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92 products
In the interest of full disclosure, we received this as Rhodohypoxis rubella from a reputable Dutch specialty bulb grower years back and we are having our doubts as to its veracity. Images of R. rubella in the wild suggest it is lighter pink, but then plants can have tremendous variability in the wild or none at all depending on the species. This has smaller flowers than typical R. baurii or its hybrids and smothers itself in rich deep dark pink flowers. Rhodohypoxis grow in South Africa at higher elevations on granitic cliffs where they inhabit little soil-filled pockets. They like good drainage and moisture while in growth and need the good drainage in winter to keep from rotting. Traditionally a classic bulb for small containers or pans as they they quickly fill out a pot and put on quite the display and then when they are going dormant it is easy to bring them into the garage or cool greenhouse over the winter. Here in the PNW, these are excellent rock garden subjects requiring only a bit of covering if winter temps plummet.
A superior red seedling that arose here and one that is a bit larger than the other large red selections we grow. It was fun to lay out a table of flowers of all the cultivars and our seedlings for comparative evaluation. It was quickly apparent that it is hard not to love red and might as well go big. Just add water, food and sun. The name refers to Anna Massena, Princess d'Esseling and Duchess of Rivoli of France. Her husband was a serious amateur ornithologist with 12,500 bird specimens including an unidentified hummingbird which he had collected along the west coast of North America. This was later named Calypte anna - Anna's Hummingbird. This is a favorite resident here all year and loves the winter flowers in our greenhouses during spates of freezing weather. The males are little emerald green Jack Russell's, flashing a conspicuous Rivoli Red throat patch.
This natural hybrid of one of the classic South African bulb genera is endemic to Cape Province, and you'd be hard pressed to find it much further than that native range even in cultivation, luckily we have excellent connections like Michael Wickenden who generously shared it with us. Bladelike foliage, while nice, is unlikely to wow. The flowers however can grow in great spikes of up to 6 1/2 ft tall! Individual florets can come in red or pink and look rather similar to a more trumpeted Hesperantha, corollas flaring out to a star shaped opening. Prefers a Mediterranean climate and very well draining soil, can be pot-grown in a similarly draining mixture for those not living the riviera lifestyle. *THIS DESCRIPTION REFERS TO WATSONIA X LONGIFOLIA AND IS YET TO BE UPDATED TO CONCUR WITH ITS PROPER ID*
