Random Spring 2013 @ AYK

[UMARKHANMARDAN]

Yes Dr sb you are very right.i also feed my gardenias when ever i remember because of the daily busy routines.i have five gardenias in ground.in pots the bloom size gets smaller.you rembered my words no root disturbance,no godi just plant it in untouched corner.this is also true with Clivia & hydrangia.If you want clivia to flower every year plant it in bright sun light( not direct sun light) and forget it.

[aykhan]

It's been more than a year with my clivias in a dedicated carefully constructed bed. No luck so far. Also very very slow. Maybe it was wrong to waste money on them. That bed could have more gardenia varieties. Another very very slow growing tree I have is the Osmanthus fragrans. Almost no change!

[UMARKHANMARDAN]

Dr sb clivia wil flower for you Inshallah.i planted some clivias in 2005 & the first flowered in 2011.then in 2012 four more flowered.this year all the ten plants flowered.so wait & see.i was just looking on my tropical hibiscus & peacocks.you feel really great when you have so many in your garden.no need to go to parks every time.the peacocks are in full trains & hibiscus in flowering.

[mikhurram]

Nature talk: Courting clivias
by Zahrah Nasir, December 5th, 2010

Fads and fashions in the plant world have a habit of arriving in Pakistan long after the trend has changed overseas and, although the case of the Clivia is rather extreme, you just might enjoy learning about it anyway!

Clivias are native to shady forests in South Africa where they have always been a popular, if poisonous, wild flower and swept through Europe, particularly UK and Belgium, during the 1800s when anyone who could afford them boasted a prized collection in their homes, conservatories and, in very sheltered spots on the south-west coast of UK, outside in gardens proper.

These attractive flowering bulbs were named after one of the Duchesses of Northumberland: their family name was Clive and Clive of India, who is none too popular in this part of the world, was a member of this particular clan. The once common name, an extremely derogatory one at that, was ‘Kaffir Lily’ and has its racist origins in the European settlers of South Africa but, thankfully and I’m sure that the indigenous coloured people of the plant’s native country greatly appreciate this, it is now better known by the botanical name of Clivia.

To get back on track, Clivias have only really become popular here in Pakistan over the last decade or so; they have been around much longer of course, albeit in smaller numbers, yet, for one reason or another, took a very long time to make a well deserved impact to the point where, when they are in bloom, friends and neighbours are invited for tea with instructions to bring their cameras along as ‘the Clivias are in bloom’. Don’t misunderstand me please: Clivias are gorgeous but, in my humble opinion, don’t quite deserve the fuss and fanfare they get as the flowers tend to be relatively short lived, especially in high temperatures, and I can think of lots more, longer blooming, equally if not more showy, plants to oooh and aaah over!
For the uninitiated, Clivias are a very close relative of the ever popular Amaryllis but, be warned, has very different growing requirements so please don’t make the fatal, to the plant, mistake of planting them together in a bed or border as, adhering to the example of many human families, they do not get along!

Clivias, the smaller-than-Amaryllis trumpet shaped flowers, range in colour from pale to deep yellow, apricot to flame orange and medium to crimson red; they have long, strap-shaped, thick green leaves which have a habit of sprouting from the top of the bulb in a somewhat fan shape arrangement so setting off the thick, multi-headed flower stem to perfection. Ideal plant pot material, pots should be heavy clay not plastic as the plants tend to be top heavy and thus fall over at the drop of a hat if in a lightweight pot, they need a shady location and perform particularly well in the shade of trees or shrubs.

The soil for plant pot cultivation should be a slightly acid, well drained loam. Mixing a couple of handfuls of grit or rough sand, not, I hasten to add sea sand which is too salty, into the soil/compost will greatly assist drainage which is highly important as they will not tolerate water logging under any circumstances. Strangely enough though, when Clivias are grown directly in the ground they are nowhere near as fussy about soil composition, as long as it drains easily, as when they are subject to cultivation in pots and can thrive in almost any soil type.

The trick to encouraging them to flower profusely, this is mainly during spring and very early summer in the cities, plains and coastal regions of Pakistan, is to treat them to a high potassium feed every couple of weeks or so as soon as flowering time approaches and, I have it on good authority, that mashing a very ripe banana into the top soil does the trick although, if left uncontrolled, industrious ants can then be a problem.

The perfect Clivia growing location is one with good morning light yet minus direct sunlight, direct sunshine after noon is most certainly not appreciated in the least. Selecting a suitable spot is of the utmost importance: too much light and sunshine and the plants suffer without flowering, not enough light and they will not flower at all. Watering too is of extreme importance; the best guide is to water them thoroughly once a week during the growing season, twice if temperatures have really soared and only every other week throughout the cooler months of the year yet never, in any circumstances, allow the soil to completely dry out. Another tip is, for pot grown Clivias, to keep them in a smaller pot than you actually think is required as they are more liable to flower when the roots are cramped for lack of space. Clivia plants, often when they are due to flower, are sold in many nurseries these days and, as the price tag is generally high, try to select a plant that shows signs of developing ‘babies’ around its base. These ‘babies’ should not be disturbed until they are at least six months, even one year old when they can, very carefully, be cut away from the parent bulb, potted up and grown on.

It can take one of these ‘babies’ three to four years to reach flowering size so patience is a necessity. Clivias can also be propagated from seed but as you may then have to wait as long as seven years for them to bloom you may find it easier to simply purchase a good sized, not small, bulb or fork out the cash for an actual flowering plant.

Keep in mind, whichever way you choose to go about it, that Clivias resent being disturbed and may show their anger by refusing to flower in the following season. If, however, after a period of four years the plants are either bursting out of their pot or have formed massive clumps in the garden then you should risk taking action after they have completely finished flowering of course.

In either case, the safest way to go about dividing them up is by not doing exactly that. If in a pot, carefully remove the entire root ball from the pot without breaking it up and then, ever so gently, break off or cut off all the ‘babies’ around the outside of the root ball only, do not divide up the central ‘parent’ clump. The same goes for clumps dug up from the garden. In this way, hopefully but not, unfortunately, one hundred per cent guaranteed, you should still have flowers next time around.

Clivias, providing cultivation and watering instructions are followed implicitly, are generally pretty trouble free unless you live in mealy bug territory in which case, at sight of even a single one, cleaning it/them off with cotton wool soaked in liquid soap should do the trick.

[aykhan]

This is helpful information. Thanks!

[haris.kabir]

Mash Allah ! Very Beautiful collection of bulbs and roses.

[aykhan]

Dwarf type Nerium Oleanders.

[KBW]

Very nice. The peach dwarf oleander looks stunning. Dwarf means 2 to 3 ft??

[aykhan]

The peach available in Lahore is I think max 3 to 3.5 feet but the pink one will likely be max 4 feet or a little more in our warm climate.

[Farhan Ahmed]

Lovely...oleander is another very heat and drought resistant plant