Eremurus x isabellinus ‘Cleopatra’

 

Grass Garden

 

Eremurus x isabellinus ‘Cleopatra’, the Foxtail Lily, can be seen in the Grass Garden

This glorious perennial from dry, rocky areas of central and western Asia, produces a huge tapering spire of flowers, which open gradually from the base upwards. The spire consisting of hundreds of flowers are a glowing peachy/orange in colour, they can reach 3m in height. Ours are still settling in.

The starfish shaped rootstock should be planted in a broad shallow hole on a mound of coarse sand to aid drainage with the crown at soil level. They need to be widely spaced with very little competition for them to thrive.

After flowering, the plant dies back, and lies dormant: a survival strategy to cope with the scorching temperatures in its native homeland.