March 10, 2005

The seeds of bulbs and corms which are native of the cold, mountainous parts of the world require a period of frosting prior to germination. Zahrah Nasir gives tips on growing lilies on plains and mountains

Growing flowering bulbs and corms from seed may be a totally new venture for many of the gardening enthusiasts out there but, if you have the necessary amount of patience, lots and lots of this is the basic ingredient in the majority of cases, and then it is well worth the effort.

Some varieties of bulbs, lilium giganteum var himalaicum, for example, can take eight to ten years to achieve flowering size. But when it does, then the 10-12 feet tall, thick green stem embellished with heart-shaped, glossy green leaves, topped by a breathtakingly magnificent array of fragrant, white trumpet-shaped blooms will reward you in full.

Certain varieties of anemone, an attractive member of the ranunculaceae family of plants and sometimes known as wind flowers, can bloom in as little as one year from seedsowing. The ever-popular freesia flowers do so in a mere eight months, which renders either of these perfect for first time try.

Some varieties of bulbs, particularly those originating in the cold, mountainous regions of the world, require exposure to freezing temperatures before they germinate and this, under climatic conditions such as those found in Karachi, means that you must revert to a complicated process of placing such seeds in and out of the fridge and freezer, keeping your fingers crossed and your hygienically packed foodstuff well out of contaminations way, for an average of six weeks during which temperatures must be consistently monitored.

Luckily, or unluckily, depending on your point of view and your tolerance of low temperatures, here, in cold, cold Bhurban, I sow seeds requiring an initial period of freezing conditions towards the end of December in outdoor seed trays and let nature take care of the rest.

In this manner I have managed to germinate an extensive range of lilies and cyclamen and am now trying my hand at daffodils, snowdrops and bluebells.

However, for Karachi conditions, there are literally hundreds of reasonably simple, more climatically suitable varieties of bulbs and corms for you to grow from seed. Before going into more detail about these, though, let me give a few growing tips.

Seed trays or plant pots must have drainage as you do not want either your precious seeds or young plants to become waterlogged and rot away into oblivion. A layer of coarse grit or small chips of stone in the base of the seed tray or shards of broken pot in the bottoms of your plant pots should take care of this problem, providing, that is, the trays and pots are not placed directly onto any flat surface as this, in turn, prevents proper drainage.

Your seed trays and pots will function better in this respect if they are raised above ground level, thus leaving the all-important drainage holes free to do their job.

A high quality organic seed or potting composites recommended or, if this is unavailable, then a mixture of one quarter river sand, one quarter organic compost/well-rotted manure to a half measure of good garden soil, all thoroughly mixed together then pushed through a soil sieve, (not a kitchen one), to remove lumps and stones will suffice. If you don’t have a soil sieve then a piece of small gauge chicken netting will do the trick.

Fill your seed containers to within half an inch of the top, water the compost well and leave to settle for 24 hours prior to sowing your seed. These seed containers, irrespective of the variety of seed to be sown, should be placed where they get direct sunshine from dawn until 11 am, at the latest, after which they require shade throughout the hottest part of the day but will not be adverse to a couple of hours more sunshine in the late afternoon.

Like with all seeds, keep the compost moist but not soaking wet. Many bulb and corm seeds of lilies need to be surface sown, particularly the paper-like seeds of lillis, with just a smattering of fine compost sieved over them to hold them in place.

Larger, harder seeds such as hippeastrum, better known as amaryllis and hermerocallis or daw lilies, will benefit from an overnight soak in luke-warm water prior to planting at a depth approximately equating the length of the tip of your little finger to the first joint. Smaller, still harder seeds need the same treatment but are planted at only half the depth of the larger ones.

Germination times vary tremendously from species to species. Don’t make the common mistake of weeding grass shoots from your seed containers unless you are 100 per cent sure that it is grass as many bulb and corm seedlings are almost identical in the early stages.

Finally, do not whatever else you do, transplant any of your baby bulbs and corms before they are firmly established as you may well lose the lot!

Now for details of a whole host of varieties suitable for germination in the difficult Karachi climate, many of which you may not have come across before as the range of bulbs and corms offered for sale in the country is usually extremely limited so, let’s beat the importers at their own game.

If you cannot get your hands on seeds for the following then collect ripe seeds from existing bulbous plants and start out with those — they will probably give you quite a few surprises, nice ones, I promise!

Anemone narcissifolia — narcissus flowered anemone with white or pink flowers. Anemone tomentosa — rose beauty — a beautiful, long flowering species. Agapanthus, headbourne hybrids — football sized blooms in a variety of shades.

Albuca shawio — from South Africa, with fragrant leaves and sunshine yellow, green striped, almond perfumed flowers. Alluim — mixed species — flowering members of the onion family, some of which are wonderful and none of which smell of onions unless you crush them!

Freesia alba — the original wild white freesia with mauve and yellow markings. Even more fragrant than the popular and colourful hybrids.

Lilium auratum — oriental hybrids, L. formosanum, L phillippene, L. regale — New Zealand hybrids; L. Asiatic hybrids mixed.

Fritillaria imperialis — crown imperial fritillaria in orange and yellow. Truly magnificent! Galtonia viridiflora — another native of South Africa, a green flowered lily-like plant.

Finally, as there are far too many to list here, it is worth keeping in mind that most South African varieties of bulbs and corms will perform well in Karachi.

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