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Along with everybody else on the planet it seems, I am currently raising red Roscoea seedlings in the hope of coming up with something fantastic. The most significant problem is that they are
all fantastic. Jill Cowley says: "The exciting new red-coloured form of Roscoea purpurea was exhibited by Kew at one of the Royal Horticultural Shows at Vinent Square on 16 August 1994, and awarded a Preliminary Commendation. It was collected several times from the same place, and BBMS.43 was chosen as the type collection for the cultivar name 'Red Gurkha'. According to the rules, the only collection which can be called by that name is the collection chosen at the time of publication. All collections of red forms are described below as R. purpurea forma rubra. The red form of R. purpurea was found in the valley of the Buri Gandaki, a vigorous river that divides the two ranges of the Gorka Himal and the Ganesh Himal. It is known from a single locality at an approximate altitude of 1900m, the plants were scattered amongst open scrub and on steep terrace walls at the edge of a village. Such disturbed and open habitats are favoured by the species of Roscoea that were encountered during the expedition. However, no other forms of R. purpurea occur in the immediate vicinity of R. purpurea forma rubra, and the uniformity of flower colour suggest that the form would come true from seed. The plants included ones with leaf sheaths suffused with red, and forms without the red suffusion." I have selected a small number that I think are good and they have been given provisional names while they are being assessed. |
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| 26th July 2018 | ||
