Haemanthus Hybrid 'Burgundy'
J.E. Shields (Tue, 29 Sep 2009 05:52:37 PDT)

I have my hybrid Haemanthus in bloom again, and I decided to name this
strain of Haemanthus as "Burgundy" because of its unique color for a form
of Haemanthus. This bulb and one other are producing twin scapes this year,
another trait I've not seen before in Haemanthus.

This image is on-line in my blog at:

http://shieldsgardens.com/Blogs/Garden/…

and in the Florapix web site at:

http://botu07.bio.uu.nl/temperate/…

The peduncle is moderately hirsute and has some red to burgundy coloration.
The erect bracts, burgundy in color and numbering (usually) 5 or 6, enclose
the scarlet flowers. As the bulbs are still maturing, I'm not sure what the
ultimate scape height and flower count might be. The leaves seem
intermediate between the two parents' leaves, with light covering of hairs,
more along the leaf margins. The leaf margins tend to have a fine red line
and on the lower (abaxial) surface of the leaves may be some transverse
red striation near the base.

The actual cross was Haemanthus [humilis hirsutus x coccineus] where the
seed parent had pure white flowers and the pollen parent had scarlet
flowers. Where did the burgundy color come from? I hope to take the most
vigorous seedling from this batch and hand propagate it.

Jim Shields
in Westfield, Indiana
USA

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Jim Shields USDA Zone 5 Shields Gardens, Ltd.
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