The last couple of days have brought some colour out in the earliest buds and now it's a race to see who will open first.
(Not) Yellow Bunting?
(Obviously.... The seed was meant to be Yellow Bunting, but it looks just like the other pumilum strain, Golden Gleam. Golden Gleam was my first lily to flower last year. Maybe the kids switched labels on me!
)
Push Off?
(My money's on this....)
...or this completely underwhelming seedling?
I focused on the foliage deliberately because it solves a mystery for me. This seedling is from a pollenless Mont Blanc seedling pollinated by Budderlord. It was a little experiment to see if the pollenless trait passed on... but what I see already is a plant that is the image of Mount Blanc - same dull brown stem and short, brown-tipped foliage. Neither parent showed foliage like this but I'm now certain that Mont Blanc was the father or grandfather of Budderlord. A second dose of Mont Blanc's genes had to have come through the pollen parent in order for this trait to reappear. If I'm not making sense, suffice to say I'm feeling well educated by this little duckling.
Even though the seedling is as dull as dishwater and will end up in soup, it taught me something. Experimenting to learn about the genetics you're hybridising with is important fun!
