Sadly, Wachendorfia thyrsiflora is not hardy in the UK (except possibly in the mildest parts of the south-west) so we are denied the pleasure. Does anyone grow any other Wachendorfia species? Many are smaller and actually rather more attractive than the big, rather coarse, W. thyrsiflora. I think in particular of W. brachyandra from the west coast north of Cape Town. It is no more than 30 cm high, with branched inflorescences carrying large flowers of a soft apricot shade with a contrasting 'eye'. I have a picture of it that could be posted, if someone would instruct me how to do this! Bill Richardson asked where Martyn Rix (or anyone else) would get information about the number of species in a genus. The most handy source is David Mabberley's The Plant-book, which packs a vast amount of information into a small volume. On the subject of South African plants, a very useful summary of genera and their characters is given by O.A. Leistner (ed.) (2000), Seed plants of southern Africa, families and genera. He says that Wachendorfia has 4 species. John Grimshaw Dr John M. Grimshaw Garden Manager, Colesbourne Gardens Sycamore Cottage Colesbourne Nr Cheltenham Gloucestershire GL53 9NP Website: http://www.colesbournegardens.org.uk/ >