The Crinum Lily
The Crinum Lily is like many other plants that have the name lily but are not true lilies. It is, in fact a member of the amaryllis family. The Crinum Lily has over 130 different species but most of them are grown in the tropical areas of Africa and Asia, from which they originated.
The Crinum Lily grows in hardiness zones 7 through 10, which covers most of Florida and the Gulf States across into Texas plus parts of California. They do not like frost or any type of cold weather so if you live in a cool area, you will have to dig up the bulbs each fall and then replant them in the spring. This is not an easy job as they grow to make clumps that are quite large.
At an impressive five to six feet tall, the Crinum Lily is huge with a width of around seven feet and leaves that are three feet long. The flowers are white, pink or striped. The bulbs themselves that you plant can weigh from ten to twenty pounds. The Crinum lily plant likes well-drained soil and it can grow in both the sun and lightly shaded areas.
You can grow new plants from the Crinum Lily by digging up the bulb in the fall or early spring and taking off the small, baby bulbs that are growing off of the original bulb. You can put them directly in the garden to grow or start them out in pots and transplant later.
The Crinum Lily is in much demand as a landscape plant all across Florida and neighboring states. They are used to give a sense of the tropics near pools and around palm trees. It is extremely drought resistant and the only thing that will kill a Crinum Lily for sure is frost. Like many other lilies it is poisonous if ingested and can even cause skin irritation if you should come in contact with sap from the plant.
If you want to purchase some Crinum Lilies, there are several types that are very popular. The Crinum bulbispermum has trumpet-type white flowers with pink stripes and is the strongest in terms of hardiness. The Crinum herberti has trumpet-like flowers but comes with blooms of pink, purple or red. Sometimes they are also striped. Another well-liked Crinum Lily is the Crinum digweedii, also known as a “Nassau Lily.” The flowers are pink with white stripes. It is also one of the latest blooming of the Crinum Lilies, sometimes not flowering before the fall. The lily of this species that you often see at weddings and funeral is called a Crinum powellii and is usually white although a pink version is also available.
Whichever type of Crinum Lily you choose to plant, you will be pleased with its size and the colors of its many flowers. It may even make you feel like you are living in the tropics.