| Tuesday, 6:00 am Finally! The top bud on the largest plant is beginning to unfurl. I was curious if I'd have to wait until the next morning (as the Evening Primrose advocates have been warning) to see the flower in full bloom, or if it would fully open during the course of the day. |  |
| The unfurling bud, as seen from above. I was amused that it was opening as an oval, and not as a circle, and wondered if that was significant, or if it was just an oddity of this particular bud on the plant. I'd certainly touched it quite a few times in my curiosity to find more about it. Perhaps I'd damaged it in some way??? |  |
| For completeness' sake, here is the entire plant in it's "imminent mode". Can you tell I was just a little excited yesterday morning? |  |
| Remember that I had three of these? The second plant, while obviously the same kind of plant, hasn't grown quite as robustly as the first. The flowers on it were budding in a slightly different color. The bulk of the buds were white, but the tips were vaguely purple. I couldn't decide if it was a true difference, or if it meant the buds were dying on this one. |  |
| Tueday, 3:15 pm FINALLY! I'm now more convinced than ever that this is not an evening primrose (at least, as I know them). It is far too tall to begin with, and it opened during the day! On top of that, the pistel does not end in a little cross shape, which I think evening primroses are supposed to. The inside of the bell is rather "hairy", and there are no separate petals on the flower, but rather a large bell with a softly wavy edge. I'm fascinated, and still in the dark as to the identity. |  |
| Several flowers opened during the course of the day on this plant. I was surprised that they were interspersed at different heights on the plant, and not blooming from top to bottom, or bottom to top, or whatever it is that plants usually do. My guess is that they are going to bloom from tip of branch down towards the main stem of the plant, but only time will tell if my guess is correctl |  |
| Here are two of the lower flowers. I have no clue what they are, but my long wait has not been disappointed. |  |
Of note: We had a rather impressive storm system move through last night. The lightning and thunder were supposed to be marvelous. I wasn't able to enjoy it much, though I do love a good thunderstorm; I was in bed with a rather aggressive migraine at the time. I did fear for my plants though. Would the delicate looking bell-flowers be crushed in the onslaught of rain and wind? Would the plants themselves end up flattened? What part of my mind that could be spared from praying for death (it was a really bad migraine) was devoted to worrying about my flowers.
I worried for naught. While the small plant was a bit flattened by the rains, the flower buds looked none the worse for wear. I'll need to buy a couple of inexpensive stakes when I head home, but these beauties are well worth the investment. The smaller plant had two buds open by this morning, and both flowers are a deep purple.
Anyone who can definitively name these plants for me will somehow be rewarded. I don't know how yet, but somehow....