Today I spent 4 hours in the sun rescuing plants from a house that's going to be bulldozed.
Lots of allium bulbs, a few daffodils (some of which I hope are actually tulips), irises, daylilies, 3 asiatic looking lily bulbs and a hydrangea that nearly killed me.

And these irregularly shaped bulbs in the bottom of this pic.
Any idea what they might be?
Glove is there for size - mind you it's an XS.

Reminds of Alstromeria.

OK.
I know I wouldn't recognize alstromeria....

So one vote for alstromeria.
Anyone disagree?
Anyone AGREE?????

This link has a photo of some Alstroemeria rhizomes/bulbs (I never know the right word )
http://pacificbulbsociety.org/...

Well, they do look a lot like that.
Many of mine are roundish though.

Is alstromeria the ONLY thing that looks like that?
If so, I'll plant them as such.
But if they might be something else, I'd like to find out before I plant....

I can see how one might think they are alstroemeria (like from this pic http://kindsofornamentalplants... ) but no. They are obviously not part of a larger root system. The bulb shape to look for is indicated by the blue arrows. The orange arrows show elongated ones that were adjusting their depth in the soil from the previous year. These will look like the blue arrowed ones in the following year(s), once they are happy at the soil depth they are in.


Sorry, I don't know what they might be.

Thanks for bringing your knowledge and giving it a shot!

You mean those in the pic on the link are attached to more root, like the bulbous parts at the ends of dayliliy roots look?

But mine have no root so they are something else?

The soil they were in was already BONE dry. North facing wall, never watered this season.
Might the roots have disappeared already?

Sure looks like the Hyacinthoides hispanica that I keep digging up all over my place. The below photo shows them coming out of dormancy early in the spring. This time of the year they look your bulbs, with varying shapes and sizes. I think the variation is do the age of bulb?

Wouldn't Alstroemeria be unlikely by virtue of your hardiness zone? I'm only familiar with a few relatively new varieties that are z6a hardy.

I'm with Lynn. I was trying to figure out why they looked so familiar. The fact that they are summer dormant should exclude alstroemeria. After they bloom the foliage dies down like tulips and daffodils. They like our dry summers here.

I have pulled and dug so many out that crittergarden's photo looked like she came here and to it.

You're right Lynn, the variation in your pic is probably due to age. Of course, crittergarden's bulbs are not tulips or daffodils, but Hyacinthoides is a good guess. Certainly one of the "minor" bulbs.

Thought you all might find this interesting, too - a Hyacinthoides sp. bulb I bisected. It may look a little different than the ones above, but certainly within the variability of Hyacinthoides.


If you look close, you can see that the roots originate at the base of the center stem.


Roots are annual on many types of bulbs, including Hyacinthoides.

AHA! I'm going to guess hyacinthoids.

I wondered about the alstromeria. These were on the north side of a house atop the big hill you see in the background from all the Steelers coverage. North and WINDY! Alstromeria can grow here, some of them, but they'd need a protected south facing spot.

And now that I know the alstros bloom in summer, i do believe it's hyacinthoides.

Thank you all for your input!!

I look forward to seeing your bulbs bloom next spring.

I bet they're pink.
Many of you know how I feel about pink.

But even if ALL the plants I rescued are pink, the point is that they aren't getting bulldozed!!!!
I shall share them with pinklovers.

Mine are a pale blue/purple.