September 2010 in the Southern Hemisphere

[Tecophilaea King]

Imagine my delight to find this beautiful almost forgotten plant flowering for me for the first time from seed.
This unique winter-spring flowering Asphodelus acaulis species is the only low-growing member of the high altitude genus and is native to the mountains of Algeria and Morocco.
This beautiful plant forms basal rosettes of narrow, succulent leaves and produces a succession of  delightful, stemless  peach-pink flowers nestling amongst  the foliage.
A most desirable plant for the connoisseur that will never fail to attract attention.

[TheOnionMan]

Bill, that's an exquisite gem and a fine close-up photo of it.  It looks like it is growing happily in your garden, with lots of buds to come.

[Ragged Robin]

This unique winter-spring flowering Asphodelus acaulis species

Bill, what an exquisite plant, not just desirable but irresistible!  How long have you grown it from seed to first flowering? 

[angie]

Wow Bill that's a beauty, what a dream to have.

Angie

[Lesley Cox]

Well done Bll. It's generally winter-flowering with me so about finished for now. I find it's best (flowers best and has fewest leaves) in a really hard, gravelly soil. Otherwise it tends to get very leafy and the foliage obscures the flowers. I occasionally get 3 or 4 seeds in any year but haven't had them germinate yet. They're quite large, hard and black in a capsule which dehisces when still green, on a very short, curled stem.

[Casalima]

That is gorgeous!
The asphodels (or asphodel type plants - I've never got round to an exact identification) that grow on the hills round here are so dreary and ubiquitous, that I'm almost biased against them. This beautiful plant will definitely persuade me that asphodels can be beautiful!!

[Lesley Cox]

Most seem to me to be tall and lanky plants but A. acaulis huddles on the ground.

[t00lie]

Most seem to me to be tall and lanky plants but a. acaulis huddles on the ground.

Not in my conditions Lesley  --too much shade.

More suited are Corydalis solida--here's a selection of a few currently in bloom ,including a lovely purple one (pic 5), i raised from seed.
C.x george baker is the final pic.

[TheOnionMan]

Dave, Corydalis solida 'Toole's Purple' looks to be a real winner; an excellent color form.

[t00lie]

 

[arillady]

Bill and Lesley apart from the hard gravelly soil what climate does Asphodelus acaulis prefer?

[Maggi Young]

Dave, Corydalis solida 'Toole's Purple' looks to be a real winner; an excellent color form.

 And such a fitting memorial to t00lie's late lamented hiking leggings 
( see photos in old NZ threads to see photographic evidence.......     )

[Tecophilaea King]

Bill and Lesley apart from the hard gravelly soil what climate does Asphodelus acaulis prefer?

Pat, according to the experts, Asphodelus acaulis is fully winter hardy, can cope with light frosts, but hate wet feet, it prefers well drained soil, dry summer rest and good air circulation in the winter when you should, try and keep to much water off the leaves, in the manner of most Mediterranean wintergreen subjects.
Because of the succulent foliage and their dislike of winter wet, this is best not regarded as a subject for the open garden in Northern Europe or similar cold, winter-wet environments.
I grow the plant in a pot or container, for easy shifting, either for showing or if conditions get to wet or to cold, but so far has coped with all the rain and frost in the nursery here up in the North Island.
Hopefully will produce seed, (with hand pollination) and if successful might have a few spare seed for you, I still owe you for the Iris planifolia seed.  

Robin, the date on the label in the containers says three years from seed to flowering plant.

[Tecophilaea King]

This is a nice picture of a magnificent, variegated Veltheimia bracteata aurea, selected  from a box of V.bracteata aurea seedlings.

[Lesley Cox]

I guess Bill has said it all Pat. It's certainly very hardy here (to about -6 or -7C) and often flowers with a rime of frost on its leaves. It also takes any rain we get in winter or through the year. I'm sure you'd have no problems with it at all. I did have one a few years back in a hypertufa trough (along with Weldenia candida in a next door trough) but both, after a couple of years had broken their troughs with the strength of root that pushed down and then split the troughs at the corners. When the sides were lifted away, the plants were sitting in neat cubes of compost, the outer roots exposed to the air. So if in a pot, it had better be a biggish one and very strong.