LIBERTO’s SEEDS AND BULBS BULBS SUMMER 2020

First you start by hating Oxalis pes-carpae and Oxalis corniculata. Then you find a couple other Oxalis that actually suit your style and put them in the garden. After that, you find that there is a whole range of South African and South American species that make the perfect pot , they have a truly amazing variability between them and best of all, they are not weedy! In fact, some of them are pretty tough things to grow! It soon turns into an obsession of wanting to own every single one out there, species, varieties, all of them! With a good collection of Oxalis you can have different species in flower from September till May.

So, welcome to my Summer 2020 Oxalis bulb list. If you’re an experienced Oxalis grower you’ll have many of these, but there’s a possibility you lack a few. If you are a beginner, I warn you. Oxalis are addictive!

Please scroll to the end of the catalog for planting and ordering instructions.

OXALIS SPECIES OR VARIETY 1 BULB SET OF 3 BULBS SET OF 5 BULBS adenodes 5 € ambigua 8 € annae 12 € ‘Apricot Pie’ 5 € attaquana 9 € ‘Beery’ 10 € bifurcata 7 € ‘Boaz’ 5 € bowiei 4 € brasiliensis 3 € brasiliensis ‘Pinky White’ 6 € burkei 6 € callosa 5 € caprina 4 € cathara 5 € clavifolia 5 € commutata 3 € compressa double form 4 € compressa single form 4 € convexula 6 € cripiflora 4 € ‘Dado’ 5 € dichotoma 5 € ‘Dikush’ 10 € engleriana 6 € fabaefolia 4 € fergusoniae 5 € ‘Firebird’ 10 € flabellifolia 8 € flaculata 10 € flava 4 € flava lavender form (var. lupinifolia) 3 € flava pink form 4 € flava var. pectinaria 5 € flava white form 4 € flaviuscula var. longifolia 8 € sp. Fluorescent Yellow 5 € foveolata 7 € fragrans 5 € glabra 4 € OXALIS SPECIES OR VARIETY 1 BULB SET OF 3 BULBS SET OF 5 BULBS glabra Pinky White 10 € ‘Golden Cape’ 8 € goniorrhiza 3 € gracilis 3 € haedulipes 4 € hirta ‘Carmine’ 5 € hirta pink form 4 € hirta ‘Pupu’ 5 € hirta purple form (‘Gothenburg’) 5 € hirta salmon form 10 € hirta ‘Silk’ 5 € hirta ‘Sugilite’ 5 € hybrid Orange 6 € kaajagdensis 10 € kamiesbergensis 7 € karooica 8 € lassiorhiza 8 € lichenoides 7 € ‘Little Rosy’ 8 € ‘Little Sweet’ 7 € livida 5 € luteola MV5885 8 € luteola MV96013 5 € luteola var. glauca 5 € massoniana 8 € massonorum 5 € melanosticta 'Ken Aslet' (free flowering) 3 € melanosticta (better foliage) 3 € minuta 3 € namaquana 6 € ‘Napier’ 7 € nidulans 'Pom Pom' 4 € obliquifolia 4 € obtusa ‘Damask Rose’ 6 € obtusa ‘Deep Salmon’ 7 € obtusa ‘Flame’ 6 € obtusa ‘Kunzite’ 8 € obtusa Large form 8 € obtusa ‘Nova’ 5 € obtusa ‘Primrose’ 3 € OXALIS SPECIES OR VARIETY 1 BULB SET OF 3 BULBS SET OF 5 BULBS obtusa ‘Purple Sunrise’ 3 € obtusa ‘Silvermoon’ 5 € ‘Orange Pie’ 4 € orbicularis 8 € ‘Ostritz’ 8 € ‘Otale’ 5 € sp. Pakkhuis Pass 8 € palmifrons 6 € pardalis pink form 10 € pardalis white form 9 € ‘Pea Flora’ 8 € perdicaria 6 € perdicaria form 6 € pes-carpae double form 3 € petraea 4 € ‘Pink Dress’ 8 € pocockiae 8 € polyphylla var. heptaphylla 5 € polyphylla var. pentaphylla 7 € pulchella var. tomentosa 4 € ‘Puppy Love Dark’ 10 € purpurea ‘Garnet’ 5 € purpurea ‘Lavender and White’ 7 € purpurea lavender form 4 € purpurea pink form 4 € purpurea ‘Pink Giant’ 10 € purpurea ‘Ruffles’ 6 € purpurea salmon form 6 € purpurea white form 4 € pusilla 5 € reclinata var. gracillima 8 € ‘Red Crag’ 8 € smithiana 4 € sonderiana 5 € sp. ‘Tomato Red’ 3 € sp. Yellow South Africa 5 € stennorrhyncha 8 € tomentosa 7 € ‘Two Pie’ 6 € uliginosa 3 € OXALIS SPECIES OR VARIETY 1 BULB SET OF 3 BULBS SET OF 5 BULBS versicolor 8 € versicolor double form 7 € virginea 4 € ‘Yael’ 15€ zeekovleyensis 5 €

I got my little bulbs. How to plant them? Summer dormant Oxalis from South Africa and South America are actually not hard to grow, with a few exceptions. If you are living in a Mediterranean climate area, it’s pretty straightforward. Put them in pots and place them outside. I generally use a mixture of 2 parts peat-based compost, 1 part coarse sand or grit and 1 part fine perlite. That provides adequate drainage in my rainy winter climate in Greece, essential for most species. I add perlite at the bottom of the pot for extra drainage and once the bulbs are planted, I top dress with grit or coarse sand in order to keep the leave that come in contact with the surface drier and also to make my life easier with weeding. But you want to have your material free from seed in the first place. I don’t worry much about depth, 2 or 3 times the length of the bulb will do it. Oxalis will find their spot in your pot. Some species tend to send their new bulbs at the bottom of the pot and others keep themselves on the top.

Once planted, best in late August, I water the pots and then let the weather do the rest. If it doesn’t rain in September, I water every 5 days or so. Fertilizing lightly every month is advised, especially if you keep your bulbs in the same soil for many years. The need to stay moist during active growing and flowering but once past that, they need to get dry and go dormant. Some species like O.livida and O.perdicaria throw up their flowers first in September and then the foliage. Other produce good foliage and flower later in spring like O.obtusa and O.purpurea varieties. During summer I keep the pots completely dry in a shady spot (to avoid over baking in the sun and the occasional summer storm). You can empty your pots as early as June and store the bulbs in a dry place. They won’t desiccate. I actually like to clean my bulbs every summer to avoid in my pots and keep the varieties true, as a few of them do set seed and can mix-up the collection.

Are the plants I have true to name? There is a huge number of Oxalis species and even more varieties, with new ones produced every year. I try to be as updated as possible, but there is an actual mix-up in the world of what is a species or a variety, so I generally use the names in the trade. Also, many cultivar names of spontaneous hybrids or varieties are given in a glance and then the plant goes out in the commerce, but whatever they are, most are good and different plants. You’ll soon find that even small differences in flowers can make a great difference on the look of your pot as a whole. That is the most intriguing part about them.

How to order? That is quite simple. You make a list of what you want and send them to my email [email protected]. I’ll get back to you as soon as possible with availability for your order and then you can send your payment exclusively through PayPal ([email protected]).

You can combine your order of Oxalis bulbs with an order of seeds or other bulbs from my lists. Just bear in mind that I only offer summer dormant Oxalis in July and August, whereas other summer formant bulbs can be shipped as late as October. Ordering early also guarantees the availability of some varieties, especially those sold as individual bulbs as I may have very few of them available.

There is no minimum order but there is a universal shipping fee of 8 euros for tracked service. That cost will cover your bulb order regardless how big it is (the cost actually goes up after the limit of 200gr. Of your parcel, but you can see it as a small disount on your order). Orders to Greece are shipped for 3 euros. Ordering within the EU. If you would like to order outside the EU, you have the responsibility of the parcel going through your country’s customs if it gets stopped.

Orders usually take 5-7 working days to reach destinations within Europe. If you want me to ship your order on a specific date, please let me know in advance. Of course, in a worldwide shipping network, delays and problems could arise, especially in this new covid-era. Please cooperate and let me know if there is any problem with your order and I will do my best to solve it.