January 21st, 2009
Crinum bulbispermum

Crinum bulbispermumCrinum bulbispermum. Austin TX 2009-01-20.

Hardy swamplily, Crinum bulbispermum, proves to be as cold-hardy as it is reputed. (I’ve read that it is the most cold tolerant Crinum species.) This one came into bud during last week’s hard freeze and I thought the flower would die. But it opened. The earliest it’s opened in my garden before this is April 7th.

As you might guess from the name, hardy swamplily likes wet feet and is happy in a bog garden. But it can survive drought although it won’t flower as freely.

Related post: Crinums Gone Wild

by M Sinclair Stevens

12 Responses to post “Crinum bulbispermum”

  1. From Carol, May Dreams Gardens:

    Beautiful blooms! No crinums here but I’ve read about them. I like how you’ve captured the sunlight coming through the petals.

  2. From Diana - Austin:

    Wow. That’s beautiful. I can’t believe it’s that hearty. Can’t wait to see it in full bloom. My crinums are cranky…

  3. From Nancy Bond:

    Gorgeous blooms!

  4. From Jen:

    We always had lovely white, and pale pink crinums blooming in the greenhouse. I miss them, where I work now, we don’t have that kind of selection.

    Jen

  5. From Jean, sw GA:

    How marvelous, in the middle of winter!
    I was just out looking at the limp brown leaves of the crinums here that had managed to stay green up to now. I hope tonight’s low 20s will be the last really hard freeze.

  6. From Robin:

    I just purchased some crinum bulbs at the Bulb Society event last weekend at Zilker. They told me they would bloom this spring; I doubt they expected crimuns to be in bloom already! What do you make of this super-early bloom?

  7. From Annie in Austin:

    Is this the first time this particular Crinum bloomed? What a show-off plant!

    Some of my Amarcrinums took a few years, and now bloom in late spring and summer. But January? It’s as confused as my budding daylily and iris.

    Annie at the Transplantable Rose

  8. From Kathy:

    I wonder what the definition of hardy is here . . .

  9. From jodi:

    Word associations are fun things. When I hear the word Crinum, I can’t help it–my mind flashes back to biology, and studying the Jurassic ages etc, and the Crinoid sea-lilies that existed even then (still do). But these are far more glorious plants than those curiosities, that’s for sure. I don’t think we can grow them at all up here in the frozen north, unless as pot plants. I have never seen one except in other people’s blogs.

  10. From Jan:

    Lovely flower and cold hardy,too. You can’t beat that. My crinum seedlings are coming along nicely, and I can’t wait until they are big enough to bloom.

    Jan
    Always Growing

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  12. From Gail:

    Quite a lovely flower….