I won't bore you with my origins, as I've lived in many lands, however, I carry an English Passport and currently am at home in Cologne, Germany, where I maintain a small (aprox. 600 sq Metre) garden, with pond, shade garden, rockery and just enough lawn to enjoy the lot! The soil on my side of the Rhein tends to clay, but contains quite a bit of rubble, etc. left from various wars (the city is over 2000 years old!) and typically has a pH of just over 7.0. The climate is mild, being a USDA Zone 8 (min. -12 °C), quite wet, similar to The Netherlands and southern Britain, but possibly a bit hotter in Summer, when the temperatures can reach over 40 °C for a few days in August. This makes for interesting gardening as most geophytic plants are not from similar climes.
My main interest is with Hemerocallis, which takes up most of the garden, but I have a strong passion for Lilium which has been a trial for me, as well as various South African Amaryllids, such as Brunsvigia, Cyrtanthus, Nerine, Clivia, etc. I have become fascinated with Bomarea and am currently collecting different species (no mean feat!) and playing with them in the open garden. South African irids have caught my eye recently and I've started with Watsonia, Moraea, Dietes, etc., hoping to seed raise garden worthy cvs. Like most of us, I've rarely met a plant I didn't like!