Saturday, 29 September 2012

Sempervivum ossetiense in flower

A very late flower has appeared on this species which I have had in cultivation here since 1996.

20120929 (03)

This plant, properly Sempervivum altum var. ossetiense, was found in 1935 in   the central Caucasus along the old Ossetian Military Road by Walter Ingwersen where it grew on bare limestone escarpments with Gypsophila aretioides.

An attractive species, it has been called "la belle caucasienne."

As well as the general character of the plant, the interior of the flower has some fascinating shapes and colours.

20120929 (02b)