'Is it difficult?'

Short answer is no, but the longer answer is 'it could be'. I have been growing Pleione since I was 10 years old and thankfully, due to being in the Lake District, have not been affected too much but hot weather in the past.

I generally suggest that those new to growing Pleione start with some of the more cost effective options, which from experience generally tend to be the easier ones to keep alive - Pln. formosana and its hybrids have been around for a long time and these have proved to be pretty reliable and understanding of new growers, its where I started.

I believe that the very best way to start growing Pleione in the UK is to find a fellow grower who will more than likely be delighted to offer up some spare plants to a new and enthusiastic beginner, and probably mentor them in the early years. The other end of the spectrum of course is that once the bug has really bitten you end up chasing the rare and unusual as you find that there are 'types' that you really like and that grow well for you. I speak from experience when I say that not all plants enjoy the same culture and losses will be inevitable - I know!

Think about where the plant is going to be grown, think about the compost in which it is planted and how you will look after it once growth has hopefully started. Do you want plants which are cold hardy (down to -2 in some cases) or are you looking for the warmer growing species and hybrids which need a minimum of 10 degrees centigrade in winter to prevent them dying off - I have both but keep them very differently through the cold and dark winter months.

Spring flowering Pleione offer a huge range of colours and this provide a real splash in the greenhouse in the early Spring, the autumn flowering plants have a much smaller range of colours available but what they lack in colours they more than make up for with a stunning heady fragrance which fills the greenhouse on a warm November day - a joy to behold.

There are books to be found on the subject of growing Pleione and these offer a good basis on which to start, but nothing is like real experience. Talk to a grower and they will almost certainly tell you tales of plants they have loved and lost due to cultural issues and those plants, which for no obvious reason just will not grow for them (I have my own few that I just struggle with)

As we head into autumn I am looking at the plants starting put buds up for the autumn flowering seasons and my heart quickens at the sight of fat buds on my favourite plants - Pleione praecox and Pleione maculata, and some of the amazing types and forms that are available. If I had to select a few favourites they would be;

Liz Shan 'Pretty Girl'

x Laganeria

Confirmation

Pln. praecox ssp. Reichenbachiana

Pln. praecox ssp. Reichenbachiana 'semi-alba'

Pln. praecox 'Chiang Mai'

Pln. praecox 'Chiang Rai'

I could go on.......