ZONAL CULTIVAR STUDY OF CROCUSES IN THE HUMID SUBTROPICS (SOCHI) AND IN THE FOREST-STEPPE OF THE OB REGION (NOVOSIBIRSK)

For the first time, introduction research of the zonal study for the following 11 crocus cultivars was carried out: ‘Blue Pearl’, ‘Flower Record’, ‘Fuscotinctus’, ‘Golden Yellow’, ‘Jeanne d’Arc’, ‘Miss Vain’, ‘Remembrance’, ‘Roseus’, ‘Ruby Giant’, ‘Vanguard’, ‘Yalta’, from five garden groups: C. biflorus Mill., C. chrysanthus (Herb.) Herb., C. flavus Weston, C. tommasinianus Herb. and C. vernus (L.) Hill in the humid subtropics of Russia (Sochi) and in the forest-steppe zone of Western Siberia (Novosibirsk) in 2019–2021. The research has obtained comparative data on the seasonal rhythm of development, vegetative propagation and decorative qualities in two regions. In the South, depending on the cultivar, vegetation began in early or late January, in Siberia – in late April – early May. The duration of vegetation among the cultivars introduced in the conditions of the Black Sea coast is two to three times longer than that in the forest-steppe of the Ob region, on average it was 124–151 and 45–55 days, respectively. The reproductive ability of cultivated crocuses has been studied, cultivars with high indicators (k = 2.6–3.0 and more k >3.0) have been identified: ‘Fuscotinctus’, ‘Remembrance’, ‘Roseus’, ‘Vanguard’ and ‘Yalta’ in the conditions of Novosibirsk. The mass flowering of crocus cultivars is observed in Sochi in February-March, in Novosibirsk – early May. The duration of the flowering period in various zones differed significantly. In Sochi, the duration of flowering ranged from 14 to 54 days with the sum of active temperatures 224.1–323.5 o C, in Novosibirsk – from 6 to 14 days with the sum of active temperatures 31.0–48.0 o C. According to morphometric indicators, cultivar specificity has been noted, so cultivars from the group C. chrysanthus, C. flavus and C. tommasinianus showed the greatest abundance of flowering in both regions. Cultivars from the C. vernus group: ‘Flower Record’, ‘Jeanne d’Arc’, ‘Remembrance’ and ‘Vanguard’ with lower abundance rates had larger flower sizes. High grades of decorativeness and reproductive indicators for the period of zonal crocus cultivars testing on the Black Sea coast and in the forest-steppe of the Ob region were recorded in the cultivars: ‘Remembrance’, ‘Vanguard’, ‘Fuscotinctus’ and ‘Roseus’. The conducted research will allow us to use promising crocus cultivars in the landscape construction of early spring flower beds and to preserve a stable genetic diversity among of the genus Crocus representatives ex situ in different ecological and geographical regions of Russia.