Bulb · Amaryllidaceae
Nerine
Nerine bowdenii
Left crowded and undisturbed in full sun, nerines raise loose heads of narrow pink petals over the fall border.
Full sun
Every 5–10 days
USDA 7–10
14–20 in · 36–51 cm
Overview
Nerines flower as most of the garden fades. From a plump bulb they send up bare, leafless stems in fall, each one topped with a loose, airy cluster of pink, lily-like blooms whose narrow petals curl and wave a little at their edges. The slim, strappy leaves keep their own timing, the glossy green straps often rising before or after the flowers rather than beside them.
Nerine bowdenii is the hardy one of the group, taking cold down to about 25°F (-4°C) and holding its place in a sunny border across zones 7 through 10. Its bulb sits with the pale neck poking above the soil line rather than buried, and that shallow set of the shoulder is one of the small details that decides how freely it flowers.
Once the bulb is placed right, the plant asks for little. It wants full sun, sharp drainage, and a tight clump it can press into, then to be left alone. Lift and split those fat bulbs too often and you trade away the very flower heads you were growing them for.
Care
The short version: full sun, sharp drainage, and a plump bulb set shallow with its pale neck above the soil. Water it through the growing season, keep it dry while the bulb rests, and leave the clump crowded and undisturbed.
Light
Nerine wants full sun to open its flowers fully, though the strappy leaves take a little afternoon shade. Sun through the growing season fattens the bulb and loads the next round of pink heads, so a shady corner leaves it thin and shy of bloom.
Water
Water freely while the glossy green straps are growing, then let the bulb dry out once it pulls down into dormancy. The plant shrugs off drought yet still wants steady moisture in growth, a drink every 5 to 10 days through a dry spell.
Soil
Plant into rich, well-drained loam worked full of organic matter. Sharp drainage counts most, since a bulb left sitting in wet, heavy ground softens into rot rather than staying firm.
Temperature
Nerine bowdenii is the hardy nerine, taking cold to about 25°F (-4°C) and heat to roughly 86°F (30°C). Below 25°F (-4°C) the fleshy bulbs risk cold injury, so a mulch blanket or a movable pot carries them through sharper winters.
Humidity
Ordinary outdoor air suits the plant, and there is no number to chase. This is a dry-country bulb that leans on drainage at its roots far more than on moisture around its leaves.
Feeding
Feed a dilute balanced fertilizer while the green straps are actively growing, once or twice across the season. Hold off entirely once the bulb is dormant, when it draws nothing up.
Pruning
Cut away the spent flower stalks once the blooms fade, then let the strappy leaves yellow and collapse on their own. That dying foliage is pouring its store back into the bulb, so leave it rather than clipping the fading straps away early.
Repotting
Pressed close, these bulbs flower best, so leave them undisturbed for several years at a stretch. Lift and reset them only when the fat bulbs start shouldering up to the soil surface or the flower heads thin out after a long run.
Size & spacing
The bare flower stems climb 14 to 20 inches (36 to 51 cm) tall, while the narrow, strappy foliage spreads a slim 1 to 3 inches (3 to 8 cm) across. Set the bulbs close so they knit into the tight, shoulder-to-shoulder clumps they like.
When to plant
Nerines follow a fall rhythm. The bulbs go in during spring with the neck above the soil, water keeps the green straps growing through the season, and the bare flower stems rise in fall, from September into November.
Northern hemisphere
Southern hemisphere
Typical months for a temperate climate: start earlier in warm zones, later where spring frosts linger.
- Sow: sow fresh seed when ripe; seedlings take 3-4 years to flower
- Plant: spring, with the bulb neck above the soil line
- Harvest: fall (September to November)
Hardiness
USDA hardiness zones: 7–10
Temperature: down to -18°C
Troubleshooting
Most nerine trouble sits down in the bulb, whether it has been disturbed, kept too wet, or bored into by a pest. Match what you see below, then act while the fleshy bulb is still firm and pale rather than soft and brown.
Bulbs gone soft, hollow, and pulpy
A bulb that squashes soft or rings hollow under a thumb has usually been bored through by narcissus bulb fly larvae, pale grubs that tunnel the fleshy scales from within, or it has slumped into wet, brown rot after standing in soggy soil while dormant. Lifted, the bad ones reveal grub tunnels and mushy, discolored tissue. Toss anything tunneled or pulpy, hold the water once the bulb goes dormant, and set the firm, sound bulbs into grittier, sharper-draining soil.
Fix:
- Discard infested or rotted bulbs
- Withhold water while bulbs are dormant
- Improve drainage of the growing medium
Green straps aplenty, but no blooms
A nerine that pushes up glossy green straps yet raises no bare flower stems has usually been lifted or split not long ago, and a division commonly costs a year of bloom. It may also sit in a clump still too loose, since these bulbs set flowers best once they press fat and shoulder to shoulder. Left crowded and untouched in full sun through the growing season, the pink heads come back.
Fix:
- Leave clumps undisturbed and allow them to become crowded
- Site in full sun during active growth
- Avoid unnecessary division
White cottony fluff wedged in the leaf joints
Those white, waxy, cotton-like tufts packed into the leaf axils and clinging along the pale bulb neck are mealybugs, and every nerine is an easy mark for them. A cotton swab dipped in rubbing alcohol lifts the powdery colonies away, then insecticidal soap or horticultural oil finishes the stragglers. The marked plant sits apart from the rest until the fluff is gone.
Fix:
- Wipe off colonies with a cotton swab dipped in rubbing alcohol
- Treat with insecticidal soap or horticultural oil
- Isolate affected plants
Toxicity
Treat the whole plant as poisonous, from the glossy straps to the plump bulb. Like its daffodil and amaryllis relatives, nerine is loaded with lycorine and related alkaloids, and the pale bulb holds the most of all. Swallowing any part brings on drooling, vomiting, and diarrhea, so keep the onion-like bulbs away from pets, livestock, and children, and never mistake them for onions in the kitchen.
Toxic to
Cats · Dogs · Horses · Rabbits · Livestock · Birds · People
Cats Toxic
A cat that bites into any part starts to drool, then vomits, with loose stools soon after. The plump bulb carries the most lycorine, so a bulb clawed up out of the soil is the real danger.
Dogs Toxic
Dogs that dig up and chew the fleshy bulbs are hit hardest, with heavy drooling, vomiting, and diarrhea. A dog that swallows a whole bulb can keep being sick for hours.
Horses Toxic
The same alkaloids sour a horse's gut, bringing drooling, colicky discomfort, and diarrhea. The green straps and lifted bulbs belong well away from any paddock.
Rabbits Toxic
The strappy leaves and pale bulbs leave a rabbit drooling and badly upset in the stomach. This is not a safe plant for them to nibble.
Livestock Toxic
Cattle, goats, and sheep can be poisoned by the foliage and bulbs, showing salivation, vomiting where they can, and scouring. Fence the bulbs off from anywhere stock can reach.
Birds Toxic
The lycorine in the plant is unsafe for birds, so keep pet and poultry birds away from the leaves and bulbs entirely.
People Caution
No part of a nerine is meant to be eaten, and the pale, onion-like bulb in particular can cause drooling, vomiting, and diarrhea if swallowed. Keep children from mistaking the bulbs for onions and wash your hands after handling them.
Keep bulbs and plants away from pets and children; the bulb is the most toxic part.
Helpline numbers
United States
ASPCA Animal Poison Control: (888) 426-4435 (fee applies)
Poison Control: (800) 222-1222
Canada
Poison Centres: 1-844-764-7669
Varieties
Most nerine flowers open pink, but a few named forms stand out for the color or the size of their blooms.
Alba
A white-flowered form whose pale blooms stand apart from the usual pink of the species.
Mark Fenwick
A vigorous selection carrying strong, sturdy stems above deep, rich pink flowers.
Pink Triumph
Its pink flowers open noticeably larger than those of the plain species.
How to propagate
More nerines come from the fat offset bulbs the plant makes or, with patience, from its large, fleshy seed.
Offsets & pupsEasy
After flowering or during dormancy · May delay blooming for a year after separation
A crowded clump lifted after flowering or during dormancy breaks into fat little offset bulbs that pull cleanly off the parent. These bulbs resent disturbance and want to sit crowded, so only tease them apart when the clump is genuinely packed, and expect the plump pieces to sit out a season before they raise flowers again.
DivisionModerate
After flowering or during dormancy · Often skips a year of bloom after division
An overgrown clump can be split apart after bloom or during dormancy, though a light hand pays off. Pressed close and left alone the bulbs flower best, so a freshly divided clump often skips a year of bloom before it knits back together and picks up again.
SeedDemanding
Sow fresh seed when ripe · 3-4 years until seedlings flower
Seed is the slow road. The large, fleshy seeds do not store, so they go in fresh the moment they ripen, and a seedling takes 3 to 4 years to fatten a bulb big enough to flower.
Myths
Nerine bulbs must be divided regularly to keep them blooming.
The plump bulbs dislike being moved and flower best packed shoulder to shoulder in a tight clump. Splitting them on a schedule pulls them apart just when they want to press close, and it usually costs a year of bloom. Divide only once a clump has genuinely burst its space.