Hardy Amaryllis, St. Joseph's Lily

On Jun 26, 2017, Hikaro_Takayama from Fayetteville, PA (Zone 6b) wrote:

Got a big cluster of bulbs from my uncle in S. Carolina last summer (ended up giving like half of them away to friends), and planted them out in front of the house in the flower bed by the front sidewalk.

Wasn't sure if they'd make it or not, what with some literature online saying that they're only hardy to zone 7 and some saying zone 6. They made it through the winter just fine last year & bloomed this past May. Granted, last winter was pretty mild, so I'll try to update this in the future as to how they handle a more typical winter around here.

On Apr 2, 2011, davidisaturn from Austin, TX wrote:

This is an amazing bulb and it performs wonderfully here in central Texas. I live in Austin and a friend from church gave me a couple of bulbs about 8 years ago. They have multiplied and I never give them any special care. They easily survived the 10+ days of freezing weather (below 20 several days) this past winter and our summers are often 100+. The person who gave me these called them St. Joseph's Trumpet (maybe a colloquial reference?).

On Apr 30, 2008, dragonplant from Chapel Hill, NC (Zone 7a) wrote:

This is a pass-along plant in my family too. They all live in zone 8 or 9, so when they passed it to me I wasn't sure it was going to survive the winter outside in 7a. It did! If a late frost comes, the leaves that have already come up will turn a brownish shade, but they stay alive, it still flowers, and it still comes back the next year to flower again.

On Apr 28, 2005, lorireid wrote:

I planted this bulb at my mother's office in Andrews, SC, in 1989. It quietly multiplied, very unattended, surviving several yard maintenance "persons". After she passed away in Aug. of 2003, I noticed the abundant planting needed attention. I dug up the entire bed of less than 3 feet square, retrieving more than 35 bulbs and relocated them to Dayton, TN, in May of 2004. Not wanting to lose one bulb, I planted them all in containers and kept them indoors.

Most all large bulbs flowered, and I collected a seed pod. When the seed pod dried, I was amazed at the seed. Paper thin, and the size of a dime. I wondered if the seed would grow? I planted them indoors, under just a slight bit of soil and to my amazement, they sprouted and are still growing.

I p... read morelanted 15-20 bulbs outdoors in the fall of 2004 in Dayton, TN and Brunswick, GA. They survived! The bulbs in Brunswick were blooming on April 12th.

Both the indoor and outdoor bulbs are multiplying, and after reading the information on this site about seed collection, I now know to plant all the seeds when and IF a pod forms, as they don't store well. This may explain why the seeds I planted this spring haven't grown?

I have shared many of the potted bulbs with friends and have MANY blooming indoors today. The bulbs outside are 5-8 inches and I expect a good show in 4-5 weeks.

On Jul 12, 2004, SudieGoodman from Broaddus, TX (Zone 8b) wrote:

I found on old abandoned farm in Kirbyville, deep southeast Texas. We have hot, humid weather. Potted up in 8" pot during the winter of 2003, and had three beautiful red blooms in May 2004.

Now that I have information on this lovely beauty, I'll plant in landscape so it can better propagate.

On Apr 11, 2004, LouisianaSweetPea from Mount Hermon, LA (Zone 8b) wrote:

These lilies were buried under a huge, half-dead fig tree when I moved to this house. They survived. After removal of the tree, the lilies were exposed to the full, blazing afternoon southern sun (and mostly neglected). They survived.

I have ripped some of them out of the ground and thrown them in a spot where I wanted to plant them (but forgot to), and they rooted themselves and survived (but I do not find that they are invasive). They have also survived heat, drought, flooding, winter cold, summer sun, and partial shade.

Each year, they provide a lovely flush of bright-red blooms for our enjoyment. Although mine are not year-round bloomers, I find the foliage neat and attractive. And, since St. Joseph's Lilies are traditional New Orleans passalong plan... read morets, I love having them in my garden.

St. Joseph's Lilies are first on my list of "Plants You Can't Beat To Death With a Stick."

On Jun 14, 2003, Terry from Murfreesboro, TN (Zone 7a) wrote:

One of the most hardy Amaryllis, it was also among the very first hybrid amaryllis produced. Bred by a British watchmaker named Johnson in the late 1800s, it was a common heirloom plant found around abandoned homsteads and cemeteries, but very scarce in the trade.