10 Things you might not know about clivias

Did you know there are colours of clivia that have been bred, which have never existed before?

August 27, 2020

Newcastle Advertiser 2 minutes read

Henry Howard with one of his prize-winning blooms.

Local award-winning clivia enthusiast and member of the Newcastle Clivia Interest Group, Henry Howard is enthusiastic about his passion for the gorgeous blooms.

Together with clivia grower, Felix Middleton, the duo has provided the following interesting facts about clivias:

Clivias are originally from South Africa – Even though China and Belgium have successfully bred clivias, they all originally came from sunny SA. This means they are endemic to our country and do not occur naturally anywhere else in the world. “The wild bush lily grows in the forests of KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape, Mpumalanga and Swaziland,” explained Howard. SA soil is well-drained and humus rich.
William Burchell collected clivia from South Africa for botanical gardens in England. Burchell (23 July, 1781 – 23 March, 1863) was an English explorer, naturalist, traveller, artist and author. “His thousands of plant specimens and numerous field journals from his South African expedition are held by Kew Gardens,” said Howard. It is believed his collection of thousands of specimens from unexplored terrains is likely how clivias were spread to parts of the world like China, through Hong Kong because of the British sea trading at the time.
The genus name ‘clivia’ stems from the Duchess of Northumberland, Lady Charlotte Clive, who first cultivated and flowered the type specimen in England. “The species name ‘miniata’ means the colour of red lead, referring to the flowers,” explained Howard.
Howard said the world’s love affair with South African clivias began in the 1800s, when specimens from KZN were sent to England. “In Victorian times this beautiful plant was very popular for indoor use in England and Europe.”
Clivias do not just have large, open flowers. According to Howard, some subspecies have hanging flowers with small open mouths of different colours. “The sunbirds love to pollinate them in the winter.”
There are several subspecies of the clivia, including: Clivia Miniata, Clivia Caulesence, Clivia Gardeni, Clivia Robusta, Clivia Nobilis and Clivia Mirabilis. “Part of the fascination has been with the breeding of clivias, both among the six species and between forms and colours within the species. Breeders select specific traits in each generation to produce pronounced qualities. A lot of the breeding takes place in the Far East, most notably Japan and China.”
According to Howard, in many areas colonies of wild bush lilies have sadly been destroyed by harvesting for traditional medicine and also by plant collectors. “The rhizomes are reportedly extremely toxic but are used medicinally for various purposes, such as treating stomach cramps and helping with birth pains.”
Howard says Clivia Miniata is easily cultivated and very rewarding. “You must plant them in dappled shade as clivia are sensitive to sunlight and will burn easily,” he advised. He also suggested planting clivia in well-composted soil to help with soil-water retention during dry periods. “If you plant them under trees that are evergreen, put your dead leaves from the trees on the ground around the clivias because it provides natural food for the plants. I do this every winter.”
A yellow clivia will not necessarily yield yellow seedlings, because there are three groups of yellow clivia which are incompatible.
There are colours of clivia that have been bred which have never existed before, like green.

To learn more about clivias, residents are encouraged to contact Howard on 083 655 0750.