Bulb Growers: Having spent a bit of time botanizing in Taiwan last summer, one of my goals was to see Lilium formosanum in the wild. As I suspected, the designation of "pricei" as a variety of L. formosanum simply isn't valid. L. formosanum is a plant that grows from 7' tall in the lowlands to just over 1' tall above the tree line with a progression of sizes of along the way. To be a true variety, it would need to be an isolated population, which it is not. It has genetically adapted at each elevation to a size which allows it to prosper in situ. I explain this further on page 15 of our expedition log at http://plantdelights.com/Tony/taiwan.php/… Tony Avent Plant Delights Nursery @ Juniper Level Botanic Garden 9241 Sauls Road Raleigh, North Carolina 27603 USA Minimum Winter Temps 0-5 F Maximum Summer Temps 95-105F USDA Hardiness Zone 7b email tony@plantdelights.com website http://www.plantdelights.com/ phone 919 772-4794 fax 919 772-4752 "I consider every plant hardy until I have killed it myself...at least three times" - Avent Mary Sue Ittner wrote: > Hi, > > I'd just like to say that my experience has been more like Jim Jones > experience than Mark McDonough. I sowed both the species and the variety > from seeds supplied to a seed exchange. Both germinated well and went on to > bloom in a shorter time than I expected. I still have Lilium formosanum in > my garden. Whether it is from those original plants or from seeds that got > away after it originally bloomed, I can't be sure. It hasn't been invasive > and is a nice addition to my garden usually blooming in the fall. I no > longer have Lilium formosanum var. pricei. I seem to remember one year > there was a taller version of it blooming in a similar spot, but it's not > there now and I could be wrong. > > My conditions are really different than Mark's in Massachusetts however. > > Mary Sue > > Mary Sue Ittner > California's North Coast > Wet mild winters with occasional frost > Dry mild summers > > _______________________________________________ > pbs mailing list > pbs@lists.ibiblio.org > http://pacificbulbsociety.org/list.php > http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/ > >