Kniphofia northiae

[Gafoto]

Has anyone grown this fellow? The hardiness reports online are varied but I have to guess it’s decently stout consider it grows near Tiffindell, the South African ski resort. Other Kniphofia do well here in Utah but don’t appreciate our bone dry summers.

[Paul S]

I can''t help as far as your side of the sea is concerned but in the UK this is an extremely desirable plant, having the look of a succulent but growing in the wider garden, made all the more desirable by there being imposters everywhere! Getting hold of the real thing is something of a lottery - I currently have material from five different sources - three new this year - growing on and don't know if any of these new ones are real or not. It was all messed up by a nursery who was, historically, one of the biggest wholesale suppliers here. They had the real thing in their display garden then, due to demand, put it into tissue culture. Something somewhere went awry - either accidental hybridising or the TC process - because the resultant progeny offset like crazy and have extended flower stalks. Of course everyone who sells it insists theirs is accurately named, so you have to buy a plant then grow it on for a couple of years before you can tell for sure. It is quite annoying. I am hopeful one of my more recent purchases is the real deal as they say they have been growing it from their own seed for a couple of decades, not bought in from the TC wholesalers. We'll see. [/rant]

[Meangreen94z]

Cistus Nursery rates it Zone 6 and has it in stock. They are usually pretty accurate on their hardiness claims. Everything they sell online they research and grow themselves. Most of the species they collect the seeds themselves.
https://cistus.com/products/kniphofia-northiae

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[Gafoto]

I will give those Cistus plants a try in the spring. I started investigating this species after seeing what might be one in my neighborhood:

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You can see how broad the leaves were before it bloomed and started clumping. The flower stalk is oddly short compared to most Kniphofia I have seen.

This one survived our last wet 11 degree winter.

[edds]

I had, and lost, one this year from a reliable source (or at least it has been for other rare plants). It rotted in it's pot.

[Meangreen94z]

Cistus grows a few different species:

https://cistus.com/search?q=kniphofia&o ... ix%5D=last

Plant Delights Nursery grows a number of selections/hybrids:

https://www.plantdelights.com/pages/sea ... cyclopedia

Cold tolerance seems high on most species, but I wonder drought and sun tolerance. Salt Lake City is pretty dry during the summer

[Gafoto]

Kniphofia hybrids in general do quite well here but they tend to only bloom with supplemental water (like most plants ). If given enough water they will tolerate full sun in a park strip and bloom most of the summer. My plants get hand watered so I tend to only see blooms in the spring and fall. The foliage doesn’t seem to suffer much in high heat and drought.

I remember one of the nursery owners in Tucson mentioning they were a wish list plant for him but it was just too hot in that area for them to grow well. They’re such a common landscape plant here that I don’t even think of them being a notable plant. Of course the reverse is true of Agave, you can find massive specimens all over Arizona to the point where they just don’t seem special to the locals.

[Meangreen94z]

As far as I’m aware they aren’t very common here. Maybe for a reason ,but I’ll give them a try .

[Paul S]

I will give those Cistus plants a try in the spring. I started investigating this species after seeing what might be one in my neighborhood:
IMG_5968.jpeg
You can see how broad the leaves were before it bloomed and started clumping. The flower stalk is oddly short compared to most Kniphofia I have seen.

This one survived our last wet 11 degree winter.

I think this one might be K. caulescens?

[Gafoto]

I will give those Cistus plants a try in the spring. I started investigating this species after seeing what might be one in my neighborhood:
IMG_5968.jpeg
You can see how broad the leaves were before it bloomed and started clumping. The flower stalk is oddly short compared to most Kniphofia I have seen.

This one survived our last wet 11 degree winter.

I think this one might be K. caulescens?

I wouldn’t argue any ID. This plant has notably wider foliage and a shorter flower stalk than the other hybrids that I’ve seen. I’ll try to grab a photo of the bloom next year, it seems happy as a clam. You can see another unknown Kniphofia to the left and behind.

So many of the plants available are things like Kniphofia ‘Mango Mix’ that it’s hard to know what you’re buying. They certainly aren’t species.

[Meangreen94z]

Interesting article involving pollination of kniphofia in habitat
https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley ... 2/ecy.4470
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/26/scie ... =url-share

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[edds]

That would be much more fun than using a paintbrush!

[Stan]

Just read that today,but mean beat me to it by days. A small wolf species so nectar i can see as helping. The wolves that try to eat you probably not.

[RCDS66]

Interesting article involving pollination of kniphofia in habitat
https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley ... 2/ecy.4470
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/26/scie ... =url-share
IMG_3120.jpegIMG_3119.jpegIMG_3121.jpeg

Excellent shots Meangreen94z. Is that a female White-tailed deer?

[edds]

Interesting article involving pollination of kniphofia in habitat
https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley ... 2/ecy.4470
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/26/scie ... =url-share
IMG_3120.jpegIMG_3119.jpegIMG_3121.jpeg

Excellent shots Meangreen94z. Is that a female White-tailed deer?

Do you mean the wolf licking the flower head???

[Meangreen94z]

Interesting article involving pollination of kniphofia in habitat
https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley ... 2/ecy.4470
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/26/scie ... =url-share
IMG_3120.jpegIMG_3119.jpegIMG_3121.jpeg

Excellent shots Meangreen94z. Is that a female White-tailed deer?

Now that you mention it they do look like deer in those pictures, but as mentioned they are a native species of wolves.

[RCDS66]

Interesting article involving pollination of kniphofia in habitat
https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley ... 2/ecy.4470
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/26/scie ... =url-share
IMG_3120.jpegIMG_3119.jpegIMG_3121.jpeg

Excellent shots Meangreen94z. Is that a female White-tailed deer?

Do you mean the wolf licking the flower head???

Oh my bad I must have been dreaming about a whitetail