How to Grow Nerines in Australia

Nerine (Nerine bowdenii), in the family Amaryllidaceae, is a South African bulb grown for its heads of crinkled pink flowers in autumn. The flowers open on bare stems 40 to 60 cm tall as most of the garden winds down, and last well in a vase. The usual mistake is burying the bulb, when it flowers best with its neck sitting above the soil.

Three mistakes that matter

1. Planting the bulb too deep. A bulb buried deep, like a daffodil, often sulks and flowers poorly. Set it with the top of the neck just above the soil, or level with it in frosty districts.
2. Watering by the calendar, not the leaves. Heavy watering, or soil that stays wet, can rot the base of the bulb, above all while it rests leafless. Water whenever the leaves are green, summer included, and let the soil dry once they yellow.
3. Lifting and dividing too often. Nerines have perennial roots that resent disturbance, and they flower best as a crowded mass. Leave a clump alone for four or five years, and divide only when flowering falls away.

When to plant

Plant dormant bulbs in summer, from about December to February, so the roots settle before the flower buds push up. The buds appear in late summer, as the days shorten noticeably.

A potted nerine in bud or flower can go in the ground at any time, at the depth it sat in its pot. Newly planted bulbs sometimes skip a year or two of flowering while they settle.

Site, soil and setup

Sun and sharp drainage decide how well nerines flower.

A clump stays in one place for years, so crop rotation does not apply.

Weed status, state by state

Nerine is not a declared weed anywhere in Australia, and no state or territory weed list names Nerine bowdenii as a pest.

Container growing

Nerines do very well in pots and like a snug fit. A pack of two bulbs fits a pot 15 to 20 cm across, about 2 to 4 L, with drainage holes. Set the bulbs close together but not touching, necks just showing. Use a premium potting mix with about a third coarse sand or grit, and grow both store lines the same way.

• Watering. Water as the flower stems appear, then whenever the surface dries while the leaves are green. Stop once the leaves yellow. See watering pots in summer.
• Feeding. Water in liquid potash at the label rate every fortnight from the first flower stems while the leaves are green.
• Position. Full sun outdoors. Bring a pot inside only while it flowers, because the bulbs need the late summer drop in temperature to set flowers.
• Repotting. Refresh the mix every two to five years while the bulbs are dormant, usually in the same size pot.

Planting Bulbs

Nerines start from a dormant bulb: rounded, with a long, prominent neck and a flat base where the roots grow.

What the store sells

The store sells two lines, 'Pink Jewel' and 'Rosea', each a pack of two bulbs listed as Nerine bowdenii, both with rose-pink, reflexed, wavy petals. Plant and grow both lines the same way.

Planting a bulb

1. Prepare the bed as under Site, soil and setup.
2. Space bulbs 5 to 10 cm apart: they are gregarious and flower better close together.
3. Dig a hole just deep enough to hold the bulb upright.
4. Set the top of the neck just above the soil in warm and temperate gardens.
5. In frosty districts, set the neck level with the soil or up to 3 cm below it.
6. Firm the soil and water in once with seaweed solution at 30 mL per 9 L.

Dividing a crowded clump

Divide only when a clump is so congested that flowering declines. Lift it in early summer, separate the bulbs while keeping as many roots as possible, and replant straight away. Offsets often flower the following autumn. See dividing perennials for the method.

Care by growth stage

Nerine bowdenii usually holds its leaves from spring into late summer, then rests leafless through winter, though in some gardens the leaves follow the flowers. Water while the leaves are green, whatever the month, because a bone-dry spell as buds form in mid to late summer can cost flowers.

Cut spent flower stems at the base, and pull away the leaves once they have died. If growth stalls in poor soil, scratch in a light dose of all-purpose controlled release granular (NPK around 14-5-10) in spring. Keep it off the necks.

Companion planting

Nerines do best planted in their own clumps, not crowded among other perennials, so choose companions that share sun and sharp drainage.

Grows well with

• Saffron crocus, another autumn bulb that wants full sun and well-drained soil.
• Daffodils and jonquils, which flower soon after the autumn bulbs fade.
• Belladonna lily (Amaryllis belladonna), a close relative that also flowers on bare stems in autumn.

Keep apart

• Vigorous perennials and spreading groundcovers, which smother the clump and shade the necks.
• Thirsty plants that keep the soil wet, because constantly wet soil can rot the bulbs.
• Vegie beds and children's play areas, because every part of the plant is toxic if eaten.

Harvesting Blooms

Cut stems in autumn, when the first flowers in the head have opened and the rest are coloured buds.

• Cut in the cool of the morning, with clean secateurs.
• Cut each stem low, close to the bulb, and stand it straight in clean water.
• Leave the leaves on the plant, because they feed the bulb for future flowers.
• Take few or no stems while a newly planted clump settles.

Cut stems last well indoors, often a week to 10 days in cool water out of direct sun. The petals carry a glittering sheen, from cells shaped like tiny lenses that catch the light. Use them in vases and bouquets.

Common problems

No flowers in the first year or two. New bulbs often take a season or two to adjust before flowering; check the planting depth under Three mistakes that matter, then wait.

Flowering falls away in an old clump. A clump packed tight for many years can flower less; divide it as under Planting Bulbs.

Soft, rotting bulbs. Basal rot follows soil that stays wet, as under Three mistakes that matter; replant firm bulbs in a raised, gritty bed.

Pests and diseases

Pests and diseases rarely bother nerines in the garden, though pots kept in sheltered spots invite mealybug.

Garden snail (Cornu aspersum). Widespread in Australian suburbs, it chews the leaves and damages the flowers on damp nights. Hand-pick by torchlight after rain, and use an iron-based bait if needed. Read more

Lily bulb mealybug (Vryburgia amaryllidis). A sap-feeder recorded on nerines and in Queensland and South Australia, it lives on the bulbs and leaf bases, mostly in pots and enclosed spaces. Lift and discard badly infested bulbs, and give pots open air. Read more

Lily caterpillar (Spodoptera picta). A pest of amaryllis family bulbs in Sydney gardens, it is also found in Queensland and the Northern Territory. The caterpillars feed in groups on the leaves, then bore into the bulb and kill it. Pick off egg masses under the leaves and the caterpillars, and dig out and bin any bulb gone soft.

Virus diseases. Spread by mealybug and snails, viruses can cause striped, mottled or distorted leaves and flowers. Dig out and bin an affected plant so the virus cannot spread. Read more

Prevention first

• Buy firm bulbs and plant them into well-drained soil.
• Check pots for white, waxy mealybug at the leaf bases.
• Control mealybug, which spreads virus from plant to plant.
• Search for snails on damp nights as the flower stems rise.

Tips

1. Push a label in beside each clump, because nothing shows above ground through the leafless rest.
2. Plant where low autumn sun falls on the flowers, so the glittering petals catch the light.
3. Sow any fleshy seed on the surface of a gritty mix as soon as it ripens; seedlings take three to five years to flower.

Due to quarantine restrictions and our shipping policy, we cannot send Nerine bulbs to Western Australia or Tasmania.