Description
(formerly offered simply as “Gold Striped”)
The species is a fascinating one with a pair of leaf-like bracts (the involucres) set behind each flower (or flower pairs in larger plants). These little tufts, which Tony Avent termed ‘green hankies’, give the flowers of this plant a very special appearance.
The plant makes 20-40 cm tall stems clothed with 10 cm long leaves arranged alternately and paired flowers held on branched peduncles, hanging below. The flowers are urn-shaped and are quite substantial, being wide for their 2 cm length and are white, tipped with green. Easily grown in a light woodland soil.
Wide ranging and variable across Japan, Korea, northern China and Siberia, in mountain woods and meadows. This may be the same species as Polygonatum cryptanthum.
This variegated clone was selected in Japan and it bears quite wide, gold stripes along its leaves. These are sometimes concentrated into zones, or at the leaf tips, but they exhibit a delightful unwillingness to conform to any regular pattern. The distinction between green and gold is very well defined and contrasted, and in case it sounds like any other gold striped clone, it isn’t (and of course you have the amazing flowers too).
