PlantFiles: Pink Rain Lily, Fairy Lily, Zephyr Lily
Zephyranthes grandiflora

I'm pretty darned easy to please. If a plant grows and blooms, I'm happy! I'm thrilled by the several blooming periods throughout the summer. This lovely pink flower growns alongside the back of my house. The bed was here when I bought the house and I just found out what they were. There's approximately 5-6 ft. of them.

I first thought they were cute, but was disappointed when the flowers didn't last long. THEN ... they all bloomed again. More prolific than the first blooming. Then again, and again, and again.

They are a delightful surprise!

I found a few bulbs of this Pink Rain Lily growing wild in Brisbane, QLD, Australia. I brought three of them home to Melbourne, VIC, Australia, and potted them. For three years running, it would reach its little green arms skyward, stay looking much like 2-4 blades of grass for a couple of months, then die back again.

This year, summer of 2007, it finally flowered for the first time since I transplanted the bulbs. I can only assume that the especially hot, humid summer we're having here (over 40C/105F on some of the worst days!) has made the bulbs homesick for the sticky tropical heat of northern Australia, and was enough to coax the bloom out. It only came out for a few days, but I just hope this isn't the last I see of it!

I collected seed of this bulb from plants growing in the Seychelles, although the resultant plants seem to be hardy down to at least 1 centigrade.
The plants seem to thrive in pots and if the temperature is kept above about 4 degrees centigrade are evergreen. Flowering seems to be triggered by letting the pots dry out for a week or so and then resuming watering. Tap water seems fine for me.
The blooms are 3.5 to 4.25 inches across and the same plant sometimes produces flowers with 6 and 8 petals at the same time. The only thing which stops me giving the plant a 'Positive' rating is that the flowers only last about 4-5 days, (less if it is very sunny). Flowering occurs with me from Spring through Autumn.

This species has been long in the trade. It is delightful as a pot plant. The typical nursery stock is apparently self-sterile. However, with perseverance, and lot of pollen from mixed sources, I have annually (though only a few crosses succeed) gotten a few seed pods. These give rise to seedlings that are typical of parent in color, and at least a few of them appear to be fertile. Will be interesting to see if it is possible to advance the generations.

Rain Lilies are so named because they bloom only with rain (they won't be fooled by ordinary tap water, although regular watering is beneficial to foliage growth.) A native of South America, it is found naturalized in the lower South, although it is sterile and doesn't set seed.

Z. grandiflora is sometimes sold as Z. rosea, although the two are very different in growing habits - Z. grandiflora is more cold hardy, with blooms three times as large Z. rosea blooms sometimes have eight petals, while Z. grandiflora has six petals.

Z. grandiflora will benefit from humusy soil, regular water and fertilizer, rewarding you with a display of lavish pink blooms when fall rains start. Bulbs should be lifted and stored after first frost.