Crinum menehune

A small growing bulbous perennial that forms clumps to about 24 inches tall with deep burgundy-red 1 to 2 inch wide leaves and large deep-pink flowers that rise on dark red stalks from early summer to fall. Unlike the larger more common red selections of Crinum procerum this plant’s foliage does not fade and remains a deep red. Plant in full sun to light shade and irrigated occasionally to regularly – this plant can be grown in the pond margin and in water up to 6 inches above the crown but is surprisingly tolerant of drier conditions. Listed as hardy to USDA Zone 8. This plant, reportedly a cross between the large red-leaved Crinum amabile and a small Caribbean species with green leaves was introduced by Sean Callahan of the Hawaii Tropical Botanical Garden on the big Island of Hawaii. The cultivar name for this plant has its origins in Hawaiian mythology that notes the Menehune as a secretive dark-skinned small race of people who live in the deep forests of the Hawaiian islands