Hi all, In autumn 2002, I had three species of Haemanthus in bloom at the same time: HH. albiflos, coccineus, and humilis hirsutus (one umbel of each). I crossed coccineus and hirsutus both ways; I only got seeds on hirsutus. Today, there are a few seedlings alive and growing from the cross [humilis hirsutus X coccineus] (i.e., humilis hirsutus is the berry or seed parent, while coccineus is the pollen parent). The leaves are somewhat hairy, and they have narrow dark red margins. Since some of the coccineus I grow have red margins on their leaves, and none of the hirsutus do, I think these particular seedlings are probably true hybrids between the two species. I also crossed [albiflos X humilis hirsutus] at the same time, and it appears that some of these seedlings have rather hairier leaves than the pure albiflos seedlings usually have. These particular seedlings may be hybrids between albiflos and hirsutus. I'm not sure there will ever be a certainty about it until someone does some DNA work on these species. None of my hybrid Haemanthus seedlings is yet large enough that I would dare remove any tissue for DNA analysis in any case. Someday, I hope to know for certain! Jim Shields in dark, chilly, and gloomy central Indiana ************************************************* Jim Shields USDA Zone 5 Shields Gardens, Ltd. P.O. Box 92 WWW: http://www.shieldsgardens.com/ Westfield, Indiana 46074, USA Tel. ++1-317-867-3344 or toll-free 1-866-449-3344 in USA