Gloriosa superba (live bulb)

Gloriosa superba BULB.

Family: Colchicaceae

Common names: flame lily, climbing lily, Turk’s cap, superb lily, glory lily, gloriosa lily, vlamlelie, boslelie, geelboslelie, rooiboslelie

It is a deciduous, summer-growing climber up to 1.5 m tall, with tuberous roots. The slender stems are produced annually and are upright to scrambling and can grow up to 4 m long. Tubers sprout in spring, and a tuber sends up 1 to 6 stems. The leaves are shiny, bright green and are tipped in a tendril, which will cling to anything it touches. The stems die back in late summer and the tubers are dormant during winter. The showy flowers are borne in summer and are usually bi-coloured yellow and orange-scarlet, ageing a deeper shade of orange-red to purple.