A message from Rupert Bowlby

The glories of the flowers of South African bulbs have been attracting me more and more over recent years. As my collection has grown, so I have become more and more aware of the enormous range of easily grown bulbs that originate from 'The Cape Floral Kingdom' and elsewhere in South Africa. Yet. how few of them we see. Admittedly a lot of the winter-growing ones need frost-free conditions, but my collection started on just a sunny window-sill. It went on to a heated garden frame and now occupies 2 poly-tunnels and 2 greenhouses which I keep just frost-free and still, a sunny window-sill. Now it numbers in excess of 550 species and varieties, a considerable number of which are still in small quantities.

My sunny window-sill is now filled from October to May with flowering pots of Freesia, Moraea, Gladiolus, Lachenalia, Sparaxis, Tritonia and many others. In summer, the terrace outside hosts Agapanthus, Aristea, Dierama, Dietes and Eucomis. I am concentrating mainly on Iridaceae and Hyacinthaceae, most of which require only a little space, flower freely and quite a number of which are scented, so they give an excellent return for the little effort required to maintain them.

My collection of summer-flowering bulbs from South Africa, although growing rapidly, is still relatively small. A surprising number seem quite hardy here, given good drainage in winter, and certainly many evergreen ones have successfully over-wintered in pots in an unheated poly-tunnel. The range of Aristea, Dietes, Dierama, summer-flowering Gladiolus and Moraea, and Watsonia, that are available here is very restricted and I hope in future to build up my collections of these to make more available.

In recent years there has been a steady increase in interest in South African bulbs, as they have become better known. I shall be issuing one catalogue every year in June/ July of winter and spring flowering bulbs etc.