Bulbs: Crinium Lilies, 1 by Tropicanna

Tropicanna wrote:
To answer the first question, why are crinums so expensive?

Crinums can take several years from seed to flower (some up to eight years). Commercial growers are very reluctant to grow them on a large scale due to the length of time for growing them out, and of course then there's space and digging them. It's much simpler and more cost effective to grow plants that mature more quickly, a few years is a long time to work for a few dollars. It's possible to find some of the more widespread crinums fairly cheap because they have been in cultivation for a long time and the bulbs have had time to offset, or the native crinum american (Florida and other areas of the deep south) can be found inexpensively.

Keriblu, I wonder if the streamside crinums you are referring to are macowanii? If you scroll down you can see if the pictures match up.
http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/index.php/CrinumSpecie...
I am curious, I adore crinums and other South African natives, you are fortunate to be from a place with some amazing plants!!

LilyLove, it looks like you have a Herbertii type (there are many so not sure exactly), mine just finished it's first scape and two more are coming up. The cross is between scabrum and bulbispermum which increases it's hardiness.

Crinums do best here in full sun, well drained soil, dry winters, with lots of feeding. Some have more tolerance for shade or want more water, but generally, as long as they get the above and I amend the clay here, they bloom nicely and some repeatedly. Fertilizing them well seems to keep them happy and blooming for me, I use bone meal, blood meal, plant-tone, compost, etc

Here's a scabrum hybrid that I found blooming this morning. I didn't think it was old enough, and it's been in a crowded pot so I was very surprised to see it bloom for the first time, even with it's two sad lil blooms. I wanted to pollinate the bloom with both Herbertii and Eboraci blooms that were going to open this evening, but it rained really hard.The name is 'Fireworks Finale'....and the ants like it, too