Kniphofia caulescens

[JohnH]

I currently grow K. caulescens 'Coral Breakers', it has taken around 8 years to produce a couple of feeble flowers, has disappointing foliage, and is overall rather uninspiring.

Does anyone know a supplier of a decent clone of caulescens with blue/silver leaves? There are plenty of plants around, but descriptions, habit and pics seem to vary greatly.

Is 'John May' an improvement worth searching for and has the seemingly mythical variegated 'John May' (CGF) ever been commercially available?





Slugs and snails really love 'Coral Breakers' and it needs to go, this whole corner probably needs a complete sort out.. :oops:

[AndyC]

I've grown the straight K. caulescens a few of times and have always been disappointed with the flowers. I've got one now that is a corner where I don't have to look at it.
Recently tried K. uvaria 'Nobilis', first flower forming now which is dull and malformed.
The only poker I won't do without is K. rooperi, really red hot.

[MartinNicklin]

I love Kniphofia and strangely enough was searching today for caulescens to add to my plant list. Reading this I think I will hold back, especially given the disappointment I, along with others, have had with northiae.
Andy, as regards uvaria 'Nobilis', I again think it depends on the plant you are lucky (or unlucky!) enough to get. In a couple of years, my plant was sending up huge stems with stunning flowers. I decided to get one after seeing a breathtakingly enormous plant in the garden of a nursery in Cornwall I went to during its closing down sale. Unfortunately, there were not many plants left and no Kniphofia but the sight of that magnificent plant remains in my head years later. At its best, it is an unforgettable sight, so good that I've seen it described as a plant which can act as a "local landmark."

[JohnH]

It's such a shame you seem to have got a dud Andy, I'm relieved it isn't just me.

If you are still looking Martin, I have joined the waiting list at Beth Chatto. They have two versions listed, but the nicer sounding plants, from wild collected seed (BS5020), are not ready yet.

In the meantime I have ordered from Desert to Jungle, he is generally very good with his selections.

There look to be a lot of micro propped caulescens out there, including the stock at Architectural Plants. It's a bit of a lottery when buying sight unseen.

[JohnH]

Here are the D to J caulescens that arrived today Martin, it's much more glaucous than it appears in the pic and seems ready to form the above ground stem I am hoping for.

[KLaban]

I bought my Kniphofia caulescens a couple of years ago from letsgoplanting. Wonderful plants with largish trunks, good roots, intensely glaucous (despite their own description), beautifully packaged. Hopefully their current stock is the same.

https://www.letsgoplanting.co.uk/produc ... aulescens/

[KLaban]

A photo of my caulescens.

[Paul S]

What a cracking form!

[JohnH]

Arghh!!! I was feeling quite smug until I saw your form Keith.
I have a horrible feeling I will be doing the 'northiae thing' now, searching out different suppliers and positions in the garden.

[MartinNicklin]

Superb! But John, your plants also look good. Let's hope they perform like Keith's plant!