I live in St Petersburg, Florida, and when we moved into our home in 2017, there were a half dozen or so clusters of this lily around the...Read More property. Over time, I’ve dug them up, separated them, and replanted them. They are virtually indestructible, having been mowed over for a year or so before I realized what they were. Now, I have more 60 bulbs purposefully planted and they do well in bright Florida sun to diffused shade under oak trees. I don’t have to water them and the will bloom from late March through the end of summer. I have found that when I don’t fully dig up a bulb, another season will pass and more will spring up and have to be replanted.
I have attempted to grow these plants in southern PA twice before, without success, despite several reliable sources saying that they sho...Read Moreuld be hardy to Zone 6. When I went to the last place I got them from, a nursery near Chincoteage VA, the owner told me that the secret for successfully overwintering hardy crinums (including Powellii) was to plant the bulbs deep, since crinums seem to prefer deep planting & will even work their way deeper (which is why the owner said, "you gotta dig halfway to China" to dig up old clumps).
I decided to buy two more potted C. x powellii from him last year, and did as he said, planting the bulbs about 18-24 inches (46-61 cm) deep, and didn't really give them any other protection last winter. Sure enough, around the beginning of May, all my crinums started coming up, and are now almost fully leafed out.
The ones I got at Chincoteague seem to be one of the paler flowered varieties, because some were blooming when I first bought some 2 years ago, and the blooms were really pale pink that was almost white (but not quite). Even if it takes a while for mine to start blooming, I'm still happy to have them for the clump of tropical-looking foliage they produce, and have decided to get some more on my most recent plant-buying trip.
Great Crinum for the novice. I bought five of these and five of the album (white) about 8 years ago as 1/2 price, medium sized bulbs to t...Read Moreest their hardiness in my zone, learn what they like and see if I like them. I planted them in the corner of a border in full sun about a foot apart. It took them a year to bloom and they only put up one scape each the first time blooming. They gradually formed huge clumps with many offset bulbs that bloom profusely and not only put on a spectacular show, but re-bloom for about a month and a half. The foliage turns to mush after a good hard frost in my zone. I put down and inch pine needles on them and about three inches of pine bark chips for winter protection. They can take dry cold, but not wet cold. The pine bark helps keep the soil under dry. I learned that I love Crinums and have been planting more fancy large flower varieties that will take up the rest of the border. This variety has smaller flowers than the white variety. That is my only complaint. The foliage can become unruly, so give it space and keep it away from walkways.I also learned gardening patience from these plants.
They are not for those who demand instant gratification, but they surely do reward those who can wait.
This is one of the hardiest crinums. I've read several credible reports of this being reliably hardy in the ground to Zone 6 in Berrien S...Read Moreprings, MI, and to Zone 5b in Westfield, IN and Platte Co, MO.
I've also read that hardy crinum bulbs need to be at least two inches in diameter before planting if they're to make it through the winter near the northern limit of their hardiness, in this case Z5-6.
I've read several disparaging comments about the flowers of c. x powellii 'Roseum' being the smallest of crinum flowers and not worth the garden space that its prolific foliage requires---but I haven't grown it myself.
Bessemer City, NC (Zone 7b) | October 2006 | positive
This is an old hybrid descended from C. moorei and C. bulbispermum. It was introduced as long ago as 1888.
It is generally...Read More sterile as a seed parent, but success with fertilizing other cultivars with the pollen has been reported.
While the commonly available form has flowers 2-3 inches wide, it is still humbly pretty and easy to grow. With care, it blooms repeatedly from spring to fall.
X powellii 'Roseum' sports flowers that are more open and have a deeper rose color.
'Cecil Houdyshel' (developed in the 1930s) is a very floriferous selection and 'Claude Davis' (a cross of x powellii and C. yemense) is a deeper color than x powellii.
There is a pure white one (x powellii 'Album', sometimes listed as 'Alba') which has larger and more open flowers.
It is very easy to grow and is therefore a good beginner;s Crinum. It is hardy without protection here in 7b and would survive into zone 6 with some protection or in a warmish site.
I received three of these in pots. Before I could get them in the ground, they put up bloom stalks. Since crinums do not like to be distu...Read Morerbed, I decided to wait till they finished flowering before planting them...they are still flowering! And they have put up pups in the pots. One plant has six babies, another has four babies. The third plant is younger and has not bloomed nor put up pups.
In this part of the country, crinums grow like wildfire. Start a few in a bed, and before you know it, you have a full bed of crinums. But, they do NOT like to be disturbed. If you repot them or move them, do not expect them to bloom or pup for a while.
Lexington, VA (Zone 6a) | November 2004 | positive
We have Crinum powellii growing in our Zone 6a garden for the last 2 yrs. In fact, it is in bloom right now, Nov 5, 2004...granted, we ha...Read Moreve not had a frost yet this year, which is highly unusual. It begins blooming for us in the early summer, then again in the fall.
I purchased the bulb almost two years ago. It was a relatively small bulb, so I planted it in a 12 inch plastic container. The first year...Read More, it grew well enough I guess, but no flowers. I figured the bulb needed to mature, so it was no concern. I live north of Baltimore, so I let it over winter indoors near a window with southern exposure ... watering just enough to keep it alive. It continued to grow, but more on the spindley side. The following spring, I cut it back to about six inches and gave it to a friend in Northest Ohio.
It is growing well with plenty of side shoots, but no sign of a flower stalk. It gets at least 8 hours of full sun and is watered well.
Beautiful foliage and blooms. I love the shade of pink they are. I got about half a dozen bulbs in trade about three years ago and have...Read More over 20 now.
These are SO easy to grow. I just put mine in the end of one of my raised vegetable beds with a little cow manure and they've taken off. They get absolutely no other fertilizer except cow manure. And they can take neglect just fine! I didn't plant the veggie garden last year, so they didn't even get watered. They didn't bloom much, but did survive remarkably well in our hot Texas summers despite being in absolutely FULL sun, like 9am to 9pm full sun.
This year, I've been taking better care of them (which means simply regular watering LOL!). Right now, the clump is about 5' or 6' in diameter. I wasn't expecting them to be so big (Doh!), so I think I'll move them this fall.
Macclesfield, CHESHIRE (Zone 8a) | September 2001 | neutral
Crinum powellii, a native of southern Africa, produces a bulb up to 6 inches (15cm) in diameter from which emerge long (up 6 feet) strap ...Read Morelike leaves, followed by a tall (up to 6’) flower spike. The spike will carry 8 to twelve individual pale pink flowers. A number of hybrids have been produced, including dark pink and white versions.
I live in St Petersburg, Florida, and when we moved into our home in 2017, there were a half dozen or so clusters of this lily around the...Read More
I have attempted to grow these plants in southern PA twice before, without success, despite several reliable sources saying that they sho...Read More
Great Crinum for the novice. I bought five of these and five of the album (white) about 8 years ago as 1/2 price, medium sized bulbs to t...Read More
This is one of the hardiest crinums. I've read several credible reports of this being reliably hardy in the ground to Zone 6 in Berrien S...Read More
This is an old hybrid descended from C. moorei and C. bulbispermum. It was introduced as long ago as 1888.
It is generally...Read More
I received three of these in pots. Before I could get them in the ground, they put up bloom stalks. Since crinums do not like to be distu...Read More
We have Crinum powellii growing in our Zone 6a garden for the last 2 yrs. In fact, it is in bloom right now, Nov 5, 2004...granted, we ha...Read More
I purchased the bulb almost two years ago. It was a relatively small bulb, so I planted it in a 12 inch plastic container. The first year...Read More
Beautiful foliage and blooms. I love the shade of pink they are. I got about half a dozen bulbs in trade about three years ago and have...Read More
Hortus Third lists this plant as a hybrid of C. bulbispermum x C. Moorei with listed cultivars 'Album', Haarlemense', 'Krelagii' and 'Roseum'.
Crinum powellii, a native of southern Africa, produces a bulb up to 6 inches (15cm) in diameter from which emerge long (up 6 feet) strap ...Read More