Plant Library

Other Names:  form. Watsonia pyramidata, Cape Lily

Description:

This lovely variety produces tall spikes of rose-pink trumpet flowers in spring and summer; a bright airy addition to the perennial border; also excellent massed in groupings in the garden; foliage dies back after blooming; corms should be kept frost free

Ornamental Features

Bugle Lily features showy spikes of fragrant rose trumpet-shaped flowers rising above the foliage from late spring to early summer, which emerge from distinctive dark red flower buds. The flowers are excellent for cutting. Its sword-like leaves remain green in color throughout the season. The dark red stems can be quite attractive.

Landscape Attributes

Bugle Lily is an herbaceous annual with an upright spreading habit of growth. Its medium texture blends into the garden, but can always be balanced by a couple of finer or coarser plants for an effective composition.

This plant will require occasional maintenance and upkeep, and should be cut back in late fall in preparation for winter. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Bugle Lily is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Mass Planting
• General Garden Use
• Container Planting

Planting & Growing

Bugle Lily will grow to be about 30 inches tall at maturity extending to 5 feet tall with the flowers, with a spread of 3 feet. Although it's not a true annual, this plant can be expected to behave as an annual in our climate if left outdoors over the winter, usually needing replacement the following year. As such, gardeners should take into consideration that it will perform differently than it would in its native habitat. As this plant tends to go dormant in summer, it is best interplanted with late-season bloomers to hide the dying foliage.

This plant does best in full sun to partial shade. It does best in average to evenly moist conditions, but will not tolerate standing water. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. This species is not originally from North America. It can be propagated by division.

Bugle Lily is a fine choice for the garden, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor pots and containers. With its upright habit of growth, it is best suited for use as a 'thriller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination; plant it near the center of the pot, surrounded by smaller plants and those that spill over the edges. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.