Scilla, Hyacinthoides and Ornithogalum have six parted flowers not five
parted.
The more info we get, the less clear a picture we get of the plant.
Now we know the original info we got was completely wrong and this modified
version isn't much better. Are the flowers bell shaped or aren't they?
Darby should be the one to provide a picture of her plant not us.
Tyra Trevellyn wrote in message
...
Darby Wiggins wrote:
Oh, okay. I'm new here and obviously, didn't give a very good
description.
I'm
not familiar with some "gardening" terms, so bare with me.
The reason why I don't think its a particularly rare plant and assumed
(perhaps incorrectly) that it was a perennial is that my employer is not
known
for being particularly interested in spending any amount of time dealing
with
landscaping. I can't image that they would spend the time or money to
purchase
flowers every year and plant them. They have a hard enough time keeping
the
grass mowed and fairly fresh mulch down. So, I concluded that they would
be
more apt to plant a bulb once and walk away without any intention of
"helping"
it along.
By looking at the pictures, It does not look like it is Lily of the
Valley,
but is somewhat similar. I didn't take measurements. Let me re-adjust my
estimate on the height from the ground to the very top at approx. 12-14
inches. (yeah, its a far cry from 2 feet. not great with evaluating these
kinds of things). The stem appears to be fairly thick, maybe 1/4 -1/2 "
in
diameter( a bit wider than a thick asparagus)
The top 1/3 is covered with individual flowers, similar to the picture
of the
LoTV. But the flowers are bigger. Each flower seems to have a small stem
of
its own that comes off the main stem. I'd say its maybe 1/4 -1/2 inch in
length..longer the farther down the main stem you are and shorter as you
reach
the top. The small stems grow upward and then the flower comes out of it.
The flowers are delicate looking, but are fairly sturdy when handling
them.
They have a waxy feel to them. The base of the flower is in the shape of
a
bell. Now, imagine a bell turned upside down. What was the top of the
bell,
is
now the base of the flower and is attached to a small stem. Instead of
the
bell only slightly narrowing and then stopping, the round bell portion
stays
the same but then as it narrows it also elongates and the "lip" of the
bell
actually comes close to closing. But it doesn't The flowers have approx.
five
"tips" (I can't think of a better word) that fold outward in a curl
backward
underneath. (Imagine you have say, a cupcake liner and you cut the sides
halfway down, perpendicular to the base, then fold the edges outward
allowing
for a curl in the folds. This is what the tips do) The center of the
flower
has a slight yellow look to it.
The bloom is approx. 1/2" in height and when the "tips" are folded
outward,
its maybe 1/4" a bit more in diameter, BUT this is the widest part of
the
bloom. The bell portion of the base is no more than 1/8" in diameter.
The blooms are fairly evenly spaced along the main stem and since the
width
of
the flower is greater at its top then base, it often appears that there
are
more blooms on the plant then there actually is. That extra width at the
top
of the bloom adds to the appearance of a fairly densely group of blooms,
but
its only an allusion.
In the picture, the blooms were too small and spaced too far apart. They
also
lacked the roundness at the base of the "bell" that this plant has, but
the
picture does show the elongation of the bloom but not the folding back of
the
tips and their curling under.
Most of the blooms were white, though I did see a few on other plants
that
were a brownish color....(not spoiled) but more of the color of butternut
squash.
If someone could provide a link to some good pictures, I might be able to
find
the plant, but I've looked and can't find any that resemble this.
Please feel free to ask questions if I didn't make things clear. And we
don't
have a horticulture dept. and calling landscaping would be
pointless....they
have even less of an idea about plants than I do.
Darby
It could be something in the squill (Scilla) genus, or perhaps
Hyacinthoides
hispanica (Spanish bluebells, wood hyacinth), formerly part of that
genus.....I
believe the designation was changed a while back. These normally bloom
later
in spring, however, but it's worth a look at the photo link below, or do a
search for lots more photos and info. (These bulbs can produce white,
pink,
or blue blooms, depending on variety.) See if this is close to what
you're
seeing.
http://www.twofrog.com/scillacamp.html
Best,
Tyra
nNJ usa