Tropicals & Tender Perennials: 'Phoenix' bird or paradise, 1 by pk33635

pk33635 wrote:
Ardesia...I definitely will! It's a race against the clock right now to see if the pink or lemon lace will bloom before Nov/Dec...I'm not counting on it as those 2 plants are both just about 2.5 feet high right now, and the sun is racing south daily. I do have the red/orange/yellow going strong now (pics below)...will have to pray and protect over the winter to get the rest to blooming next spring! From what I've read, I think that I can expect them to start doing so April or early May.

Elaine...I have a combo of seed-grown and bought, totalling 10 plants right now. The ones I bought came from Sarasota and Port Charlotte..so, kind of local. The 'Phoenix' cultivar, from the research I've done is patented to a grower in Arizona and just hasn't seemed to be widely distributed east yet. That, and this plant seems to go by so many aliases/names/varieties it is astounding!

The plain orange would be a great complement to the rest, and as near as I can tell, sounds close to the phoenix colors (yellow/orange)

I also found a picture from Singapore of a variety with yellow flowers and orange stamens...ahhhh! I'll run out of planting space before I find them all! lol

other differences i've noted...some are a nice mix or orange/red and are thorny, while others are without thorns, predominantly red/yellow and have a blue/green tint to the leaves, as well as a red tint to the stems. I'm conducting a botany experiment that I hadn't signed up for!

pic is of my one orange/red/thorny one going nuts on the south-facing side of the house. I've had 2 neighbors stop and ask me what it was, and say how different and beautiful it is.