Rain Lily, Zephyranthes Katherinae var. lutea, 1 bulb, NEW, RARE, habranthus

Description: DESCRIPTION OF ITEM FOR BID: You are bidding on 1 bulb, not necessarily a blooming size. Regardless of size, it usually takes only a year or two to reach a blooming size. They will be shipped bare root and should be planted right away. DESCRIPTION: Zephyranthes Katherinae variety lutea (yellow form) is a very rare, species bulb. As of this listing, to the best of our knowledge, we are the only distributor in the United States. This is a yellow form of the species and grew from seed of a red form called 'Jacala Crimson'. The species is found naturally in many colors and is one of the most desirable and exciting bulbs for rain lily collectors and hybridizers. This bulb is supposed to have some very high and strange chromosome number(s) and is reported to be difficult to cross onto anything else. The flowers are a solid yellow with medium width petals and almost no green eye, 2" in diameter, 12" tall with bulbs that grow to nearly 1" in diameter. They readily form seed but rarely form new offset bulbs. We started all of these bulbs from seed obtained from another collector in 2013. They first bloomed in September 2016 here in northeast Florida, zone 9, but we suspect in future years they will bloom from about April through September, similar to the other form we grow, Z. katherinae rubra (see our listing for this red form). We are offering this for the first time on eBay in 2017. Rain lilies bloom about 4 days after a rain. Blooms are stimulated by the nitrogen, which is created by lightning, and picked up in the raindrops. In 2014 we started a small hybridization effort which by early 2017 has produced seeds from over 150 successful crosses and about an equal number of failures. Some seedlings did not survive, but we still have over 100 crosses growing and many of the seedlings from the same cross are exhibiting different markings and characteristics because each seed is unique genetically. We plan to continue this in the hope of introducing some of our own hybrids in a few more years. Currently we grow about 400 different rain lilies, including 261 zephyranthes, 31 habranthus and 3 zephbranthus (cross of zephyranthes and habranthus), and our new hybrids. We are actively seeking new species or hybrids to purchase or trade to increase our collection and can provide a list of our collection upon request. Our listings have free shipping. The two leading nurseries that sell rain lilies charge from $17 to $23 just for shipping one selection in addition to the cost of the plant. BACKGROUND: Zephyranthes 'Katherinae var. lutea' is just one color form of this species bulb which is native to the Jacala and Hidalgo provinces of Mexico. A collector friend of ours obtained seed from a friend that said all of the seed came from the red form, Z. katherinae 'Jacala Crimson'. When it bloomed all of the flowers were yellow with wide petals and a rust-red center and keel (back side of the flower (larger, but somewhat similar in appearance to Habranthus tubispathus var. Texanus, the Texas "Copper Lily"). So far only two of our seedlings have bloomed but are a solid yellow as in the photos. It is possible future blooms from other seeds will produce other color variations. Scott Ogden, in his book, Garden Bulbs For The South, second edition, on page 42 and 43 describes this discovery near Jacala, Mexico. Found growing in upland meadows there were gold, pink, peach, yellow with red "feathers" on the petals and some that were a deep, blood red. A valley just to the south had white forms. The blood-red variety has a yellow center and small, green throat similar to this "rubra" form but it is a darker red. Zephyranthes 'Katherinae rubra' (rose-red) is less commonly grown but supposedly easier to grow than the more common 'Katherinae Jacala Crimson' which is more red and considered a hybrid of these other forms. About the same time Ogden collected his bulbs, the late Katherine Clint collected some red and yellow bulbs and Zephyranthes katherinae was named a species in her honor. It seems likely, however, that Jacala Crimson and some of the other variations are natural hybrids that originated from other bulbs in this region. All of them, however, share some similar traits which are small, round bulbs, narrow leaves and round, spoon-shaped petals and flowers with long tubes.The general difference between Zephyranthes and Habranthus is that the Habranthus bloom is at an angle to the stem and the Zephyranthes bloom, more or less, points straight up from the stem. GROWING CONDITIONS: Rain lily bulbs generally will grow in a wide variety of soils and will do fine in any garden setting with an average amount of water. A few varieties require much more water. They thrive in rich soil with ample water and full sun. We grow all of ours in the hot Florida sun, but generally they will do better with a bit of shade during the hottest part of the day. Plants require less care if planted in the ground, but rain lilies, especially, make excellent container plants. Most varieties form seeds and a few do not form offset bulbs reproducing only from seed. Growing them in pots helps in keeping the seeds out of adjacent plants. Most rain lilies will do better if they are pot-bound or growing in crowded conditions. If left alone, they will form dense clumps. Most rain lilies require 2-3 years to reach a blooming size from seed. A few, like Z. minima, can bloom in 1 year and others can take 4 or more years. They are usually evergreen in frost-free climates and many varieties keep their leaves even during sub-freezing temperatures. Here in the colder part of zone 9 with temperatures rarely below the 20's, they keep their foliage. It is not uncommon for some varieties to lose all of their leaves in very dry weather and a few have a dormant period where the leaves disappear for 2-3 months. They are easy to grow in pots in any climate but they must be protected from freezing temperatures. If they are stored over the winter, the pots can be allowed to dry somewhat but should not go completely dry. Do not remove the bulbs from the pots or ground more than a few weeks, however, as rain lily bulbs do not store well when they are dry out of the soil. Otherwise they are very vigorous and tolerant of more dry conditions too when planted in the ground and will do fine in zone 7b-10. PHOTOS/ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: These are pictures of our plants, so you know exactly what they look like and what you will receive. The photos show the plant in various stages of growth. Please feel free to contact us for additional information, and click on "Me" following our star rating. Also, we invite you to go to our store (little red or blue door) and look at other items we have for sale.

Price: 25 USD

Location: Middleburg, Florida

End Time: 2024-09-24T19:04:02.000Z

Shipping Cost: 0 USD