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This is one of those plants worth the greenhouse space if you can't grow it outside, which we can't. An evergreen vine from Chile where it is the national flower and once you see this bloom, it will likely be your personal national flower as well. Big waxy pendant flowers of typically a rose red, but can be white to pink to dark red. These are seedlings from our friend Ilse who has some of these other colors as well. While these are seed from her rose red plant, there may have been some interesting co-mingling going on with the greenhouse doors open at night and the hawk moths out and about, but pretty sure these will be rose red.

These normally flower in late summer and fall, and we were entranced by beautiful specimens in bloom when we visited the west of Scotland in the fall of 2013. A memorable moment was getting asked to leave the Chilean Terrace at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh where this was flowering beautifully against a wall. We have no idea how they found us at closing time as we were one with the Lapageria and our pleas "But the Lapageria is in flower" were met with polite firmness and an aura of "If I just had a few bob for every time I've heard that". Small plants but strong and well rooted.

Seedlings from our Cardiocrinum giganteum var. yunnanense 'Big & Pink' which is one of two pink Cardiocrinums known to exist. We have the other one as well. These are hand-pollinated seedlings of this amazing and extremely rare plant and we expect them to be pink as well. They are probably a few years from flowering. One nursery person we know of was quite incensed that we would be selling these as pink saying "How do you know that they won't be white?" to which we replied "We don't but we don't know that they won't be red either." It is the first color break in the genus and there is no precedent to make assumptions other than best guesses and this is our best guess. We had two bulbs flower from this crop this summer and they were pretty darned pink. One came very close to the parent and the other was a notch behind but still way better than anything else out there so we are greatly encouraged. We can't wait seven years for these to flower to see what degree of pink - or not - they will be because the main bulb dies and we start over with offsets and seed. These do produce offsets so even though the bulb dies after blooming, you end up with more bulbs than you started with. This is a plant of temperate climates in China and the Himalayas and likes a lightly shaded, cool and moist situation. These are not planted deep like typical lilies but shallow and will often have their noses above ground as they get mature. We mulch these in winter with a blanket of dairy manure as they are a bit piggy. Oh, and that nursery person who was concerned about our ethics? She ordered one. Plant so the tip of the bulb is exposed and mulch well to keep winter freeze away from the bulb.

These is one of those elfin whimsies that always elevates my mood whenever I see it blooming. A South African bulb once known as Laperousia this is just a delight, usually red flowered but this selection flowers white with a central red blotch providing a lovely pop of contrast. This survived for years at C. Leo Hitchcocks' garden in Seattle with no care. Will seed a bit if happy and fine with dry soils. 

For those uninitiated in 19th century French lingo or types of Carnation hybrids picotee basically means this is an edgy plant. Not in the sense that it skulks in alleys with its black-dyed hair swept blindingly over one eye but in the sense that it has a colored edge. Sulcatum is a particularly variable species when it comes to color with the bulk of variations often falling into a muddy mix of reds, pinks, and whites but this ones surprisingly clear with broadly white petals bordered in a wine red. While letting go of any of these may send Kelly over the edge, you can be assured that it will certainly give your little Trillium collection a unique edge over the competition.