OT-PLANTS:gilia

to Dennis, Judy, Rosalie, & others:

After looking at the two picture sites noted by Dennis Kramb for
Scarlett Gilia
(and Thank you, D.K., for the help!), I have this comment:  Mine is much
prettier, because the scarlet flowers are so small and close to the stem that
you never see the stem when it's in bloom--just a solid tower of red covering
the stalk completely.  I checked four different plant reference books on my
shelves.  The AHS Encyclopedia of Garden Plants defined gilia only as a blue-
blooming member of the family Polemoniaceae.  My old standby, however, the
1960-ish Taylor's Encyclopedia of Gardening, devoted an entire column to the
subject, describing in detail nine different types.  The website photos cited
by Dennis Kramb are G. aggregata, common name skyrocket.  I believe mine
to be
G. rubra, described as follows:

	A showy perennial or biennial, *3-5 ft. high*[asterisks mine], and
known by a 		
	variety of
	names, of which tree cypress, standing cypress, Texas plume, and trailing
	fire are the best known. Leaves dissected, feather-fashion, into thread-
	like segments.  Flowers in narrow cluster, very showy. [None of these
	names are known to me.]

Taylor says that G. aggregata, or skyrocket, is "resembling Gilia rubra"
but is
"not over 2 1/2' tall."  

Here's how the plant came to us:  Many long years ago, some now-unknown 
customer of Pocklington Seed Co. brought the plant to Irv's older brother.
It survived many years amongst various flowers growing along the walls of
the Seed Co. office, and after I married Irv, Elmer gave us some and assigned
me the task of "finding out its name."  I took pictures to Henry Eilers, a
now-retired nurseryman who specializes in native plants (He oversees
some of
the tall prairie grass restoration projects along IL highways).  I also
had the
opportunity to meet Ms. Laurie [??], a horticulturist at the Morton Arboretum
in the Chicago area.  Both thought gilia was  the correct name.  That's all
I know.  Thanks to others of you for your input.
Nancy in IL zone 5.

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