Not sure what has prompted me to do this post today, I’ve been doing a bit of pond gazing today so perhaps that’s why.
Anyway - Thalia dealbata’s ' common name is supposed to be ‘The Powdery Alligator-Flag’. I must say that I’ve never known this name crop-up in conversation. Having said that – I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone utter the words “Thalia dealbata”!
OK, this plant, it is said, comes from Mexico and has been described as sub-tropical. It grows in shallow water and, it is said, should be kept frost-free. It grows to 3 or 4 feet high, has leaves of a grey/green hue with a powdery white coating. In summer it sports stiff 5ft stems of violet flowers. The flowers resemble (for me) something like a large lavender flowers.
The odd thing I have found about the flowers is that each florets (right word?) seems to attract small flies or hover flies which crawl head-first into the flower and die. Whether their death is caused by some sort of drug in the flower or because they just plain got stuck – I don’t know. On close inspection of a flower head one sees lots of dead fly bottoms sticking out of the fading blooms.
The graceful way this plant holds its spear blade shaped leaves and the attractive flower heads makes it one of my favourite plants. It looks very exotic and I would dig a pond just for this plant.
It is actually very easy to grow in shallow water. Although the books say it is frost tender and should be planted deep in cold areas, my plant’s crown is only just beneath the surface and, therefore, is often encased in ice during the winter. In my garden, all the top growth dies in winter but for the last 6 years it has come back very strongly in the late Spring.
Thalia dealbata flower.
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