As you begin to read more of my posts, you will find that I have a bit of a bulb problem. I'm not sure why, but I love bulbs. All kinds of bulbs. One of the little treasures that I bought for the Introduction Garden at the Arboretum almost 10 years ago is this little gem, Tritonia crocata 'Pink Sensation'. Because they are generally orange and resemble freesias, they are often called flame freesias. It is growing on the dry sandy bank along the main walkway that takes you from the parking area to the main entrance to the Administration Building and Visitor Center (which is still under renovation, so this walkway is currently not heavily travelled). Today I was surfing to find out more about Tritonia today when I found out that Tritonia crocata never has veins prominent in the petals. Hmmm. This is definitely not Tritonia crocata! A little searching revealed that it is most likely Tritonia parvula. I guess the name doesn't matter too much unless you are a botanist. I will have to tell Bradley so he can change the accession data and the tag.
It has been very happy here and the color is great with the violet buds and light blue flowers of Amsonia 'Blue Ice' that is growing near it. It is truly a Mediterranean climate plant and it sends up its leaves in October with the autumn rains. The leaves will try to grow anytime we have temperatures above freezing during the winter, and sometimes the foliage is brown by spring, when another flush of foliage emerges just before the wiry flower spikes. The location it is growing in is horribly dry most of the time. It's not a water demanding plant.
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