Candelabra lily

Brunsvigia josephinae

Scientific name

A very large bulb with a distinct candelabra shaped flower in summer.

Pollinated by the sugarbird.

Occurs in clay or loam alkaline soil.

Propagation instructions

By seed

Seeds should be sown soon after ripening as the seed starts germinating then. A coarse medium such as river sand is ideal, and seedlings must be kept moist, but not overwatered. It will take many years for these to reach flowering age.

By cutting

It is also possible to separate bulbs from mature plants that multiply under the ground.

Another vegetative method is to cut away a small section of the bulb base where the roots emerge and plant it into a coarse medium. Bulblets should appear at the base within a few months. This must be done in the vegetative stage of the growth cycle i.e. just before the leaves appear in winter.