Ranunculus asiaticus Poodle Ramlia® - Persian buttercup

Ranunculus asiaticus Poodle Ramlia® is a beautiful and original florist's ranunculus that produces fully fringed flowers in a deep pink, reminiscent of huge carnations. This spring-flowering variety also has long stems and an excellent vase life. Superb in a cut flower arrangement, in a sunny border, or in a large container!

This plant belongs to the Ranunculaceae family. The botanical species, Ranunculus asiaticus, is known as the florist's ranunculus, Asian ranunculus, garden ranunculus, and Oriental ranunculus. In the wild, it is found from the southern Aegean Sea to western and southwestern Iran, in the eastern Mediterranean basin, Cyprus, Crete, Turkey, the Levant, Iraq, Iran, as well as Egypt and Libya. It grows in climates with mild winters and dry summers, in well-drained soils. It is a tuberous perennial with fleshy claws, grown as an annual in cold climates. Its foliage and stems wither after flowering, and the plant then enters dormancy.

Poodle Ramlia® was bred by Aya Engei. It belongs to the Poodle series, a line of ranunculus prized for their original appearance, early flowering, and vase life. Within this group, Ramlia® is the cultivar with the strongest stems. It produces very long, robust stems, and flowers slightly smaller than those of other large cut-flower ranunculus. At the base, the plant forms a clump of medium green leaves, deeply divided into irregular lobes, somewhat like a small parsley leaf. The flower stems rise to 50-60 cm above the ground. The flowers are double to very double, their diameter can approach 8-10 cm under good growing conditions. The petals are deeply cut, crumpled, and fringed; they give the flower a feathery, ruffled appearance. Their colour is a fresh, clear pink, and the centre of the corolla is lightly streaked with purple. Flowering occurs from late winter to spring under cover, and mainly from April to May in the garden. The Asian ranunculus is not very hardy: its rhizome tolerates -4/-5°C in very well-drained soil.

In the garden, plant Poodle Ramlia® in a border, a flower bed, or a cutting garden. It also adapts very well to growing in pots, provided the container is deep. It combines beautifully with double, light, or star-shaped flowers to create a composition that naturally transitions from the garden to the vase. Imagine a lovely spring bouquet where its round, fringed corollas mingle with the early peony Paeonia officinalis ‘Alba Plena’, columbine ‘Nora Barlow’, double late tulip ‘Negrita Double’ and late tulip 'Violet Beauty'.