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Guernsey Lily

Nerine sarniensis

Guernsey Lily
Photo: SAplants, CC BY-SA 4.0

Guernsey lily is a bulbous perennial from South Africa's Western and Northern Cape, grown for its scarlet late-summer flowers. Its key to success is a sunny spot and a dry dormant period after flowering.

Family
Amaryllidaceae (Daffodil & onion family)
Grows as
Bulb, Perennial
Light
Full sun
Water
Water freely while leaves are growing in autumn and spring, then keep the bulb almost dry in summer.
Soil
Free-draining sandy or loamy soil; avoid waterlogging.
Temperature
Tolerates about 0 °C if kept dry; protect from hard frost.
How easy
Easy
Native range
SW. Cape Prov.
Climate
subtropical

About

Nerine sarniensis, commonly known as Guernsey lily or Raquel is a species of flowering plant in the family Amaryllidaceae. It is the type species of the Nerine genus. It is widely cultivated in the temperate world and is particularly associated with the island of Guernsey, as reflected in both its Latin and common names (sarniensis means "from Guernsey"), though it does not originate there, nor is it a true lily (it is more closely related to Amaryllis and Sternbergia). It is native to the Northern and Western Cape Provinces of South Africa, though it is now naturalized in France, Madeira and the Azores.

Nerine sarniensis is a bulbous perennial growing to 45 cm (18 in) tall by 8 cm (3 in) wide, with strap-shaped leaves and umbels of scarlet, lily-like flowers with conspicuous stamens tipped with purple anthers, in late summer and early autumn.

Other Nerine plants

Cornish Lily · Berg Lily · Albany Nerine · Nerines

Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Nerine sarniensis 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.

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