Ranunculus Asiaticus Bloomingdale II Fire Bicolour

Ranunculus Asiaticus Bloomingdale II Fire Bicolour F1 Seeds

(Ranunculus asiaticus — Bloomingdale Series — Dwarf Persian Buttercup)

Ranunculus asiaticus, the Persian buttercup, has primarily been produced as a field-grown cut flower thanks to extensive breeding work in England during the 19th century that resulted in more than 500 varieties. The growth habit of the Bloomingdale series is particularly dwarf, with plant heights of 8–10 inches, and leaf size is reduced to complement the proportionally smaller plant.

Ranunculus asiaticus, the Persian buttercup, is a species native to the eastern Mediterranean region, southwestern Asia, southeastern Europe, and northeastern Africa. It features cup-shaped, poppy-like flowers in red, pink, purple, yellow, and white with distinctive purple-black anthers on finely cut, parsley-like leaves. Fully double hybrids produce peony-like flowers in a broader range of colors including pastels and bicolored blooms. In the Bloomingdale series, this peony-like double form is expressed in a compact, garden-ready plant that delivers the visual impact of large exhibition ranunculus within the footprint of a container-sized ornamental.

Bloomingdale Fire Bicolour brings the most dramatic color combination in the series — an assortment of yellow and orange–tinged bicolor tones that warm up the garden with winter fire. Individual blooms are fully double with multiple concentric rings of petals, each petal tissue-thin and slightly translucent so that light passes through the outer layers and illuminates the inner ones — a quality that makes ranunculus flowers glow in low winter light in a way no other cool-season flower achieves. The bicolor character means individual petals carry two tones, typically orange on the inner surface blending to yellow at the margins or vice versa, and this graduation of color within each bloom creates depth and movement that solid-color ranunculus lack.

A single ranunculus plant may produce as many as 35 flowers in one blooming season. This exceptional productivity from a compact plant makes Bloomingdale Fire Bicolour one of the best value cool-season ornamentals available from seed. Ranunculus requires a dry dormant period in summer and grows best in fertile, humus-rich, free-draining compost.

Variety Details

• Botanical Name: Ranunculus asiaticus
• Series: Bloomingdale
• Variety: Bloomingdale Fire Bicolour
• Breeder: Sakata Seed Corporation (Japan) — introduced 1983
• Common Names: Persian Buttercup, Asian Buttercup, Turban Buttercup
• Seed Type: F1 Hybrid
• Plant Type: Tuberous perennial grown as a cool-season annual
• Family: Ranunculaceae
• Toxicity: All parts poisonous if ingested — skin irritant

Key Features

• Sakata Bloomingdale series — the original seed-propagated dwarf ranunculus, introduced 1983
• Fully double multi-layered peony-like blooms in fiery orange, yellow, and amber bicolor
• Translucent petals that glow in winter light — a visual quality unique to ranunculus
• Up to 35 flowers per plant in a single season
• Compact dwarf habit of 25 cm — ideal for containers, window boxes, and front border edging
• Good cut flower — harvest in bud for longest vase life
• Requires cool germination at 10–15°C — refrigerator pre-chilling recommended for Kuwait

Plant Information

• Height: 25 cm
• Spread: 25 cm
• Plant Type: Tuberous perennial grown as a cool-season annual
• Habit: Compact, mounding, dwarf
• Flower Size: Up to 5 cm across
• Flower Form: Fully double, multi-layered, peony-like
• Flower Color: Orange, yellow, and amber bicolor
• Days to Flower: Approximately 180 days from sowing

Germination Instructions

• Ranunculus Bloomingdale requires cool conditions to germinate reliably.
• Optimal germination temperature is 10–15°C, with germination occurring in 7–10 days under these conditions.
  Seeds require cold stratification before sowing — surface sow onto a tray of moist, well-drained compost and cover with just a light sprinkling of soil.
• Keep consistently moist and maintain at 10–16°C.
• Germination will occur as temperatures stabilize in this cool range.
• Transplant seedlings when large enough to handle into individual pots.
• Keep seedlings at 13°C after germination, moist and away from direct midday sun until they are ready for outdoor planting.
• For Kuwait: in September and October ambient outdoor temperatures are too high for reliable ranunculus germination.
• Place sown trays in the refrigerator vegetable drawer at 8–12°C for 2–3 weeks, then move to a cool indoor spot away from direct sun.
• Once seedlings have developed 4 sets of true leaves, they can be transplanted to their outdoor position when temperatures drop below 25°C in late October to November.

Growing Tips

• Grow in full sun in fertile, humus-rich, well-drained soil or compost.
• Ranunculus grows best in fertile, humus-rich, free-draining compost such as a mix of equal parts loam, leaf mold, and grit, with good light and ventilation.
• It requires a dry dormant period in summer.
• Water consistently during the growing season, keeping the soil moist but never waterlogged — overwatering is the most common cause of failure and causes the tuberous roots to rot.
• Reduce watering as temperatures rise and the plant begins to yellow and die back.
• Deadhead spent flowers to encourage additional bloom.
  Plants go dormant by summer.
• In Kuwait’s sandy soils, incorporate generous organic matter before planting and water carefully by hand or drip at soil level — never overhead.
• The compact Bloomingdale habit makes it excellent for containers where drainage can be precisely controlled.

Gulf Planting Season

• Refrigerator pre-chilling of sown trays (8–12°C): September 2–3 weeks
• Germination indoors in cool conditions: October
• Transplant outdoors: late October to November
• Peak flowering season: January to March
• Note: Ranunculus is a true cool-season plant and will not perform in temperatures above 25°C.
• In Kuwait, the September–October period requires the refrigerator pre-chilling step to simulate the natural cool conditions the seed needs to break dormancy.
• Once established outdoors in November, the Bloomingdale series is compact and well-suited to raised beds, large containers, and border edging throughout the Gulf cool season.
• Plants will begin to die back naturally as temperatures rise in March–April — this is normal and indicates the beginning of the summer dormancy cycle.

Garden & Floral Uses

• Bloomingdale Fire Bicolour is primarily a pot and border ornamental that also functions as a short-stemmed cut flower.
• The compact 25 cm habit makes it ideal for the front edge of raised beds, large containers in mixed cool-season plantings, and window boxes where the fiery bicolor display provides continuous color through the coldest months.
• In mixed arrangements, the multi-layered double blooms work best in low, dome-shaped centerpiece designs where the full face of each flower can be seen — the bicolor petals are most effective when viewed directly rather than from the side.
• For cut flower use, harvest while blooms are still in bud or just beginning to open — ranunculus continues to open in the vase and cutting at bud stage maximizes vase life.
• Bloomingdale Fire Bicolour planted alongside white anemone, blue violas, and silver-foliage dusty miller creates one of the most visually striking cool-season container combinations available for Kuwait’s November to March Garden season.