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From Dilatris on Thursday 12th of March 2026 05:48:06 PM PDT
Dilatris corymbosa P.J.Bergius is found on damp sandy slopes and flats in the Western Cape. It is often seen after fire in the Western Cape mountains. Growing 40-60 cm high, it flowers from August to January. The flowers are mauve in a flat-topped cluster with hairy lanceolate tepals. Stamens are about as long as the tepals and the large anther more than twice as long as the smaller. The first four photos from iNaturalist were taken by Tony Rebelo in November in the Western Cape and shared under aCC BY-SA license. The last photo of the flowers with monkey beetles was taken by Bernhard Frauenknecht at Bains Kloof December 2023.
From Geissorhiza Species One on Wednesday 11th of March 2026 06:16:01 PM PDT
Geissorhiza elsiae Goldblatt grows on permanently damp south facing slopes and cliffs usually among waterfalls in the Kamanassie Mountains in the Little Karoo. Growing from 13 to 25 cm, this species has linear to sword shaped leaves and light pink flowers with diamond shaped purple markings in the center. It flowers October to November. It can be confused with Geissorhiza roseoalba, but that species grows in more arid areas, has larger flowers, and does not have anthers symmetrically arranged around the style. The photo below from the book Plants of the Klein Karoo courtesy of Jan and Anne Lise Schutte-Vlok.
From Gilliesia on Tuesday 10th of March 2026 05:28:53 PM PDT
Gilliesia graminea Lindl., the type species of this genus, is native to Central Chile to Argentina (Mendoza). This species looks more like an orchid than an amaryllid. According to Chile Flora, this species grows on shaded steep slopes at low altitude, interior valleys or coastal mountains. Height: 8 cm. Photographs 1 to 4 by Bert Zaalberg. Photograph 5 by Dylan Hannon originally from Chile: Cuesta Las Chlieas, 550 m.
From Moraea Species Seven on Monday 9th of March 2026 05:17:10 PM PDT
Moraea polystachya (Thunb.) Ker Gawl. is a vigorous species from the winter and summer rainfall areas of southern Africa. Plants are up to 80 cm tall with several furrowed leaves. Flower stems are branched and flowers quite large. Distribution is from the Karoo, the Little Karoo and the Eastern Cape to Namibia where it is found on dry slopes flowering mainly March to July. The South African Wild Flower Guide 6 for the Karoo lists a much broader distribution.
It is beloved by many members of the PBS mailing list who live in Mediterranean climates, because when happy it produces large numbers of short-lived flowers over a long period from fall to early winter, a time when most other moraeas are barely putting up leaves. Unfortunately it's not as successful in very cold climates or those with year-round rain. If you're growing this species in captivity, keep it dry at the start of summer but start watering it in mid-summer to get the longest bloom period (see cultural notes below). This species is reportedly poisonous to livestock, so be careful not to let it escape into the wild (more information here). The first photo was taken by Sheila Burrow, the second by Bill Dijk, and the third by Bob Rutemoeller. The fourth and fifth were taken by Michael Mace. The fourth shows subtle variations in flower shape and nectar guide color.
The first photo taken in habitat by Cameron McMaster in the Eastern Cape. The next two photos taken in the Little Karoo are from the book Plants of the Klein Karoo courtesy of Jan and Anne Lise Schutte-Vlok. There are two variants that occur in the region, an autumn flowering one with pale blue flowers and a spring or summer flowering one with dark purple blue flowers.
Some growers report considerable success with this species, while others report that it is very inconsistent, blooming well one year and not at all the next. Part of the problem may be that it grows in dry areas scattered across much of South Africa and Namibia, according to Goldblatt's The Moraeas of Southern Africa. So different plants may come from very different climates. The species is typically treated like other winter-growing bulbs, but Goldblatt says that most of its habitat is outside the winter-rain area. Some PBS members report that it grows much more vigorously if given water starting in mid-summer (early August in the northern hemisphere), a watering schedule that would rot many summer-dormant bulbs. With August watering, it can start blooming in October and continue into February, if frost doesn't cut it down. If watering starts in October, the typical start time for a winter-growing bulb, Moraea polystachya will not start blooming until January, and may not bloom at all. In California, M. polystachya is visited by honeybees with an almost disturbing intensity. There appears to be nectar at the base of the tepals, and the bees shove themselves down into the flower to get it. They sometimes emerge from the flowers coated liberally in pollen. As a result of all this attention, the plants will set copious amounts of seed if allowed to. Removing seed pods before they ripen seems to extend the bloom period. The sequence of photos below shows a honeybee in California, its legs already loaded with Moraea pollen, forcing its way into an unopened bud of Moraea polystachya.
The nectar can also attract Argentine ants in California, which then encourage aphids on the flowers and leaves. It's best to spray the ants and aphids when they start to appear, or they will build up rapidly. Seeds from Michael Mace via PBS BX295 germinated by M. Gastil-Buhl with warm day / cold night treatment as early as 14 days (only 2 of about 60). Seedlings grew to over 4 cm in their first 2 weeks, in sterile potting soil with Sphagnum moss and 1 tbsp compost tea after their first week. Corms grown from those same seedlings, in photo 4 on a 1 cm grid, were found below 9 cm (3.5 inches) depth growing in a raised box. Note one corm has sprouted. Another seedling from that same lot first bloomed two years from the date sown, shown in photo 5 growing in a 5 inch tall pot. The bloom stalk bends at angles as each bud opens, as shown in photo 6.
Seed photo from David Pilling.
From Blandfordia on Sunday 8th of March 2026 05:01:53 PM PDT
Blandfordia cunninghamii Lindl. is found on wet sandstone crevices of the Blue Mountains in New South Wales. It has tubular red or orange-red flowers with yellow tips and margins. Height range: 80-100 cm. Photo from iNaturalist was taken by Margaret J. Baker in November in the Blue Mountains and shared under a CC BY-NC license.
From Merwilla on Saturday 7th of March 2026 05:44:09 PM PST
Merwilla dracomontana (Hilliard & B.L.Burtt) Speta, syn. Scilla dracomontana Hilliard & B.L.Burtt, is a dwarf species with stiff hairs on the scape found from the foothills of the KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape Drakensberg. It easily hybridizes with M. plumbea. Photos from iNaturalist in the public domain taken by Peter Warren in October at Garden Castel Nature Reserve in KwaZulu-Natal.
From Trillium Species Two on Friday 6th of March 2026 04:45:07 PM PST
Trillium lancifolium Raf. has twisted petals in many forms, but these are very long, thin and erect. It also has a unique look, taking its name from the lance-shaped leaves. The stems can be very tall, easily up to 18", and 2.5 to 3 times longer than the leaves. Flower color appears very variable, from dark maroon, through bicolors to almost green. The rhizome is also very unusual, being long and thin, and very brittle. It also tends to branch and form tight clumps more frequently than most other trilliums. In habitat it is more often found closer to small creeks, usually on the flood plain and in areas that can be totally inundated for several days or weeks in particularly wet springs. In addition to the 'normal' populations in central Georgia and Alabama, there are populations in the Florida panhandle near the Chattahoochee River which flower very early, before the end of February in many years. Photos by John Lonsdale.
From Narcissus Division Eleven on Thursday 5th of March 2026 04:06:38 PM PST
Narcissus 'Tripartite' is a mid to late season bloomer with clustered yellow, fragrant flowers. Photos taken March 2007 by Jay Yourch.
From Crocosmia on Wednesday 4th of March 2026 05:12:00 PM PST
Crocosmia unknown cultivar, photographed by David Pilling. This is a "pass along" plant, and so came with no name tag; a few pieces of root have filled the garden with vigorous clumps which grow over four feet high every summer. It is hardy, having survived temperatures as low as -15 °C with no problem. I usually chop it down to the ground in late autumn, before it dies back or the hard frosts come; in spring it sets off again. For a long time I collected the black seed like objects which form at the base of each flower and tried to grow them, with a lack of success. I concluded this was a non-fertile hybrid; actually these are seed pods without seeds. Hand pollination produces viable looking seed pods like the single one in the last photo.
Although the flowers are not pollinated they are popular with bees, the first photo of a bee in situ shows that the bees are not big enough; the second photo is of a corm along with a 1 inch diameter coin and the third shows how corms grow in a stack. Photo 4 is of flower buds.
From Narcissus Hybrids on Tuesday 3rd of March 2026 04:39:25 PM PST
Narcissus × incomparabilis , is a natural sterile hybrid between Narcissus pseudonarcissus and Narcissus poeticus. The specific Latin name incomparabilis which translates to "matchless" was given early before the binomial nomenclature was introduced by Linnaeus and it referred to the large size of the flower, at that time, compared with both the wild parents. Today we would consider it a medium or even a small flowered hybrid. Giovanni Battista Ferrari in his 'Flora' published in 1635 described several forms of Narcissus x incomparabilis being in cultivation in Italy at that time, even some double forms. It is intermediate-late flowering and slightly scented. Photo by Angelo Porcelli of the strain found wild in Central Italy.
