How to grow potted Clivia? A detailed guide to the latest care methods
Clivia is also known as sword-leaf lycoris, large-leaf lycoris, etc. It is a perennial herbaceous plant of the genus Clivia in the Amaryllidaceae family, native to southern South Africa. Its plant shape is dignified and graceful, its leaves are verdant and upright, its flowers are large and brightly colored, and its fruit is bright red. Leaves, flowers, and fruit are all beautiful. It is known for flowers in one season, fruit in three seasons, and foliage in four seasons. In China it is often grown in pots in greenhouses for ornamental viewing. Now let us take a look at how to grow potted Clivia!
Clivia's growth habits
Clivia is native to the subtropical mountain forests of southern Africa, growing beneath trees. It fears heat and cannot tolerate cold, likes a semi-shaded and humid environment, and is afraid of strong direct sunlight. The optimal temperature for growth is between 18-28°C. Below 10°C and above 30°C, growth is inhibited. It likes a ventilated environment and prefers deep, fertile, loose soil. It is suitable for growing in loose, fertile, slightly acidic organic soil.
Clivia's propagation methods
1. Sowing: Before sowing Clivia, soak the seeds in warm water at 30-35°C for 20-30 minutes, then take them out, air-dry them for 1-2 hours, and they can be sown into the growing medium. After sowing, place the flower pot in an environment at room temperature of 20-25°C and humidity of about 90%. After about 1-2 weeks, the radicle will sprout. There are many materials that can be used for the growing medium, but one that is relatively easy to obtain is loose soil taken from the surface layer of forest soil with sufficient humus, mixed with 1/3 clean fine sandy soil.
2. Division: When dividing Clivia, first take the mother plant out of the pot, remove the old soil, find the axillary buds that can be divided, and break off the offsets. Never force them off, so as not to damage the young plants. After the offsets are cut off, immediately apply dry charcoal powder to the wounds to absorb the flowing sap and prevent rot. Then plant the offsets in pots. Generally, it takes 1-2 months to grow new roots and 1-2 years to bloom.
How to grow potted Clivia?
1. Soil: Clivia's native habitat is under large trees in the forests of the high-altitude areas of southern Africa, where its root system is anchored in leaf litter layers accumulated over many years. For cultivating Clivia, loose, fertile neutral or weakly acidic humus soil should be used. The growing soil can be mixed according to 65% humus soil, 20% clean sand, and 15% fine stove ash, with relative humidity preferably around 40%.
2. Fertilizing: Clivia should be given a solid fertilizer once in winter, with less nitrogen fertilizer and more phosphorus and potassium fertilizer. Eggshell powder and decomposed fishy water are very good phosphorus fertilizers, while chaff ash and tobacco ash are readily available potassium fertilizers. A compound fertilizer of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium can also be applied to promote the sprouting of more new plants and leaves. Fertilizing must be done in the right amount. Never apply concentrated fertilizer or unfermented, undecomposed raw fertilizer, otherwise it can easily cause scorched or rotted leaf tips.
3. Watering: Clivia should not be too dry or too wet. Each watering must soak through, and after buds appear, a little more water should be given. About every 20 days, together with watering, apply once fermented soybean cake water, diluted fishy water, and water from soaked water chestnuts, etc., combining watering and fertilizing. When room temperature is low, watering should be controlled to prevent the potting soil from becoming too wet. Too-wet potting soil can cause root rot and death of the plant, but the potting soil should not be allowed to become too dry either.
4. Temperature: The most suitable growth temperature for Clivia is 15-25°C. At 10°C growth stops, and at 0°C it suffers cold damage. Therefore, in winter it must be kept warm and protected from freezing. After the flower stem emerges, maintaining about 18°C is suitable. If the temperature is too high, the leaves and flower scape will grow leggy, thin, and weak, the flowers will be small and poor in quality, and the flowering period will be short. If the temperature is too low, the flower stem will be short, which can easily cause the flower to be trapped and bloom prematurely, affecting quality and thereby reducing ornamental value.
5. Light: Clivia is a medium-light plant. During growth, diffused light is best. During growth, strong light is not needed, and especially in summer direct sunlight must be avoided. Proper shading is beneficial to leaf growth. If strong light is encountered during the winter flowering period, the flowering period will be shortened. Moderate light can prolong the flowering period. If earlier flowering is desired in winter, short-day treatment can be used.
Clivia's four-season management
1. Spring: In early spring, after Clivia has gone through winter dormancy, the root system begins to revive. Due to a lack of nutrient supply, after being exposed to wind and sun, the leaves will show dehydration, causing their luster to fade and their hardness and thickness to decrease. In severe cases, yellow leaves, rotten leaves, and similar conditions may even occur. Therefore, keeping the potted plant generally moist is sufficient. Too much watering can easily cause root rot. Before the scape emerges and blooms, avoid spraying water. Apply fully decomposed liquid fertilizer once every week or half a month, but follow the principle of “light fertilizer applied frequently”, and never apply concentrated fertilizer or raw fertilizer, so as to avoid scorched leaves and root rot.
2. Summer: Clivia is not strict about light requirements. It likes semi-shade and fears direct light. Because summer air temperature and soil temperature are relatively high, it is easy for the root system to become disordered, leading to imbalanced nutrient absorption and causing phenomena such as neck stretching and leaf bolting. In addition, due to strong sunlight, transpiration is greatly increased. If watering is improper, the leaf color will become dull and scorched yellow, or even wilt.
3. Autumn: After the beginning of autumn, the climate gradually turns cooler. During the days of continuous autumn rain, mature Clivia have more opportunities to cut scapes and set seeds and to send up scapes and bloom. If at this time they are exposed to rain or watered too much, root rot, scape rot, heart rot, and similar conditions will occur. Therefore, when the scape emerges and blooms, avoid spraying water. About every half a month, water once with decomposed cake fertilizer water (1:3). When watering, prevent water from entering the center of the leaf rosette, and do not let rainwater pour into the leaf rosette, so as to avoid rotting of the core. In severe cases, it may even cause the entire plant to rot and die.
4. Winter: In winter, when Clivia is at a low temperature below 5°C, the potting soil must be kept at about 70% humidity, so it will not be frostbitten due to dryness. If the moisture is less than 20%, it is prone to dry freezing and death. Before Frost's Descent, indoor plants should be placed in a sunny spot indoors, with attention to cold protection and warmth. About every half a month, the potted plant can be rotated 180 degrees. When the indoor temperature is kept at 6-7°C in winter, it can safely overwinter. When Clivia enters dormancy, water evaporation will relatively decrease. The potting soil only needs to remain moist, but it is better to keep it on the drier side.