As spring becomes summer, there are new flowers opening every day. I wander round my garden, eyeing up the fresh buds with great anticipation – just waiting for the first glimpse of colour as the petals begin to unfold and burst out of their casings.
Nectaroscordum siculum (Sicilian honey garlic) is one of the plants I like to watch develop from bud to flower. It starts off with its buds all wrapped up in a papery covering, which you can see in the photo below. The buds look almost like a bunch of miniature tulips in a florists’ wrap as they peep out from behind their thin cover.
Gradually the individual flower buds manage to wriggle free of their protection. They then begin to move from sitting upright to hanging downwards as the bell-shaped flowers get ready to open. It takes a little while for the buds to get from being upright to hanging down, so that the flower head goes through a stage of having some of its buds still sticking upwards – making it look a bit like it has an unruly hair-do! (Top photo.)
Eventually, all the flowers hang down, in a graceful umbel at the top of a tall stem. (And it sways in the slightest breeze, making it a little tricky to photograph if the air isn’t still!) Later, after the flowers have been pollinated, the seed pods will all turn upright again. Those little flower stems are extraordinarily mobile!
The flowers are a lovely sight, coloured with a soft blend of purply-pinks and cream that rather reminds me of mother-of-pearl.
Nectaroscordums are very easy to grow in a well-drained soil in sun and seem drought-tolerant in my garden. They multiply well too, though it will take a few years before the seedlings flower. If I’m lucky, maybe I’ll end up with a sea of them – that would certainly keep me happily taking photographs!
Ann Mackay: Inspired by Nature 
Gorgeous photos Ann!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you, Liz! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
This is a new one to me, Ann. It is beautiful! Your photos capture its grace at all of these stages. I love the subtle tones: they suit its form very well.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you for the lovely comments, Ali! They’re very easy to grow. (Trying to do for your ‘plants to buy’ list what you do for mine, hehe! 🙂 )
LikeLike
What a gorgeous burst of beauty that is, Ann!!🌹
LikeLike
Thank you Indira, I appreciate your kind comment! 🙂
LikeLike
Beautiful images Ann. It’s also great to be introduced to new plants, so thanks for that!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you Stephanie! It makes me very happy if I can introduce someone to a new plant! 🙂
LikeLike
Oh what a wonderful flower! I’ve never seen it before! Great pictures, dear Ann!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you, Petra my dear! It’s nice to be able to show you something new! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi Ann, I really enjoyed this, and I have shared this on my site. I am not familiar with this flower, and I know I have some gardening readers who would enjoy it. It is great to read about a plant that thrives on shade and proliferates. Thank you. If you would like me to take it down I will, as you don’t have the re-press icon on your site. Hermione
LikeLiked by 2 people
I’m glad you enjoyed the post, Hermione! Nectaroscordums prefer sun, but they will be OK in dappled shade too. I hope your readers enjoy the post too! 🙂
LikeLike
Thank you.
LikeLiked by 1 person
You’re welcome! 🙂
LikeLike
A lovely sequence of photos showing the opening flower head. Your description of the buds like tulips wrapped in florists’ paper is very apt.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you Judith! It was fun taking the photos, just had to wait for the air to be still enough. 🙂
LikeLike
A gentle breeze suddenly becomes more noticeable when you try to photograph a flower on a long, flexible stem!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Doesn’t it just, hehe! Sometimes it feels as if there was no breeze at all until you decide to take a photograph! There’s a lot of waiting involved in flower photography! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Love your images – interesting how they sort of unfold! They look like pretty tiny buds.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks Syd! The buds are very small – and the number on each head varies a lot. I need to remember to pick one to photograph in the studio today ‘cos it won’t be long before they’ve gone over.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Ooh these are nice. Lovely photos. Not seen any before.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m glad you like them Jill! I never saw them either, until I saw them in a gardening magazine a few years ago and was smitten. Fortunately they’re easy to grow in well-drained soil and sun. 🙂
LikeLike