Gloriosa lilies in bloom

My gloriosas are blooming like crazy. never know if I should post pics of these in the lilies forum or the vines forum, so I did both.

Glad you did ~ nice pic!

I'm going to grow these this summer. ANything you've learned about them you'd like to pass on? Special soil, watering, etc?

Here they multiply like mad and like lots and lots of sun. They like to have something to cling to. I do not fertilize mine. The blooms last a long time. One year I dug up over 300 tubers, that is how much they multiply.

I'm going to plant one in a pot. I was thinking a 12 to 18" pot. When I trimmed trees earlier this spring, I saved a number of large limbs that I plan to sink in cement and use for a trellis.

rylaff
I followed your advice from last year and transfered my tuber from the pot to the ground.Despite the fact that the squirrels ate some,there is now growth but it isn't flowering yet.I can't wait.Thanks.

Nancy

I've wanted one of these for a while...what a gorgeous flower : )

Mine are finally starting to show some green. Took them forever to do anything...now that they are showing green, maybe they will grow faster.

Good compostion on the picture...if I hadn't already painted your Gloriosas, I'd have to paint this one. The background light peeking through the foliage picks up the yellow coloring in the lily and helps bring it into the foreground.

That is REALLY gorgeous! I think it's the best photo I've ever seen of that plant. So far I've not had success with that one myself, but your photo is incentive to keep trying!

wow 300 tubers in a year! if you ever do trading of these let me know and i will see what i can find to trade. beautiful!

kelly

My first bloom just opened! This is my first year growing them. I tried last year but it didn't make it. It started to sprout and then just died for some reason. This year I planted 4 and only 2 came up. I don't know why, they're planted in the same area and are treated the same. The 2 that did come up are flourishing... I can't can't wait for more buds to open!

Cool bloom! Your petals look especially wavy. :)

Beautiful! Your persistance has definitely paid off!
Kelly

My first too... it is soooo cool.

Viv

I sooo wish I could grow those here.

Moby, you CAN - just plant them in a hanging basket and when they are finished blooming, let them go totally dry. Put them in a dark, dry cool place where they can NOT FREEZE. Just forget them until Feb. They can then be brought out into the light and watered ONE TIME until they show growth.

I used to have some that Rylaff sent me, but they froze. I was able to get 2 tubers from Walmart, at $6.95 each, and they are blooming now.

I never thought of putting some in a hanging basket. How do they look compared to letting them climb up a trellis?

Hmm.....that I could do!

I grow my gloriosas in my hanging baskets on my patio along with all the other stuff in there. They climb right up the wire hangers and bloom beautifully. I have posted a pic below and will post again when they bloom. Anything that won't hold its head up in my garden goes into a hanging basket!

Welcome, gardenerme! I don't normally do baskets but I'm leaning that way. Thanks for the push. ;)

Some tips from a long history of experimenting: Get the largest basket you can fit and afford. That way your plants have room to grow. I use a lot of perennials in mine so that they go all year long. Set up a simple and cheap drip system with an egg-time type of control at the hose pipe. I find that they dry out really fast and demand frequent watering and if I miss one, they really suffer. I just walk out and turn on the timer for 10-15 minutes every day, twice a day when it is over 80 degrees or the Santa Anas are blowing. Be sure to fertilize regularly as most of the nutrients water out easily. Use plants not normally found in hanging baskets, such as succulent ground covers or creeping thyme to grow over the side, grasses to grow tall, I put in a lot of fragrant plants because the baskets are at nose level, such as heliotrope, those floppy carnations like "red hots" that want to fall over anyway, the small dahlias that fall over the side, the newest gardenia called radicans that grows low (absolutely love this one!), well, I am running out of space. I have attached more pics of my baskets.

If anyone ever have too many of these I would LOVE some, I would gladly pay since I do not have trades unless you want Brugs.


Doris

Yes, you'd certainly need a drip system with that many baskets!