Description
Very large, horizontal or up-facing, deep-yellow hoop-petticoats on short (10 cm) but stout stems. The dark-green, sinuous, prostrate leaves are borne along with the flowers and their fattened appearance is what gives the plant its ‘obese’ epithet.
Limited to Portugal this is reputed to be best on limey soils whilst the other bulbocodium relatives are said to do better on acid soils. That is probably folklore but the plant does very well in cultivation and is one of the showiest. This is, by repute, a tetraploid plant, which may help to account for its extra size and undoubted vigour.
Readily grown outside in a raised, well-drained sunny bed such as you might use for choice alpines, where it will happily grow through dwarf cushion plants, this is also at home in an alpine house pan.
Raised from JWB.90-13 first found in Portugal, Serra de Arrabida (Setubal), Praia da Arrifana presumably (Praia is “beach”) close to sea-level
