Pancratium

From Thad M. Howard's Bulbs for warm climates:
"Pancratium zeylanicum Linnaeus. Sri Lanka and tropical Asia. Has solitary 2-in flo...Read Morewers with recurving tepals on short scapes. The foliage is short and glossy. Very charming, but strictly for pots."

I can only assume that the recommendation for pots is made for zones that experience frosts, as most of the Pancratiums are said to be frost-tender, tropical bulbs.

Here in El Paso, I grew mine in pots since I got them last summer (2008). They were overwintered in the unheated garage - above freezing temps - with an occasional gulp of water in the warmer winter days if the soil was bone-dry. They lost their leaves. As weather warmed up, I increased the watering and moved them on my patio, in filtered late-afternoon sun and bright shade for the rest of the day.
The flower scape appeared out of nowhere, kind of like the rain lilies, in-between the strappy shiny green leaves. In my environment and care so far, the bloom stalk measured about 7 inches from the soil, and the leaves averaged 8-9 inches when fully-grown. Maybe because of the high temperatures (we've been in high 90s - 100F for sometime now), the bloom lasted one day. About 2-2.5in diameter, this gracious beautiful bloom is also fragrant.

A keeper! Alexandra, June 2009