I have long been a fan of the fascinating dryland geophyte, Asphodeline lutea. Native from the Mediterranean through the Caucuses, and south into Africa, Asphodeline lutea is prized for its early spring spikes of bright yellow, star-like flowers. About a decade ago, I heard rumors of an orange-flowered form, which immediately went on my desiderata list. In 2021, we were finally able to acquire seed from Israeli plantsman, Oron Peri, who had discovered the color break in a single population in Nazareth. Our plants are finally in flower for the first time, and are every bit as unique as we hoped. Because these are from a warmer climate, they flower several weeks before the typically yellow flowered forms. If we can coax these to set seed, we’ll hopefully be able to share Asphodeline lutea ‘Nazareth Orange’ with a much wider audience.
How many hours of direct sunlight should it get? Thank you.
Our best guess is that they would prefer 6+ hours of full sun.
Asphodel’s beautiful name and its association with Greek mythology, always made me want to grow it in my own Elysian fields, alas I am in zone 5, in Vermont. Your description and the image went a ways to comfort me. Thanks for the post.