It 'looks' similar to one I bought as Cardiocrinum giganteum var. yunnanense, but the flowers are like Cardiocrinum cathayanum which open from the top downwards (mine did) according to a grower I once found which I now can't find. Take another photo when the flowers are fully open, these do look to be opening from the top downwards.
This photo of Cardiocrinum giganteum var. yunnanense is from the UBC botanical gardens, it's very different..
http://www.botanicalgarden.ubc...
I find many photos on the internet from supposedly reliable sources showing Cardiocrinum giganteum var. yunnanense looking like C. cathayanum. There's more than one contributor on DG showing some sort of uniformity of yunnanense, flowers having petals more evenly distributed.
I bought my bulb from a reliable source here, but I know they import some from China so it's likely some bulbs have been mixed up. I once found a site where the people seemed to know their Cardiocrinums and grew them commercially, from the information I got there I thought mine was actually C. cathayanum as the flowers opened from the top downwards and looked much different to giganteum.
They are highly scented Calin, mine didn't grow much more than 2 metres tall. They are supposed to need more time undisturbed to get a good height, if bought as a bare root bulb when not established and near maturity it has to re-establish so it won't gain it's full height. I had 13 flowers I think, and it made 10 seed pods full of seed which I sent to a couple of people and sowed a heap myself but I have only seen two very small seedlings from the lot which may not have survived! I do have two offsets still surviving in the ground but the leaves were not big so I need to lift those and pot them up to ensure they grow well. I was happy to see them survive all the same!
I found one photo of C. cathayanum which looks like mine, the second on this online shop showing yellow-greenish petals which are well split between the top and bottom petals and they probably whiten out anyway.
http://alpine-garden.com/goods...
This is mine flowering in 2010 .. the yellow-greenish pic I think I took in dull light, the other with sun but you can still see the colour tint to the petals.
