Sinningia cardinalis - Cardinal Flower

Rather like the leaves, makes you want to stroke them!!

looks very tactile too. 6' is a large specimen.

Dottydaisy2:

Yes, they have very velvety leaves, just like their relative the African Violet.

Seaburngirl:

Yes, everything grows big in San Diego. lol!

The Botanical Building is perfect for plants. It's a huge lath-house structure. The Orchids and all the tropical plants looked so beautiful in it since we've had so much rain in January (first time in many years).

I'm looking for this species here but it is impossible to find so far.

Meanie:

You'll have to most likely wait until summer. This plant is usually grown as an annual. It doesn't live through winter even as an indoor plant except in the best-suiting climates. This plant has been there for years and appears to be in flower most of the year.

Thanks for the info! I'm not giving up.

I know Kartuz Greenhouses sells this plant; however, Michael Kartuz doesn't ship his plants internationally, just in the U.S.

Here's his link:

http://www.kartuz.com/p/10715/Sinningia+cardinalis.html