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Is my red hot poker normal?

BirdHerdLissBirdHerdLiss Posts: 21
in Plants
Hi all,

I have a red hot poker that around 3/4 of the way up the leaves has flowers (?) growing from it. I’ve never grew these before so is this normal? The ones I’ve seen have thick stems with the flowers at the top.

This is what it looks like on almost all of the leaves.


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  • GardenerSuzeGardenerSuze Posts: 5,692
    edited June 2023
    @BirdHerdLiss you know which Kniphofia it is, it does look very strange. They don't flower until later in the season mid August to October. 
    I have worked as a Gardener for 24 years. My latest garden is a new build garden on heavy clay.
  • bertrand-mabelbertrand-mabel Posts: 2,697
    Is it kniphofia?
  • GardenerSuzeGardenerSuze Posts: 5,692
    I think it could be a rush too.
    I have worked as a Gardener for 24 years. My latest garden is a new build garden on heavy clay.
  • madpenguinmadpenguin Posts: 2,543
    GardenerSuze said:
    @BirdHerdLiss you know which Kniphofia it is, it does look very strange. They don't flower until later in the season mid August to October. 
    Plenty out down here on the Isle of Wight!!!
    “Every day is ordinary, until it isn't.” - Bernard Cornwell-Death of Kings
  • didywdidyw Posts: 3,573
    I don't think that's a kniphofia (red hot poker) - my first thought was that the flowers looked more like sedge flowers.   Did you buy from a reputable source?  If mail order - sometimes the wrong thing gets despatched and you don't find out until the thing flowers.  
    Gardening in East Suffolk on dry sandy soil.
  • punkdocpunkdoc Posts: 15,039
    Not Red Hot Poker, although there are Pokers which flower from May all the way through till October.
    I think yours are Sedge/Rushes.
    How can you lie there and think of England
    When you don't even know who's in the team

    S.Yorkshire/Derbyshire border
  • Paul B3Paul B3 Posts: 3,154
    Often a bit of a debate about how to pronounce Kniphofia ; according to the Collingridge Dictionary of Plant Names it is nee-fof-ee-a ; silent 'K' and the 'pho' as in Phosphorus .
  • Paul B3Paul B3 Posts: 3,154
    GardenerSuze said:
    @BirdHerdLiss you know which Kniphofia it is, it does look very strange. They don't flower until later in the season mid August to October. 
    GardenerSuze
    I've a cultivar called 'Happy Halloween' ; it flowers very early November with spikes of dusky amber/orange flowers . Sturdy too .
    Are there any later flowering varieties ?
  • BirdHerdLissBirdHerdLiss Posts: 21
    I’m not sure of the variety, it didn’t have a tag. I bought it from a garden Center in October last year, this is what it looked like when I planted it in October (bad quality sorry, had to crop a photo where it was in the background)


    My neighbours red hot pokers are looking amazing right now and that got me wondering what on earth mine is doing haha!
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