Clivia miniata

[SubTropicRay]

My co worker was handing out potted Clivia miniata pups today. I know nothing about this plant or its requirements. Is anyone here growing this plant?

Thanks,

Ray

[Darold Petty]

Hi Ray,

Clivia is a genus of four species, all from South Africa, in the Amaryllidaceae family. C. miniata is the most commonly grown. The plant is very common as a bedding plant in coastal California and as a pot plant elsewhere. The orange flowers appear in the spring, and occationally in autumn as well. The foliage contains toxic alkaloids and is never troubled by snails or slugs. These pests will readily eat the flowers however. If grown as an indoor pot plant be sure to leave it outdoors in autumn before freezing weather, as the autumn drop in temperatures is important to stimulate the flowering cycle. The plants have fleshy, succulent roots. Wet to slightly dry in a pot, or evenly moist with good drainage as a shady area bedding plant. Divide the overgrown clumps infrequently.

There is an active plant society for Clivia, and superior flower color forms sell for a lot of money. In Asia, the plants are favored more for variations in the foliage.

The best book on Clivias is Clivias by Harold Koopowitz, 2002, Timber Press.

The genus name is pronounced "klive-ee-uh" and honors the British duchess Lady Clive.

There are yellow-flowered forms, and forms with variegated foliage. The foliage looks refined and elegant all the year, and the tropical orange flowers are a spectacular bonus in springtime.

[Jubaea]

They are grown in shade or frequently as an understory plant under the canopy of a tree.

[Daryl]

Ray, Clivias are a great plant for the palm understory. They love shade and have a low water requirement. There are lots of different cultivars available, such as Belgian hybrid etc.

Even though they only have a limited flowering period, the foliage is a good feature for the rest of the year.

regards,

Daryl

[J. australis]

Agree, perfect palm understory. I have lots of these nice fat ones:

Edited October 4, 2011 by J. australis

[SubTropicRay]

My coworker has never gotten these to bloom here and she's a pretty experienced gardener. It sounds as if these need a more pronounced and extended spell of cool weather than we typically get here. I'll try it anyway. Thanks all for the input.

[The Silent Seed]

Hi,

I grow these on a larger scale - and have about 250 of them - they are wonderful, drought-resistant plants that perform very well under stress. They do not like being wet at all - the roots are prone to rot, if kept wet. In addition to the species, there are a few hybrids, and countless varieties as stated above - including lots of funky flower shapes, and leaf shapes, etc - they prefer filtered light, or shade and will bleach in sun. I don't know about growing them down South, but I saw a clump that flowered regularly in California, so they may not need that cool period, although it definitely does help. Feel free to ask any further questions!

They do grow very slow, though - but in Florida and California, you can buy them dirt cheap (no pun intended) at local big box stores (Home Depot, $8) whereas on Ebay they go for $25 and up. (That's for blooming size plants.)

People can get bored with them, since they do flower only once a year (rarely twice) - but they are fun.

[MattyB]

Darold,

That's interesting about the toxins in these plants. I was wondering why the rabbits haven't eaten mine. I keep trying different understory plantings out in the rainforest area in my canyon and at least half of the species I try just get completely chomped to the ground.

[Stevetoad]

weird my co-worker (nature nic) just gave me one of these today... perfect timing!

[MattyB]

I've grown them from seed and man are they slow! About 4 years from seed to full size plant w/ no flowers. Dividing them is way easier.

[The Silent Seed]

Actually, Matty, that is fast for a Clivia I have two year olds with one leaf still (granted, they are not "usual" ones.)

[DoomsDave]

Clivias seem to like it cool, instead of hot for too long.

CUrious to see how they do in Florida.

Tough, trouble free plants around here, if a bit slow.

One of the few really nice blooming plants that blooms well indoors in the shade.

[DoomsDave]

  On 10/4/2011 at 8:47 PM, MattyB said:

Darold,

That's interesting about the toxins in these plants. I was wondering why the rabbits haven't eaten mine. I keep trying different understory plantings out in the rainforest area in my canyon and at least half of the species I try just get completely chomped to the ground.

Amaryllids in general ought to work well. Many of them are poisonous, but not nasty. They include many plants, including daffodils, narcissus, "fakey amaryllis" (hippeastrum), real amaryllis, lycoris, agapanthus, and many others. Gophers and deer won't touch most of them. Most grow from bulbs or tuberous roots.

Daffodils and narcissus contain atropine, a handy antidote for phosgene nerve gas (so I've been told) . . .

They also are grown to make a drug used to treat Old Timers' Disease . . .