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Crinum Amarcrinum

Amarcrinum is the name given to hybrids produced by crossing Amaryllis belladonna with Crinum moorei (= Crinodona).  There are many types of Amarcrinum hybrids; they can be pink, rose, white, or white with pink.  The variety depends upon the parent materials that are used in the crosses.

Crinum americanum robustum

C. americanum comes in many variations, some taller, some shorter, and some from far inland locations.  Some have been given variety names or cultivar names.  C. americanum robustum is a strong grower, with a red or purple scape, that sends out stolons up to six feet long.  In a flower bed next to a lawn, robustum may send out offsets many feet away.

Crinum americanum

This species is found in many localities in the southeastern United States.  It is aquatic or semi-aquatic, being found in areas that are flooded for at least part of the year. 

Crinum asiaticum

C. asiaticum is a large plant.  The dark leaves can be 3 foot long and extend upwards from the central stem.  A single bulb can easily reach 5 foot tall, which the flowers being held even higher.  In time the plants make large clumps of enormous bulbs.  The bulb itself is unusual because there is not much to it.  From the basal plate the stout leaves make a pseudostem that can reach a foot or more above ground, but this pseudostem is not a bulb. 

Crinum asiaticum 'Variegated'

Variegated forms of C. asiaticum are attractive, but especially so in winter when their leaves can brighten up a greenhouse.  The species can happily bloom year round if protected from cold.   If grown in a pot, C. asiaticum does best in a large container,  perhaps 20 inches in diameter and 20 inches tall (large plants can fill out an even larger vessel).

Crinum bulbispermum

C. bulbispermum is apparently the most durable and widely-grown Crinum in the United States. Mature bulbs of this species and its hybrids seem hardy well into USDA climate zone 7 if mulched and provided with adequate water, and anecdotal reports suggest that it can survive into zone 5 with extra care (perhaps deep planting or in a specially protected site).

Crinum erubescens

Crinum erubescens is often described as the southern form of the C. americanum complex.  I have little information about how to precisely differentiate between the 2 species.

Crinum flaccidum (yellow)

Crinum flaccidum is a variable species from Australia, where it is sometimes called the Murray Lily.  It is widespread and most many forms are white or pink.  Marcelle has used the plant depicted here (a yellow form) in various crosses, the yellow color is best in cool weather.  Sometimes the yellow variant of C. flaccidum is referred to as C. luteolum.

Crinum hildebrandtii

C. hildebrandtii is an aquatic species from Africa. 

Crinum jagus

C. jagus is a variable species that occurs in tropical Africa.  Leaves may be broad in some forms, whereas they are more narrow in other forms.  Plants may be found in swampy conditions, seasonal wetlands, or in grasslands (savanna).  Some plants are remarkable fragrant, vanilla scented, but other plants may have little or no odor

Crinum japonicum

This plant is typically found in coastal wet areas or even sandy areas near the ocean.  It is a naturally found Crinum species of Japan, and perhaps nearby areas.  C. japonicum has sometimes been classified as a variety of C. asiaticum. 

Crinum loddigesianum

This C. loddigesianum plant is aquatic, acquired from the collection of Luther Bundrandt. 

Crinum macowanii

Crinum macowanii is a widespread species in southern Africa growing the Northern Province, in KwaZulu-Natal, in Zambia and Namibia, etc.  The distinctive flowers hand downwards--like bells.  They may be dark pink, pink, or even white.  Typically the keel of the tepals is a darker shade of pink--sometimes rose-red or almost red. 

Crinum mauritianum

C. mauritianum is a native of Madagascar that enjoys semi-aquatic growth conditions, marsh-like situations. It does well in East Texas if provided with ample water, such as you might give to C. americanum.

Crinum moorei

Unlike most other Crinum, C. moorei does best in shade in Texas.  Morning sun, dappled sun, or full bright shade do not inhibit flowering.  In fact, in Texas, the foliage is more lush and the flowers last longer in when the plants are grown in bright shade.  Rachel Saunders (Silverhill Seeds) reports that C. moorei comes from Kwa Zulu Natal where it grows in forested areas. 

Crinum oliganthum

This diminutive Crinum is reported to come from the Caribbean Islands.  The leaves are about 6 inches long and have similarities with C. americanum.  The white flowers are small, but not proportionately as small as the leaves. 

Crinum pedunculatum

C. pedunculatum has been called an Australian version of C. asiaticum, and for sure the plants are similar in some respects. However, for Marcelle, C. pedunculatum grows differently, blooms at different times, and just looks different from C. asiaticum.

Crinum procerum (C. asiaticum var. procerum)

Mr. Hannibal treated C. procerum as a variety of C. asiaticum, hence he referred to it as C. asiaticum var. procerum. Generally, Mr. Hannibal considered extra large plants that were asiaticum-like to be C. asiaticum var. procerum. He recognized several forms of C. asiaticum procerum including 'Splendens,' and 'Kaawanum'. Both forms have reddish leaves but 'Splendens' has more narrow leaves and 'Kaawanum' has wide leaves.

Crinum sanderianum

C. sanderianum is an interesting plant and perhaps in need of re-identification.  Mr. Hannibal has described it as a dwarf form of C. zeylanicum from Sierra Leone.  Perhaps it is a C. zeylanicum relative, but C. zeylanicum is normally considered a plant from lands to the east of Africa (India, Sri Lanka, etc.), as opposed to a West African nation.

Crinum scabrum

Crinum schmidtii

Crinum schmidtii seems to be related to C. moorei. Sometimes it is called C. moorei var. schmidtii or perhaps even C. moorei alba. C. schmidtii is not closely related to C. carlo-schmidtii. Mr. Hannibal reported that the plant is more robust-appearing than typical C. moorei and has sturdier foliage.

Crinum submersum

C. submersum is an enigma. Some consider it a hybrid, perhaps similar to C. x digweedii but with C. scabrum and C. erubescens as parents (instead of C. americanum). However, Mr. Hannibal that this plant is found growing (apparently wild) in the Sierra del Mar Mountains near Rio del Janeiro in Brazil by Dean William Herbert (in 1824).

Crinum x digweedii

Crinum x digweedii (sometimes spelled digweedi) is an interspecific cross, according to Scott Ogden (Garden Bulbs for the South, Taylor Publishing, Dallas TX, 1994).  C. x digweedii thus refers to any cross between C. scabrum and C. americanum.  The common name for this type of cross is Nassau Lily. 

Crinum x eboracii

Crinum x eboracii refers to hybrids produced by crossing C. bulbispermum and C. asiaticum.   Both parents enjoy moist to nearly aquatic conditions and C. x eboracii is reported to grow best in soils that are well watered during the growing season. 

Crinum x herbertii, 'Milk and Wine'

Crinum x powellii

Crinum x powellii is a hybrid produced by crossing C. bulbispermum and C. moorei.  The plants are durable and hardy, reportedly surviving into zone 6.  Like C. bulbispermum, C. x powellii plants hold their leaves through light and medium frosts; they are typically evergreen in East Texas except for the coldest winters. 

Crinum x worsleyii 'Burgundy'

According to Mr. Hannibal, C. x worsleyii 'Burgundy' is a hybrid of C. scabrum and C. moorei.  In Marcelle's garden the plant has proven to be indestructible, but Mr. Hannibal reports it is 'not overly hardy.'  Thus, perhaps this cultivar will not survive in zone 7 or colder areas. 

Crinum xanthophyllum

Mr. Hannibal reported that when he first encountered C. xanthophyllum with its stark yellowish foliage he was surprised and wondered if the plant was virus-infected. Under optimum growing conditions the foliage is an attractive golden color.

Crinum zeylanicum

C. zeylanicum has wine-red stripes on white petals.  It is a common pass-along plant in the southern half of Florida.  C. zeylanicum originated in India and nearby places, and is sensitive to cold weather (especially prolonged zone 9-type winters).  It has been grown in culture for nearly 200 years and is prized for its beautiful flowers.