Species
Haemanthus coccineus
Common Name(s)
blood lily, blood flower
Authority
Haemanthus coccineus L.
Family
Amaryllidaceae
Brief Description
Large subterranean bulb from which flower heads emerge February-March (in NZ). Each head of flowers is surrounded by scarlet bracts. Some weeks after flowering the large lark green fleshy leaves appear, two or three per bulb. Petioles red-spotted. The leaves die off in November-December.
Flora Category
Vascular - Exotic
Structural Class
Monocotyledonous Herbs
Synonyms
Wikipedia cites the following synonyms:
Haemanthus callosus Burch. ex Baker;
Haemanthus carinatus L.;
Haemanthus coarctatus Jacq.;
Haemanthus concolor Herb.;
Haemanthus crassipes Jacq.;
Haemanthus hookerianus Herb.;
Haemanthus hyalocarpus Jacq.;
Haemanthus latifolius Salisb.;
Haemanthus moschatus Jacq.;
Haemanthus splendens Dinter;
Haemanthus tigrinus Jacq.;
Perihemia coarctata (Jacq.) Raf.
Flower Colours
Red / Pink
Fruiting
Translucent, fleshy berries are set occasionally in cultivation in NZ.
Propagation Technique
Bulb division; seed
Year Naturalised
2005, as garden discard
Origin
South Africa, Namibia
Reason for Introduction
Ornamental
Attribution
Fact sheet prepared by Colin C Ogle, 13 Oct 2016
References and further reading
http://www.plantzafrica.com/planthij/haemancoc.htm
This page last updated on 14 Oct 2016