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Haemanthus coccineus
Also called Paintbrush, Cape Tulip, King Of Candia, Salmon Coloured Blood Flower, Blood Flower, King Of Candida, March Flower
Haemanthus coccineus is a bulbous perennial from southern Africa with spring and summer heads of red flowers that appear before the leaves. It needs a warm, frost-free, sheltered spot and a dry rest period after flowering.
Haemanthus coccineus, the blood flower, blood lily or paintbrush lily, is a species of flowering plant in the amaryllis family Amaryllidaceae, native to Southern Africa. Growing to 35 cm (14 in) tall and wide, it is a bulbous perennial with short brown stems surmounted by red flowers, the flowers appearing in spring and summer, before the strap-shaped leaves.
The generic name Haemanthus is derived from the Greek words haima for blood and anthos for flower; coccineus is the Latin word for red or scarlet. In the Afrikaans language it is known as bergajuin, bloedblom, and many other vernacular names.
Haemanthus coccineus is widespread throughout the winter rainfall region in Southern Africa - from the southern parts of Namibia, to South Africa in the Cape Peninsula, to the Keiskamma River in the Eastern Cape. It is found in Renosterveld and Fynbos habitats.
Snake Lily · Dwarf Bloodlily · Granite Bloodlily · Pink Bloodlily · Haemanthus lanceifolius · Mountain Bloodlily · Nardouw Bloodlily · Delicate Bloodlily
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Haemanthus coccineus by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
