Arum Lily

...The common name is Arum Lily or sometimes White Cala Lily. Now, she’s a delight to look at. The flowers are pure white trumpets on stalks nearly a meter long. You’ve probably seen them in expensive florists – the sort where everything appears with one of those atrocious pink bows attached. The blooms are very expensive, but they’re the sort of thing that looks wonderful in a vase on its own in one of those minimalist households – you know, the ones ...
...and keep offering old furniture “until you can afford what you want”.

The leaves are large and green and very lush-looking. The best description of them is probably that they’re arrow shaped, but it’s an arrow that’s about 20cm long and the same across. It’s these leaves that mean that Ol’ Lil requires a daily soaking with water when she’s in full leaf and probably a misting of water too if it’s a particularly dry day. Lil requires ... more

I was a little surprised to find Ol’ Lil, as she’s known in this household, under aquatics, as she likes a good drink but isn’t keen on swimming, but that’s definitely her picture up there!

Why “Ol’ Lil”, you’re wondering? Well, she came to us more than thirty years ago, having been bought by her previous owner whilst in full flower and then failed to please when she didn’t stay like that indefinitely. I caught her as she was thrown out. All my plants have come to me in the same way – I don’t have one that I’ve actually bought myself and few have failed to please once they’ve been settled in the right conditions. Ol’ Lil took longer than most to come to her full glory, but we got there between us!

Her full title (her Kennel Club name, if you like) is Zantedeschia aethiopica which is a bit of a mouthful for any plant to be blessed with. The common name is Arum Lily or sometimes White Cala Lily. Now, she’s a delight to look at. The flowers are pure white trumpets on stalks nearly a meter long. You’ve probably seen them in expensive florists – the sort where everything appears with one of those atrocious pink bows attached. The blooms are very expensive, but they’re the sort of thing that looks wonderful in a vase on its own in one of those minimalist households – you know, the ones the owners are so proud of but relatives can’t understand and keep offering old furniture “until you can afford what you want”.

The leaves are large and green and very lush-looking. The best description of them is probably that they’re arrow shaped, but it’s an arrow that’s about 20cm long and the same across. It’s these leaves that mean that Ol’ Lil requires a daily soaking with water when she’s in full leaf and probably a misting of water too if it’s a particularly dry day. Lil requires space and good light.

She was never particularly happy indoors. We occasionally indulge ourselves by putting the central heating on and the atmosphere was too dry for her. Added to this her natural seasons are that she should bloom in winter or early spring if kept dry in the summer. This meant that we had a rather bedraggled-looking plant in the house over the summer months and whilst I don’t mind people speculating that I neglect my plants I don’t feel the need to put the evidence on full show! After one late-spring flowering I allowed the foliage to die down naturally over the summer months as I gradually reduced the watering, finally clearing everything back to pot level in the early autumn. The pot then went into the greenhouse over the winter months (any frost-free area would do) getting a sip of water only when I felt guilty enough to brave the cold and venture to the bottom of the garden. In spring I step up the watering, give some feed and she’s flowering her heart out within a matter of weeks.

She doesn’t come indoors now. She spends the summer months grouped with other plants in containers to create a humid micro-climate. The growing is slightly harder for her, but all this means is that the leaves are a little smaller and the flowers appear on shorter stems. The white flowers look wonderful in a group with geraniums, fuchsias and spider plants. In all the years that she’s been here she’s never been host to a single pest that I’ve spotted, but she has suffered quite a lot of neglect, one way or another. She bounces back every time.

Most plants are bought in flower and often as gifts, as they’re a rather showy plant. Unfortunately what you usually get is one rhizome with a single flower and a couple of leaves. It will most likely have been repotted very recently – with a larger pot having been split up to maximise the profit. If you’re the recipient of one of these plants you’ll find that the flower will fade and no more will come. If the same thing had been done to you I doubt that you’d be keen on flowering. Don’t despair – allow the foliage to die back and stop watering altogether when the foliage turns yellow. Bring back into growth the following season.

I find that Lil does best when she’s bursting out of her pot – rather like an aging lady who could do with her corsets being a size larger. Repot her when it looks as though the pot’s in danger of breaking. Replant the rhizomes just beneath the surface of a 20cm pot using good potting compost and wait for your friends to start dropping hints that they’d love to have some!
 

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