Nerine 'Mansellii'

7th December 2012

Perhaps the oldest surviving Nerine hybrid (and not yet riddled with virus, so there has to be a question mark hovering over it). Originally it was seedling of N.sarniensis and N.undulata raised by Mansell and distributed from 1875 but the hybrid has been repeated frequently so this may not be the original seedling (many others have been named).
That's enough cold water to pour on the romance of history, let's put on a happy face and assume it is the real thing and revel in its magnificence.
J.G.Baker wrote in the 'Gardeners Chronicle' in 1886:
"Leaves lorate, bright green, 1.5 inches broad. Peduncle green, slightly compressed. Umbel centripetal, 10-20-flowered; spathe-valves two, lanceolate, reflexing, reddish, membranous, as long as the pedicels; pedicels 1-1.25 inches long. Perianth bright rose-red, 1.25 inches long, slightly unequal; segments oblanceolate, 0.25 inches broad, distinctly crisped. Stamens declinate, about as long as the perianth. Style 0.25 inches longer than the stamens, abruptly upcurved towards the top.


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