When I first visited China in the late nineteen nineties, I don't think any of the marvels I saw amazed me as much as Roscoea: the high valley at the east base of the Jade Dragon mountains had untold millions of them in bloom in late May: pale yellow, almost white, pink, lavender, purple--you name the color it was there, it seemed. Most were very tiny in stature, although the flowers were sizeable. They grew in the fields, among rhododendrons, they grew in the woods. They were enchanting! How Ms. Cowley was able to disentangle them and turn them into that wonderful Timber press monograph is beyond me...
We've grown quite a few over the years in Denver, mostly the squinny flowered miniatures like R. tibetica or R. alpina, thinking they were the most apt to be hardy. Then one day we managed to grow Roscoea cautleioides from seed: it lasted quite a few years and made a great statement in the Rock Alpine Garden. These two individuals are growing in Plantasia, and they are making a fabulous spectacle in June. They even set quite a bit of seed this year.
Good rich soil that suits primulas is best, and regular irrigation through the summer months. I think they can go quite dry in the winter. Worth every effort to grow these!
