On Sun, 5 Sep 2004 19:45:27 +0100, Kay
wrote:


But the flower doesn't match - Eucomis has white or greenish flowers,
and certainly not long red buds.

snip
Ray and I were talking about this and he *thinks* there's a smaller variety
that might fit the bill, which is why I suggested it.

I thought you'd missed the description because I remembered seeing 2
species of Eucomis at Hill House.

The plant in question is probably one of the Vriesia hybrids derived
from psittacina and carinata. They are now widely available in garden
centres and make quite good, long lasting pot plants. They are
bromeliads and as such qualify as pineapple relatives. As to dividing
them, bromeliads are best allowed to develop quite sizeable offsets
before removing them from the parent rosette. The larger they are,
the more likely they are to have roots and will therefore establish
with greater ease.

Dave Poole
Torquay, Coastal South Devon UK
Winter min -2°C. Summer max 34°C.
Growing season: March - November