This must be one of the top of my list of bulbs I struggled to find and now this winter growing Paramongaia weberbaueri is about to open her very first flower. The flower as it is now is already 70mm long measured from the ovary. Older bulbs produce flowers of up to 240mm across. I am sure this first time flower will not come close to that but my excitement is getting too much now. I believe the flower does not stay long, only 3 days or so. This is a very rare bulb and fetch unbelievable prices on Ebay.
The flower from top to bottom measures about 120mm. The colour is fantastic. I read on another forum that these flowers looks like a Daffodil on steroids and I agree with that. I am quite happy with the size for a first time flower and it should open further than this during the day in the sun.
Hinie its very true at first i thought its a daffodil but then i noted the leaves are very broad just like Amaryllis or Clivia.Its very fantastic with unique color shade.
Mustansir,
These bulbs or seed is extremely rare to find in cultivation and if you can find it they are very expensive. They do become available on Ebay occassionally but it comes with a price. I paid US$40 for a non flowering bulb 4 years ago but it was one of those must have plants. They are very fussy growers.
There are 2 types. the one flowering in winter and the other flowring in summer. You should try Tomorrows Plants in the UK, Mike Jeans, where it is really cheap but they would not send to me in RSA. Here is the link http://www.tomorrowsplants.com/plants12.htm
Syed,
It is indeed two pots. The bulb is planted in a 17cm pot in a very loose mix. This pot is then placed into a 23cm pot and the void is filled with sand. Now for my logic.
This plant needs full sun to grow and flower properly. If I use only the inner pot the black plastic pot attracts more heat from the sun and the very big root ball will cook and I lose an expensive bulb. The heat is now taken up by the sand in the outer pot and the roots remain cool and damp longer.
Now you may ask me why I do not plant the bulb in the ground which will pose a different problem for losing the bulb. My plot consists of pure heavy clay which will hold way too much water and the bulb will rot in the first few months. This bulb needs to be kept completely dry in the dormant season. All my bulbs are planted in various sizes of pots as I wrote in another topic. I remove the inner pot with the bulb when it is stored in the dormant season to save a little space with many other dormant bulbs in pots. I have varieties of bulbs planted in more than 600 pots that are moved around all year for the various growing and dormant seasons. Complex is it not? I still enjoy it.
I hope that my logic makes some sense in this lengthy explanation so much so that you may agree with my logic.
The pot immediately to the right of the double pot are Crinum lutea seeds. This is a beautiful yellow desert Crinum from Australia.
Muhammad,
At 63 I am still planting seeds as I did 20 years ago. I always tell people that my wife has two phone numbers of friends that she must phone when I kick the bucket to collect the plants and share them at the clubs I belong to. No money must be involved because I never sell plant material but rather swaop or give away. You will be surprised how well that works and how fast a collection grows.
My growing is my hobby for retirement which I started about 30 years ago for today. I have a saying that "where money is involved, friendships are ruined".
Dear Heinie, This is the most beautiful plant i ever saw, i am always looking for flowers that resemble daffodils, so far i managed to get Eucharis amazonica and Ismene sulfur queen....This plant resembles Ismene...does it have any connection with this genus ?
