Gloriosa superba, Gloriosa lily, Flame lily, Fire lily, Glory lily, Tiger claw, beautiful vine, 20 fresh seeds

Common names: flame lily, climbing lily, Turk’s cap, superb lily, glory lily, gloriosa lily (Eng.); vlamlelie, boslelie, geelboslelie, rooiboslelie (Afr.); ihlamvu, ihlamvu-labafana, ihlamvu -lomfana nentombazana, ihlamvu lasolwandle, isikwali sasolwandle, isimiselo (isiZulu).
Gloriosa superba is a striking climber with unusual and beautiful, red and yellow, flame-like flowers in summer; it is suitable for shade or sun, and is easy to grow.
Go to Plants of the Week Advanced SearchGloriosa superba L.Family: ColchicaceaeCommon names: flame lily, climbing lily, Turk’s cap, superb lily, glory lily, gloriosa lily (Eng.); vlamlelie, boslelie, geelboslelie, rooiboslelie (Afr.); ihlamvu, ihlamvu-labafana, ihlamvu -lomfana nentombazana, ihlamvu lasolwandle, isikwali sasolwandle, isimiselo (isiZulu).View other plants in this familyQR code linkView other plants in this genus

Gloriosa superba is a deciduous, summer-growing climber up to 1.5 m tall, with tuberous roots. The slender stems are produced annually and are upright to scrambling and can grow up to 4 m long. Tubers sprout in spring, and a tuber sends up 1 to 6 stems. The leaves are shiny, bright green and are tipped in a tendril, which will cling to anything it touches. The stems die back in late summer and the tubers are dormant during winter.

The showy flowers are borne in summer and are usually bi-coloured yellow and orange-scarlet, ageing a deeper shade of orange-red to purple. There is also a pure yellow form. The flowers are borne on long pedicels on the upper parts of the stems. They are nodding, i.e. they are presented up-side-down, with the ovary at the base, the stamens in the middle and the petals at the top. There are 6 free petals, and they are bent backwards (reflexed) so that they are pointing upwards. With their wavy, curling margins, and fiery colours, they really do look like flames.

The fruit is a large, leathery, 3-valved capsule, taking 6–10 weeks to ripen. It splits to release large, rounded, 4–5 mm in diameter, red seeds, with a thin fleshy outer layer.

Gloriosa superba occurs in semi-shade or sun in bushveld, coastal dunes, coastal woodlands, forest, thicket, grassland and savanna-forest boundaries, in the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga, Limpopo and North West provinces in South Africa, and in Swaziland, Botswana, Namibia, Angola and Zimbabwe and into tropical Africa, India and southeastern Asia.

Gloriosa superba can be propagated by seed or division of the tubers.
Lift and divide the tubers in late winter while the plants are dormant, but just before new growth starts in spring. Handle the tubers with care as they are delicate and brittle. They are slow to increase by tuber, and should not be lifted more frequently than every three years.
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Propagation by seeds
Germination method
Sow seeds in spring. Germination is best at warm temperatures between 20º and 25ºC, but not higher. Soak the seeds in warm water 24-48 hours or until the outer coat softened and remove it by rubbing on kitchen sponge. Rinse the seeds well. Optionally you can soak them in diluted fungicide for 15-20 minutes to prevent mold during the germination process.

After you have 2 options.
1. Sow the seeds on moistened kitchen towel and keep them in the airtight container until germination. Open the container regularly for inspection. If any seeds developed mold, wash them and place back. Changing the paper is recommended. Using this method 5 of 20 seeds germinated in 4 weeks. After germination proceed the same as the 2nd method.
2. You can sow the seeds directly in well-drained, sterile potting soil, press them into the soil and cover lightly. Keep the trays moist but not wet. Germination is erratic, occurring in 2 weeks to 3 months, with some seeds remaining dormant for up to 9 months. Seedlings can be planted out straight into the garden or their container as soon as they are large enough to handle, or pot them up and grow them on in the nursery. Young plants grow rapidly, but a plant takes 3–4 years to flower for the first time from seed.