What's blooming week of Sep. 26

Michael Mace michaelcmace@gmail.com
Thu, 29 Sep 2011 21:59:01 PDT
Colchicum agrippinum is just past its peak.  I've had it in a pot for many
years, and as long as I divide it every couple of years, it blooms very
reliably in fall.  Its flowers are purple-pink from a distance, but up close
they're covered in a distinctive faint checkmark pattern.  It's very
interesting.

 

But the star of the moment is Brunsvigia marginata.  Picture a basketball
painted in the most eye-popping shade of scarlet you've ever seen.  When the
first European plant explorers saw this thing in South Africa, they must
have been amazed.  I would love to see it in the wild sometime.

 

This flower is self-sterile, so if anyone else has one in bloom and wants to
share pollen, let me know.  And by the way, I promised pollen to a couple of
people.  I harvested that today.

 

Mike

San Jose, CA




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