Doryanthes Species, Spear Lily, Giant Spear Lily

Unlike the other species in this genus (Doryanthes excelsa) the Doryanthes palmeri stalk droops rather than standing upright due to the w...Read Moreeight of the flowers.

Very rare in the US outside a few botanical gardens in southern California. It should be more often planted where it's hardy, especially ...Read Morein California and perhaps in Florida. Commonly grown in New Zealand and Australia.

It's for good reason that this is usually called giant spear lily---it's an enormous plant, and definitely not for the small garden. In mature plants, the tallest leaves can reach a height of 15', and rosettes are at least as wide. It looks like a giant green New Zealand flax (Phormium sp.). Inflorescences can reach 20' tall or more, and bear large numbers of 4-5" flowers. Scapes arch gracefully under the weight of the flowers.

It's a rosette-forming plant, like an agave or yucca, and produces offsets that can be easily removed and grown on. It grows from a large bulblike structure that buries itself up to 18" deep by contractile roots. If I had room for more than one, I'd be inclined to space these 10' apart.

Tough, vigorous, long-lived, and adaptable. Adapted to growing well in very intense sunlight and dry conditions, it tolerates drought and is suitable for xeriscaping. However, it does surprisingly well in consistantly moist, shady gardens as long as the soil is well drained. In fact, it seems to grow larger in such spots.

This is a low-maintenance plant. Aside from watering and fertilizing as needed, the only routine maintenance is occasionally removing dead leaves and flower stems.

Said to perform best where humidity is usually over 40%, but does well at the Huntington Botanical Gardens in Pasadena, CA. In its native range, the summer temperatures generally don't get much over 85F, and nights are below 70F, but it isn't clear to me if it needs these conditions. Responds well to fertilizer, and unlike many Australian plants it doesn't mind phosphorus in the fertilizer.

Does well in large containers.

Adapted to flowering after fire. Blooms best following a period of drought.

Grows readily from seed, but it can take ten years from seed to bloom. Better propagated by removing offsets.

Traditionally, the roots and shoots were eaten, and the leaf fibers were used in weaving.

Fairly common in gardens in New Zealand. Most of the propagation for this plant is done by separating pups from the main plant, which occ...Read Moreurs on a nearly annual basis. In many botanic gardens (NZ has one in nearly every city) it gets chopped out like a weed, as it gets so tall and forms huge colonies. Even when it isn't in bloom, it is a very impressive plant, and it's a shame you don't see it more often in the US. Overall a very low maintenance plant once established, and with minimal effort a gardener can keep it looking prime.

I bought a home in the San Fernando Valley May 2010. This plant is in my front yard starting to bloom! March 2011. If anyone wants to see...Read More it let me know. It is a rare plant to own.