As some of my plants grew this past year, I discovered several weren’t what I thought I bought and were mislabeled. I don’t remember this ever happening before and it strikes me odd that I had so many.

When you buy a small plant, it can take a year or more for it to grow and finally flower. Last year, I ordered a couple of yellow-flowered trumpet vines from Burgess Seed & Plant Co. This year they finally bloomed and to my disappointment, they turned out to be the regular orange-flowered vines. I dug them up and gave them to some friends who are using them to cover a wall. In the meantime, I am dealing with trying to get a refund or replacements from Burgess but they want a copy of my credit card purchase or packing list (who keeps a packing list from a plant order for a year?). 

Last year I bought a Thai giant elephant ear from Gurney’s. It grew enormous over the summer. When my other elephant ears started to come out in the early spring, I figured it was time to start watering it too. I checked and it had survived the winter and looked like it was about to sprout new growth. Unfortunately, it was still too cold and I wound up overwatering it that caused it to rot. I really liked the plant so I decided to order another one this year, again from Gurney’s. I was a little suspicious that it was labeled as a white elephant ear. I’ve never heard of a white one, but I hoped it was another name for a Thai giant elephant ear. It isn’t. When the leaves emerged, I knew right away it wasn’t. That said, I actually like the new plant even if I’m not sure what it is. 

This past winter I bought and planted some Chilean wine palm seeds I bought online. This is perhaps the most winter hardy feather palm and very hard to find in cultivation. I was excited when the seeds germinated but soon thought something didn’t look right. As they grew, the leaves looked too wide for a palm. By spring, I knew they weren’t palms and looked more like cannas. I planted them out and they are indeed a species type canna. I like the red flowers and so do the hummingbirds, but I am very disappointed that I still don’t have a Chilean wine palm. 

I actually did buy a couple of cannas this year at Osuna Nursery here in Albuquerque. They were prepackaged and labeled as Canna Cleopatra. This is a canna that is grown not only for its flowers but also for its foliage which has dark maroon stripes even up to half of the leaf. When my tubers emerged and the leaves began to grow, once more, I suspected that I had the wrong plant. While Canna Cleopatra can have all green leaves, these are usually selected out for the variegated foliage. I was disappointed but figured I would enjoy the beautiful bi-colored red and yellow flowers; however, that wasn’t to be either. Again, they are a species type of canna but they have orange flowers. At least, they are a different color. I was also very lucky to get some free bulbs at another local nursery giving away end-of-the-season bulbs that turned out to be Canna Cleopatra.

Lastly, I bought an elephant ear bulb at Osuna Nursery that was labeled as Colocasia Hilo Beauty. Hilo Beauty has green leaves mottled with white. This elephant ear, however, has dark, almost black leaves. I don’t know what variety it is but I really like it so I am not at all disappointed. I am concerned, though, that I didn’t get what I paid for once again. 

I don’t know if this is happening more frequently or why. It seems that the nurseries and sellers need to be careful about their labeling. With the exception of the trumpet vines, I’m okay with everything else but fear this may become a real problem. 

Let me know in the comments if you had this happen as well. I’m curious to see if others are having this problem.