The ‘Naked Ladies’ are back in the garden was a comment made in jest by gardeners of times past. They were of course referring to Colchicum, commonly called ‘Naked Ladies’ or autumn crocus. They are a curiosity in terms of their growth habit in foliage and flower. It has a split season growth pattern called double dormancy, producing its foliage in spring before going dormant and then flowering in autumn without any foliage before going dormant once again, hence the common name ‘Naked Ladies’.

One might be forgiven for thinking that two different plants were growing in the one spot.

In fact, Colchicum is not a crocus at all, while there may be some resemblance it is classified within its own family Colchicaceae, a salutary tale as to why we should be careful with common names. They are native to Europe, Asia and South Africa, mainly found in in wet meadows and woodland. In the Irish flora, Colchicum autumnale is included in the Threatened and Endangered List of protected species.

They are beneficial to bees and butterflies and deter deer and rabbits.

Colchicum grows from corms as opposed to bulbs, the difference being that corms are solid like a potato whereas bulbs have scales as in onions. Each corm can produce many flowers. The flowers have tepals as opposed to petals, that is because the flower part is seamlessly part of the flower stem.

Colchicum cilicicum can produce as many as twenty flowers from one corm, growing to a height of 10cm with purplish-pink flowers that lighten in colour towards the centre.

Colchicum autumnale and its cultivars are the ones mainly found for sale in nurseries and garden centres. C. autumnale ‘Nancy Lindsay’ produces flowers of rich mauve pink with the typical goblet shape and a mottling on the outer tepals. They grow to 15cm high opening to 5cm across. C. autumnale ‘Pleniflorum’ really catches the eye, growing to a similar size with its fuller double pinkish-lilac flowers giving it greater presence in the garden.

Better again is Colchicum ‘Waterlily’ which grows to 12cm in height with double lilac pink flowers. This has a striking presence in the autumn garden. C. speciosum ‘Atrorubens’ has for a long time been rated as the best dark purple colchicum, a colour we tend not to expect in the genus. It is intensely coloured with large flowers, lightening to white at the centre.

Everything is rosy

Colchicum ‘Rosy Dawn’ grows to 15cm in height producing up to six goblet shaped rosy-pink flowers again with a slight mottling on the tepals. It’s lightly scented too. C. ‘Lilac Wonder’ is a strong grower of similar height but gives more impact. The flowers are larger with up to ten rich pink blooms being produced from each corm.

Colchicum autumnale ‘Album’ introduces a white colour to the range. It brings brightness to the autumn garden as white shines brighter at dusk. C. byzantinum ‘Innocence’ opens with clusters of soft purple flowers, but in full bloom they become snow white. Each flower tipped with purple and each corm producing up to twenty flowers is a magnificent sight.

Cultivation

Colchicum corms can be planted from July until October. Plant 8-10 cm deep, the taller the plant the deeper the planting hole, so do your research. They are forgiving as to soil type, however as for any new planting prepare the soil well by digging and incorporating well-rotted compost. With all bulb planting add a label to the planting area. It is all too easy to lose sight of where bulbs or corms have been planted.

I always put a layer of grit over the area so if the label is lost you know where not to dig when corms are dormant.

One of the criticisms of Colchicum is that their foliage can be bountiful and disruptive then disappearing and flowering can be overpowered by other planting, so care needs to be taken when choosing a planting site.

Don’t plant where there is aggressive groundcover from shrubs or perennials. I’ve seen the best performance under birch or amelanchier where spring sunshine can be availed of by foliage so any combination like this is good. Sedum or Stipa tenuissima also provide the opportunity for a perfect setting. Colchicums are toxic if ingested, so be wary of this.

Leaves are starting fall and we have many from our garden and street how do I compost these to make leaf mould? – Maureen, Co Sligo

This is a well worthwhile project and very beneficial for the garden. The easiest way to do this is to collect your leaves and pack them into black bin bags. If the leaves are dry sprinkle water into the bag, shake it well and tie it tightly. Punch holes in the with an old screwdriver every 15-20cm apart. Place the bags in a shaded area and allow them to rest there for a year. Turn the bags every so often. After one year you will have composted leaves. After two years you will have perfect leaf mould, invaluable for gardening projects.

Lawns: Mowing is now becoming more infrequent, however on dry days raise your mower blades and keep the grass trimmed.

Bulbs: Now is prime bulb planting time, source good quality bulbs and create your spring colour schemes.

Pots and planters: Almost all summer planting is now looking tatty, review what worked well for you and trim back or clear out plants finished performing, replant for spring colour.

Perennials and roses: All these are

coming to the end of their summer performance, keep deadheading.

Perennials can now be divided and moved to other areas where needed.

Do you have a gardening question? Email icl@farmersjournal.ie or post to Irish Country Living, Irish Farm Centre, Bluebell, Dublin 12.