In a message dated 10/19/2003 12:32:11 PM Eastern Daylight Time, msittner@mcn.org writes: Do you have the Color Encyclopedia of Cape Bulbs (the South African bible I heard it called)? You must with all the bulbs you grow from this area. If you don't have it, you definitely should get it. It is very cheaply purchased through buy.com, or at least it was. I've never grown Syringodea as the only seed I've had never cameup. There is a picture and a description in that book although not as clear perhaps as yours. It looks very possible. What are the leaves like? (Leaves 5 to 8, filiform with a dorsal groove, often twisted.) Hi Mary Sue: I do have the Color Encyclopedia of Cape Bulbs somewhere but can not locate it at the moment, Freddi is in nesting mode and has the house in a shambles for redecorating and restorations. I found a fuzzy picture in a Nieuwoudtville handbook by Manning and Goldblatt that looks like my plant. The leaves (5-6) are filiform and have a channel but are not twisted. The outer bracts are fused into a tubular shape. There is a brief description in the synoptic review of Romulea by Manning and Goldblatt. As soon as I am able to see the open flower again (cloudy or too late in the day when I get to the greenhouse) I may have the answer as the paper says that the style branches are to be simple. Best regards and the Lachenalia season has begun with L. pusilla in bloom, Mark Mazer Intarsia Ltd. Gaylordsville, Connecticut 06755-0142 USA http://www.therapyshapes.com/ USDA Zone 5 Giant Schnauzer Rescue