[PHOTO] Belamcanda chinensis

I have 2 plants in bloom right now.  These things are great!  Each flower
only lasts one day, but the stalks are branched and full of buds and they
have been in bloom for over a week now...and look like they will continue
to bloom for at least another week or two.  And now the other 3 plants are
sending up stalks, so I will potentially have these things blooming for 2
months solid.

I am intrigued by the difference in color of the their flowers.  One is
orangey-yellow and the other is orangey-red.  The flowers do not look very
iris-like, but the foliage looks just like regular irises.  (Actually the
flowers remind more of a lily or amaryllis.)

They are not forming bee pods.  The "ovaries" are dropping off with the
flowers, which tells me the bees are not interested in pollenating these
things.

Each flower is about 2 inches (5 cm) across...maybe a little less.  I can't
detect any aroma, but maybe I need to check earlier in the morning before
the afternoon sun beats down on them.  The stalks are about 2 ft. tall.
The flowers are held about 1 ft. above the foliage.

I grew these from seed planted at the end of February...just 6 months ago.

Belamcanda chinensis.  Get some today!  :)

JPEG image

Dennis Kramb; dkramb@badbear.com
Cincinnati, Ohio USA; USDA Zone 6; AIS Region 6
member of AIS, ASI, HIPS, SIGNA, SLI, & Miami Valley Iris Society
primary interests: ABs, REBs, LAs, Native SPEC and SPEC-X hybrids
(my gardening URL:  http://www.badbear.com/dkramb/home.html)
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