Puya berteroniana, 25 seeds
This is yet another rare and unusual bromelaid related to pineapples. Like and often confused with the Teal Blue/Aqua Sapphire Tower Puya (Puya alpestris), this perennial too hails from southern Chile. When not in bloom, the curling, silvery foliage makes a large, striking clump. Though handsome to look at, there is a sinister aspect: the margins of the leaves are edged with fiendish, hooked thorns that can tear and will hurt skin, so Puya berteroniana is not recommended for planting close to paths. In spring when it blooms, this plant is usually the talk of the town. The individual Puya flower is a thing of beauty and wonder, and the extremely tall, asparagus-like, blooming spikes (6 to 10 feet) shooting up from the middle of the clump simply cannot be ignored. The blue Puya has one of the most improbably colored blossoms. These are incredibly beautiful, exotic-looking, heavily waxed, a deep shade of otherworldly metallic emerald-blue, which luxuriantly offsets the vivid, orange, pollen-tipped stamens. Once seen, never forgotten. Hardy from zone 9 onwards. 5 feet tall and wide. Full sun and warm soil. Drought tolerant when established. Very rare seeds, harvested 07/2016 - 08/2016.
