Mystery Bulbs

This page is a place where people can post pictures of bulbs they are having trouble identifying. Anyone who thinks they can help figure out these plants, please send a note to the pbs list for discussion. New items appear at the top of the page.


Jyl Tuck asks for identification of this Eucomis. I started Eucomis bicolor from seed and some bulbs started flowering 3 summers ago. But there had always been a couple of bulbs that appeared different. Last summer I stuck all the bulbs in 1 pot to get a good show and one of the 'different' bulbs flowered. My Eucomis autumnalis and bicolor flowered end of July into August when the 'different' bulb started. As you can see in this picture (bicolor left) the 'different' bulbs (right) leaves are very long, not wavy, with no spots on leaves or stem of flower. I got a fair number of seed from the plant too which should not have crossed. The seeds has sprouted and are growing. Only got a couple seed from the other Eucomis which did not sprout. The way the flowers are arranged on the stem is different and about 18-20 inches tall.

Mystery Eucomis, Jyl TuckMystery Eucomis, Jyl Tuck

Nicky Ross of Cape Town asks for help identifying this plant: "The bulb has popped up in my garden, and doing extremely well in a flower bed. It is spreading and looking very healthy. I am not sure if I have identified properly. The green leaves are long and narrow and do not start from the base of the plant but further up. I think it may be Hymenocallis littoralis but I need verification! The ruler is 30 cm long. I can’t remember when the lilies flowered, I think it was Feb/March." (Note that Nicky is in the southern hemisphere, so the plants would have bloomed in late summer or fall in the north.)

Any thoughts on their identity?

Belinda Greyling of Gauteng, South Africa, reports that this is Hymencallis narcissiflora. Jim McKenney thinks it is Hymenocallis × festalis, a hybrid of Hymenocallis narcissiflora and H. longipetala.

Unidentified Hymenocallis, Nicky RossUnidentified Hymenocallis, Nicky RossUnidentified Hymenocallis, Nicky RossUnidentified Hymenocallis, Nicky Ross

Dee Foster posted this picture in the hope of ascertaining if it is virused? Respondents thought it could be a nutrient deficiency, but couldn't tell for sure.

Virused Veltheimia?, Dee Foster

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