Kristin Henry and Marilyn Daly Department of Biological Sciences, York College of

Pennsylvania

Evaluation of a Selection of Lachenalia, a South African Geophyte, as Winter-Blooming Houseplants for the

Northern Hemisphere

The Cape Province of South Africa is home to the world’s richest population of geophytes. Its climate is characterized by hot, dry summers and a rainy winter season. The rugged topography and its great variations in rainfall and temperature create a mixture of microclimates and habitats responsible for its diverse vegetation (Doutt 1994). Isolation of populations and local endemism puts many of these plants at great risk of extinction. This is further compounded by habitat destruction through urban, industrial, and agricultural expansion. Commercial exploitation of wild populations further endangers species. Lachenalia, a South African geophyte, is the genus of interest in this research. Many species have numerous qualities that could make them successful garden or houseplants. Lachenalia, such as L. mutabilis (Fig. 1) display beautiful, uniquely shaped and sometimes fragrant flowers in a wide variety of colors. Their attractive and interesting foliage varies in color, texture, and pattern. Some leaves are characterized by hints of purple and/or yellow, interesting patterns of speckles and stripes, or even unusually textured pustules. Lachenalia are easy to grow in cultivation and because they are naturally winter-blooming, they can be grown and marketed as winter houseplants for colder climates. Other desirable characteristics of Lachenalia include drought tolerance, regular flowering, and easy means of propagation (Niederwieser et al. 2002). Some Lachenalia species such as L. aloides have been developed and are well-known in horticulture, while the majority of Lachenalia species are unknown in cultivation. L. viridiflora (Fig. 2) and L. liliflora are critically endangered and for this reason it is important to evaluate their horticultural qualities. Conservation of threatened plants can be achieved through cultivation. Bringing these species into cultivation could help save them from extinction.

INTRODUCTION

The purpose of this research is to evaluate a selection of Lachenalia species as winter-blooming houseplants.

RESULTS DISCUSSION

CONCLUSION The top three season performers

were:1. Lachenalia contaminata2. Lachenalia aloides var.

quadricolor3. Lachenalia aloides ‘Pearsonii’

Plant Name Foliage ScoreFlower Score

Season Score

Lachenalia contaminata 97 75.3 88

Lachenalia aloides var. quadricolor 80.8 77.6 79.2

Lachenalia aloides ‘Pearsonii’ 77.2 80.1 78.6

Lachenalia 'Rupert' 89 63.5 76.2

Narcissus 'Ziva' 57.6 84.9 71.3

Lachenalia pustulata 85.2 46.7 65.9

Lachenalia mutabilis 51.2 72.5 61.9

Lachenalia viridiflora 48.4 66 57.2

Lachenalia 'Rosabeth' 74.6 4.7 39.6

Lachenalia liliflora 54 0 27

Table 1. Comparison of foliage, flower, and season performance for ten Lachenalia species.

Doutt, R.L. 1994. Cape Bulbs. Timber Press, Inc., Portland, OR.

Niederwieser, J.G., Kleynhans, R. and Hancke F.L. 2002. Development of a New Flower Bulb Crop in South Africa. Acta Hort. (ISHS) 570: 67-73.

AcknowledgementsI would like to thank Professor Daly for her tireless effort, constant encouragement, and inspiration in completing this project. Your dedication and guidance is greatly appreciated.

Figure 5. Season performance scores. L. contaminata was the best season performer. L. aloides var. quadricolor and L. aloides ‘Pearsonii’ also earned strong season averages.

Figure 9. L. a. var. quadricolor

Figure 8. L. contaminata

Figure 11. Narcissus ‘Ziva’

Figure 7. Foliage performance scores. L. ‘Rupert’ and L. pustulata earned top foliage scores along with L. contaminata, but they were not top season performers.

Figure 6. Flower performance scores. Lachenalia flowers were compared to Narcissus ‘Ziva’ flowers.

Figure 13. L. ‘Rupert’

Figure 10. L. aloides

‘Pearsonii’

PURPOSE

Figure 1. L. mutabilis

Figure 2. L. viridiflora

(Total Flower + Total Foliage)/2 =Total Season Score

Foliage Characteristics

Mean Vigor and

Resistance

Vigor and Foliage

Appearance 20%

Foliage Interest

20 %

Self-Supporting Foliage

5%

Resistance to Insects/Disease

and Adverse Growing

Conditions 5 %

Mean Foliage Interest and

Self-Supporting

Foliage

Total Foliage Score

50%

Figure 3. L. aloides ‘Pearsonii’

Figure 4. L. pustulata

Flower Characteristics

Fragrance 5%

3 Week Peak

Bloom Period

20%

Flower Interest

20%

Bud and Bloom

Status 5%

Total Flower Score

50%

Evaluated each sample as a group for 10 weeks

Ordered 13 Lachenalia species/cultivars from specialty USA

nurseries (n=15)

Planted in plastic 1x1-606 deep trays in Miracle-Gro Cactus Potting Mix

METHODS

Grew bulbs in YCP greenhouse and watered as necessary

Evaluation

L. conta

min

ata

L. 'Ruper

t'

L. pust

ulata

L. a. v

ar. q

uadric

olor

L. alo

ides

'Pea

rsonii'

L. 'Rosa

beth'

N. 'Ziv

a'

L. lili

flora

L. muta

bilis

L. viri

diflora

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

References

The top three season performers were L. contaminata, L. aloides var. quadricolor, and L. aloides ‘Pearsonii’ (Table 1). Cultivated varieties are plants that have been carefully selected and bred for specific desirable flower and foliage qualities, so it is interesting that L. contaminata (Fig. 8), a straight species, outperformed the popular L. aloides var. quadricolor (Fig. 9) and L. aloides ‘Pearsonii’ (Fig. 3,10). L. aloides var. quadricolor (Fig. 9) and L. aloides ‘Pearsonii’ (Fig. 3,10) are related varieties of the species L. aloides, and both are well-established, popular pot plants in Europe and garden plants in California. It was expected that L. aloides ‘Pearsonii’ would outperform L. aloides var. quadricolor because it is a cultivar of the latter. The flower score of L. aloides ‘Pearsonii’ was indeed higher and this may have been due to its breeding. Both were strong season performers (Fig. 5) and, understandably, did well in this trial. Lachenalia performance was compared to Narcissus ‘Ziva’, the common, winter-blooming “paper white” (Fig. 11). Though N. ‘Ziva’ achieved the top season flower score (Fig. 6) and it was extremely fragrant, its foliage was rated unacceptable, resulting in a poor season performance (Fig. 5). Many Lachenalia had strong flower and foliage scores, clearly outperforming N. ‘Ziva’, which suggests they have the potential to become popular and reliable winter-blooming houseplants. Foliage is an important quality for a houseplant and many Lachenalia have very unique foliage. Both L. ‘Rupert’ (Fig. 12, 13) and L. pustulata (Fig. 4) could be grown for their foliage alone (Fig. 7). If L. pustulata had not aborted its bloom, it would have been one of the top performers. Later in the trial, plants were uncontrollably stressed due to failure of the greenhouse ventilation equipment so earlier bloomers were not as traumatically effected. Due to the rarity and threatened status of species such as L. viridiflora (Fig. 2) and L. liliflora, it is important to evaluate their horticultural qualities. Conservation of threatened plants can be achieved through cultivation.

Figure 12. L. ‘Rupert’

L. conta

min

ata

L. a. v

ar. q

uadric

olor

L. alo

ides

'Pea

rsonii'

L.'Ruper

t'

N. 'Ziv

a'

L. pust

ulata

L. muta

bilis

L. viri

diflora

L. 'Rosa

beth'

L. lili

flora

0

10

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40

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60

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80

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100

N. 'Ziv

a'

L. alo

ides

'Pea

rsonii'

L. a. v

ar. q

uadric

olor

L. conta

min

ata

L. muta

bilis

L. viri

diflora

L. 'Ruper

t'

L. pust

ulata

L. 'Rosa

beth'

L. lili

flora

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100