Monday, October 10, 2011

NERINE

Commonly known as the spider lily or Gurnsey lily, this genus is an autumn-flowering member of the amaryllis family and includes around 30 species of bulbs that often resemble smaller versions of Amaryllis. Native to southern Africa, these plants may be evergreen on die down in summer. The deep to brihgt green leaves vary from grassy to straplike and surround upright flower stems carrying many-flowered heads of long-tubed funnel-shaped blooms each with 6 widely flared, narrow petals. Flower color ranges from pink and red to scarlet and white. A story, probably apocryphal, says the Guernsey lily was so-named because Nerine was introduced to Europe when a bulb washed up on the island of Guernsey.


CULTIVATION


Plant, with the neck of the bulb exposed, in half or full sun in well-drained, humus-rich, sandy soil. Grow in pots in areas of severe frosts. Water well during the growth period but keep dry when dormant; the watering program should be maintained for evergreen species. Propagate by division, from shoots growing at the base of the plant, or from seed.


Top Tip


In coolr climates, containers of Nerine species can be brought indoors, where the longlasting statuesque flowers will create a dramatic effect.

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