Back to Lycoris squamigera and Hymenocallis occidentalis

Adam Fikso irisman@ameritech.net
Sun, 14 Aug 2005 12:14:09 PDT
I'd like to reopen a discussion about a couple of issues on these two 
plants, first, what is the greatest number of flowers that anyone has seen 
or has blooming on one stem of the L.squamigera? and H. occidentalis.

Currently my squamigera have 5-6 flowers which seems fewer to me than iIve 
seen formerly (before I put a spade through the middle of the group).

Last year I had a H. under name of occidentalis which had 11 flowers on it. 
(Literature indicated that the top number was 10).  I thought I was lucky 
until the bulb did not survive the winter with only 3 days at 0 GF. which 
leads me to believe that what I had was something else (the bulb came from 
California from an unsophisticate so this is certainly a possibility).

In all other respects it conformed to pictures and description (I know, slim 
data indeed with this group).  What I have in mind for the Hymenocallis is 
to adduce some evidence that it will survive in Zone 5 because  I believe 
that it could have survived in the Chicago area prior to the arrival of 
farms, because the leading edge of the glacierat the last ice edge was about 
20 miles north of here.   At this point it survives only in 7 of the 
southernmost counties in Illinois, and its extirpation could have been due 
to  encroaching civilization rather than climate.
   Any data bearing on these two questions of number of flowers would be 
appreciated. Thanks 



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