Breeding Muscari Grape Hyacinth

A couple of years ago I taught myself how to grow grape hyacinth Muscari armeniacum from seed.  Growing grape hyacinth from seed was really easy, and very cost effective, but took far more time than growing from bulbs.  I find that grape hyacinth take about 2 years to flower when grown from seed, which really isn't too long to wait considering how little space they use.

I have grown a few different generations of them since then and am starting to get some lines that are segregating.  Every year I think I should buy some different types, but I never do.  I planted seed from regular blue grape hyacinth and collected seed from those seed grown plants.  It appears that these spring bulbs carry some genetic diversity.

Seed grown grape hyacinth muscari flowers

As you can see above, some plants have light coloured flowers, while others have much darker flowers.  These don't appear to lighten or darken as they age, what you see is what you get.  These plants were the same age and growing side by side, so it is unlikely to be caused by environmental factors.

At this stage none of them appears significantly more or less vigorous than the others.  If I ever get a more vigorous line that produces more flowers per bulb, or larger flowers, or something interesting I will likely grow out that line further.

I really like the smell of grape hyacinths, and am yet to find any plants that have more or less fragrance than any others.  I would be likely to select lines that have a stronger scent if one ever appears in my garden.

My kids like picking spring flowers

 

My kids love to pick these flowers.  Normally if I were saving seed I would discourage picking, but muscari seem to set some seed even after they have been picked and kept in a tiny vase.  

Picking the flowers likely reduces the number of seeds that are produced, but I generally get a few seed pods per flower stalk so this never bothers me too much.  If I ever buy one of the expensive varieties to use for breeding then I may care a little more, but until then my kids can pick and enjoy the flowers.

Muscari grape hyacinth breeding

If you plan to grow grape hyacinths do try and be a little careful.  Under the right conditions they can spread, both by producing numerous bulbs as well as dropping seeds.  I have no idea if they are illegal to grow in any state, all I know is they are ok to grow in NSW.

I like the look of grape hyacinths, and the smell of them, and the bees seem to enjoy them in early spring/late winter, and they take next to no effort or space to grow, so I will keep growing them for now.  As you can see below my kids enjoy picking spring flowers for the table.

Spring flowers

Grape hyacinths and other flowers

While bulbs are often sold, very few places sell grape hyacinth seeds for some reason even though they are simple to grow.  I collect seed each year and sell seed, I also plant any of the seed that doesn't sell.  If you have these growing nearby you could collect the seeds yourself, or you can look on my for sale page if you are interested.