I LOVE what I can learn on this list as long as we are allowed to wander a bit. Thanks, Gary.
I don't have any trouble believing that Narcissus 'Estettensis' is four hundred year old, but seven hundred? For a clone which easily beats it in age, try Crocus sativus. Although botanists to this day carry (it's the type species for the genus, so some messiness would result if changes were to be made) it as a species, it is unknown in the wild and does not match exactly any known sexually reproducing population of wild crocus. It's traditionally assumed to be derived some way from the crocus sometimes called Crocus cartwrightianus, but I think Crocus moabiticus is also a good candidate. Crocus sativus is said to be triploid. If Crocus sativus is truly clonal, it's at least two and maybe three THOUSAND years old. Some grape cultivars seem to just as old. Several years ago the topic of Queen Anne's daffodil came up in a discussion on the Pacific Bulb Society list serve. Another participant told me he would send me a bulb of Queen Anne's daffodil, but it did not arrive. Roger, are you reading this? I'm getting pretty grumpy about it. Although a very rare plant now, four hundred years ago it was evidently already being grown in several European countries. Incidentally, Bowles spells the name eystettensis: have the modern daffodil people changed it? Jim McKenney
_______________________________________________ Alpine-l mailing list [email protected] http://mailman.science.uu.nl/mailman/listinfo/alpine-l
