolifically and colourfully in full sun.
Plant 3-4in (8-10cm) deep, 4-5in
(10-12cm) apart; if happy, they’ll soon
bulk up into prolific clumps.
Colchicums can also be naturalised
in rough grass in full sun.

Plant corms in mid-late summer

How to plant colchicums

Colchicum aftercare

If naturalising in grass, avoid

mowing until summer

Feed with a general fertiliser in spring,
as the leaves start to develop.
Once the leaves start to grow, keep
them away from any neighbouring
plants that might be smothered.
Clear away fading leaves in summer

WHEN you buy colchicums the flower buds

are already developed, deep inside the corm.

Flowers will emerge even if you never plant

them, and a useful trick is to pot individual

corms into 10-12cm pots, cover the compost

with grit and sit them on the windowsill.

They will soon start to flower. Then, as the

final blooms fade away, simply plant the whole

potful in the garden.

It’s sometimes suggested that you stand a

colchicum corm in a saucer of water and allow it

to bloom. Although this works, it tends to exhaust

the corm, which will then take some years after

planting to regain its strength.

Don’t allow leaves to smother

nearby plants

Dealing with

those big leaves

UNLIKE true crocuses, colchicums

produce large amounts of foliage

that emerges in spring, then fades

away in summer. Some gardeners

see the broad, floppy, bright green

leaves as an asset, and plant robust

grasses as a foliage contrast. To

others, it’s an eyesore that needs

disguising. Either way, never cut

back the foliage until it starts to turn

brown and collapse in summer.

The problem is that while the

flowers are best viewed in close-up,

the leaves are too dominant for a

frontal position. I’ve seen colchicums

planted amongst small-leaved

variegated ivies, amongst vincas,

epimediums or ophiopogons; the

bold leaves of bergenias also make

good partners. The advantage is you

can arrange the colchicum foliage

amongst the other plants to hide it.

as they shrivel and die – don’t be

tempted to cut them off earlier.

If naturalising in grass, avoid mowing

until leaves have died down.

Lift and divide corms every three or

four years; summer is the optimum time.

Colchicums look lovely

naturalised in grass

Plant with small-leaved

ivy to hide leaves

Windowsill growing

24 AMATEUR GARDENING 13 JULY 2019

colchicum corm in a saucer of water and allow it

to bloom. Although this works, it tends to exhaust

the corm, which will then take some years after

Pot-grown corms can

be planted in the

garden after fl owering