Clivia x cyrtanthiflora (Hybrid Clivia) - An evergreen perennial with strap-like dark green foliage to about 2 feet tall with clusters of narrow orange flowers that dangle down on stalks that rise just above foliage. Flowering can occur nearly in any month of the year but primarily appear from late fall through spring.
Plant in near frostless and shaded areas of your garden or grow indoors in containers. We have found this plant is hardy to temperatures down to 26 degrees F. This is a nice Clivia that has a longer flowering period than the later winter early spring flowering Clivia miniata cultivars.
Clivia x cyrtanthiflora is the name given to the first recorded interspecific Clivia hybrid bred in Europe in the late 19th century as documented by a description with an illustration of this in Louis van Houtte’s edited Flores Des Serres Et Des Jardins De L'Europe of 1869-1870 noting it the result of crossing Clivia nobilis with Clivia miniata. The genus was named Clivia in 1828 by the Kew botanist John Lindley when he described Clivia nobilis with the name honoring Charlotte Percy (Lady Charlotte Clive), the Duchess of Northumberland (1787–1866). The specific epithet comes from the Latin words 'cyrto' (from the Greek 'kyrtos') meaning "curved" and 'flora' meaning "flower" for its curved flowers. The plants we have sold since 2007 using this name are vegetatively propagated by division for plants originally provided by Ilie Gaceu from the Strybing Arboretum. We also grow a selected robust form with salmon-colored flowers that we call Clivia cyrtanthiflora 'Salmon Beauty' and two other interspecific hybrids, Clivia 'Orange Trumpet' and Clivia 'Tangerine Burst' that should also possibly be considered to be Clivia x cyrtanthiflora cultivars.
This information about Clivia x cyrtanthiflora displayed is based on research conducted in our horticultural library and from reliable online resources. We also will relate observations made about it as it grows in our nursery gardens and other gardens we have visited, as well how the crops have performed in containers in our nursery field. We will also incorporate comments that we receive from others and we welcome hearing from anyone with additional information, particularly if they can share any cultural information that would aid others in growing it.
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