A detailed guide to growing Clivia (kafir lily) from seed, so this noble flower among plants can bloom beautifully

To grow Clivia, you first need to choose suitable seeds. Clivia seeds harvested in autumn after the plant blooms in early spring are the easiest to keep alive. When you get the seeds, do not plant them right away. Because Clivia seeds have a thick seed coat, you need to soak them in warm water for two days until the seeds swell and the outer coat softens before sowing. After soaking, take them out and dry them in the sun for one to two hours before planting.

Before planting, prepare the soil and pot first. The pot should allow air and water to pass through, and the best material is a clay pot. The soil must be loose and airy. You can put a layer of sawdust at the very bottom, which will increase the soil's drainage and also keep the soil loose. Do not bury Clivia seeds too deep, because Clivia seeds naturally sprout very slowly, and if buried too deep the young shoots cannot push through.

Right after planting Clivia, be sure to water it thoroughly, otherwise it will not easily grow primary roots. After watering, place it in a well-ventilated, warm spot, and normally in about twenty days primary roots will grow. After sprouting, do not water from above anymore, as this can easily knock over the small young shoots. The correct method is to use a spray bottle to mist little by little so the water slowly seeps in.

After Clivia sprouts, be sure to maintain moisture. Many flowers, after planting, are only watered once the soil dries out, but Clivia is different. It needs the soil to stay moist for a long time to ensure normal, steady growth. If you wait until the soil is dry before watering, Clivia will develop slowly. Once Clivia is a little bigger, do not water so frequently, because its root system gradually develops its own water-storage function.

Learn how to grow Clivia from seed and enjoy the flowers at home

If you want to sow Clivia yourself, you should first take healthy seeds from a healthy Clivia of the current year. After picking the seeds, do not rush to plant them. Because the seed coat of Clivia is rather hard, you must soak the seeds in warm water until they swell. Normally soaking for one to two days is enough, then take the seeds out, let them dry, and plant them.

Before planting, prepare a suitable pot and soil. The soil must be loose and airy. If you use soil that is not airy or is rather hard to grow Clivia, the seeds will not sprout and will suffocate in the soil. When planting, do not bury the seeds too deep, otherwise the seeds will not sprout easily. After planting, water thoroughly and then you can place it in a sunny spot.

Clivia seeds are very afraid of being waterlogged. If soaked in water for a long time, they will rot, so after the first thorough watering, wait until the soil is completely dry before watering a second time. Newly planted Clivia seeds sprout rather slowly, usually only growing small young shoots after about one month to two months.

When watering the small young shoots, it is best to use a spray bottle to mist little by little. If you pour water from above too forcefully, it is easy to knock the small young shoots over and break them, and if that happens all your previous effort will be wasted. About three months after Clivia grows out, start fertilizing it. Choosing a fertilizer specially made for Clivia will give better results. Every half month, loosen the soil for the Clivia, which can help it grow faster.

The above is the method for growing Clivia from seed. Clivia normally blooms in winter, and because Clivia grows slowly it is best to start planting in spring. Growing Clivia requires enough patience. As long as you sow according to the method above, you will see the beautiful flowers of Clivia around the New Year.

How to grow Clivia seeds: methods for growing Clivia from seed

Clivia seeds need to be treated before planting. They can germinate under conditions of sufficient water, suitable temperature and enough oxygen. The best temperature for germination is 30±2°C. Below this temperature germination is slow, and below 10°C they cannot germinate. So what are the methods for growing Clivia from seed?

How to grow Clivia seeds

Treatment before planting

Because the seed coat of Clivia seeds is extremely tough and not easily penetrated by water, but its hilum takes in water very quickly, before planting put the seeds in warm water at 30-35°C and soak for 20-30 minutes, then take them out and dry them in the sun for 1-2 hours. At this point, soaking them in a 10% sodium phosphate solution for 20 minutes will give better results. After that, sow them into the growing medium, keep the room temperature at 20-25°C and the humidity at about 90%, and in about 10 days the primary roots will sprout.

Preparation of the growing medium

Clivia likes slightly acidic soil. Its breeding medium can use wood shavings, sawdust, fine sand, leaf mold, and so on. An easier one to obtain is a loose soil taken from the surface layer of woodland that is rich in humus. Mix it thoroughly with 1/3 fine sandy soil and soak it with water.

Once the above preparations are ready, you can formally begin planting the seeds. Arrange the seeds one by one in a basket with the small eye facing down and spaced apart, then cover them with a thin layer of growing medium, press gently and evenly flat, then spray with water, and place it in an airy, ventilated spot. In about forty to fifty days, small green leaves will grow!

Notes on daily cultivation

1. Clivia germination has high environmental requirements, so in normal times you need to pay attention to keeping it moist and warm. Do not water every day, to avoid the seeds rotting. Use seeing the growing medium moist as the standard.

2. First-time growers inevitably get impatient and want to check on the seeds' progress, but if oil stains contaminate Clivia seeds they are prone to infection, so before checking, be sure to wash your hands clean, and do not check too frequently.

3. When watering, it is best not to use tap water directly, because it contains chlorine, which is not good for seed germination.

That is roughly the method for growing Clivia from seed. Are you all eager to give it a try?