Woodland Crocus

Crocus tommasinianus (Woodland crocus, Tomasini's crocus), often referred to as 'Tommies' were named after the botanist Muzio G. Spirito de Tommasini (1794-1879), who was mayor of the city of Triest. They are often referred to as early or snow crocuses, but these terms are shared with several other species, although C. tommasinianus is amongst the first to bloom. It is a plant of the Crocus genus in the Iridaceae family, with a lilac flower, and is one of the smaller of the cultivated species. It naturalises easily earning an official recognition as a weed. It grows wild in Bulgaria, Hungary and former Yugoslavia. C. tommasinianus has a slender flowers about 2-4.5 cm (0.75-1.75 in) long, with white perianth tubes, petals (6) pale silvery lilac to reddish purple, while the outer petals may be overlaid with silver and darker tips. A variant, albus, is white. Its cultivars are used as ornamental plants. Height: 3" (8 cm).
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