Description

Ithuriel’s spear is named for the tall multi-branched flower stem which rises in the spring. Ithuriel was one of the angels in Milton’s Paradise Lost who discovers Satan in the Garden of Eden in the form of a toad whispering deceit in the ear of sleeping Eve. A touch of Ithuriel’s spear drives Satan to return to his natural form. Pretty weighty name for this little geophyte! A more realistic expectation is that it will emerge from dormancy with a whorl of upright, lance-shaped leaves. Mature bulbs produce a single flower stock with several violet/purple trumpet flowers. ‘Queen Fabiola’ is appreciated for the depth of colors in the flowers. Like all - or nearly all - California geophytes, ‘Queen Fabiola’ should be allowed to go dormant as the flowers fade. No water should be given until the natural rains of fall begin.