Dracunculus vulgaris

I was thinking of buying one. Breck's says it is 14-20 inches. I am assuming that is the height of the leaves. When you read PF ( http://davesgarden.com/pf/showimage/63805/) it says the height was 4-5'. is it the red flower that gets that height. how long does the flower last? Do I plant it in the back of the border. i was thinking that you might not see the leaves if the flower is shortlived. Someone on PF said it dies back.
Is it worth getting even if it smells?
I know there are alot of questions but I am not sure I want one of these. I did see one of these on a garden tour. It is unique but hers was only a foot tall. I did not realize they get taller.
Linda

I don't know much about these, but am getting some seeds for it to try from HAIGHR on the seed trading forum. Maybe you could d-mail for info.

I just saw it last night and wrote to her. Thanks. Linda

I jsut got my Breck's catalogue and saw thsi plant, too-- I'm really intrigued- let me knwo if you get one.
blazer 1

If you have the catalog then you should have a $25 coupon. I have a friend who may want one so I may buy 6. With the coupon it will be cheap enough. The company does fair on the Watch dog so we will see. Linda

i decided that I would rather have some poppies than the dracunculus vulgaris at this time-- poppies were in my garden plan-- that wasn't .
Blazer 1

I got three bulbs that bloomed last year. The smell was only bad up close and they did look really cool. However, even though we had a mild winter none of the three survived to come up this year, so I am not so sure on the zones stated by Brecks.

Thanks. We also had a mild winter. It was suitable for zone 7.
Check out this page: http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/2034/index.html They are growing them in zone 5.
linda