fran m's Journal

Looked at your photos your side area looks great sorry I do do not know the name of th plant it is very pretty

Thanks Clara, the side area needs 2 tons of gravel and more paving, great to have it started. Will be divorced over the garden.ie site, its so additive, i'm nearly as bad as the kids, glad i have my own laptop.

It looks a bit like a Phygelius, Fran. But the presence of the 2 spots are putting me off. Google on Phygelius, maybe it is a different variety.

This has me stumped a little Fran but it's not phygelius definitly as it's leaves are very different. It may be a corydalis (there a blue corydalis that has the same type of flowers) Another wild stab is it's a delphinium possibly a nudicaule form?? Lastly for some reason it might be a bulb or corm of some sort. I'll keep and eye open and let you know if I come across it.

It is not bulb or corm, I have split it several times, checked books etc. I am going to Belvedere tomorrow and will bring some. I have had it in the garden for years and love it. Would love to know more about it. An old customer gave it to me years ago saying it was ''Insect plant'' due to the two black spots that look like eyes.

Fran found a lovely photo of this plant when ready 'Exotic Planting for Adventurous Gardeners' by the late great Christopher Lloyd it on p47 if you get your hands on the book and the plant is called Cuphea cyanea 'a tender shrub from mexico with quite a colour range: the orange tubular flowers grade yellow and the mouth is lime green. If it comes through the winter it reaches 2ft in its second year, and flowers to mid-september'   Hope this helps. :-) another plant tracked down, If it has babies I want one :-)

Bill, your name is on one already, I will be splitting one shortly. It really is a lovely plant. It is great to have a name on it at last. I just googled it, I can't believe it, I finally have a name for my plant, Thank you, your the man.

No problem Fran and thanks, as I've said before like a good plant mystery but actually was looking for something else when I came across the photos of it (typical).