The History and Care of Calla Lilies Flowers for 2020
Zantedeschia also is known as Calla Lilies is one of the most beautiful flowers found in southern Africa and around the world. They are rhizome-rooted plants which come in a wide array of colors. This flower is popularly used for wedding bouquets and fresh flora arrangement.
About Calla Lilies
Calla lilies are gotten from a thick rhizome with long-petioled basal leaves. The flower grows in a cluster form on a leafless stalk which consists of a spadix and spathe.
When fully grown, Calla Lilies are about 1 to 3 feet high with a diameter of 1 to 1. Its leaves are about 11/2 long and are shaped like arrowheads with a sliver or white speckles.
Interesting Facts About Calla Lilies
Calla originates from a Greek term for “beautiful.”
There are grown from bulbous roots with finger-like growths known as tubers.
Calla Lilies blooms in the late spring.
Its roots are poisonous.
They grow mostly in Marshy areas except for White Calla Lilies.
Types of Calla Lillies
Calla lilies have different species; it has the annual varieties and perennial varieties. The yearly varieties always add lovely colors and structures to warm-season borders and summer containers. Annual types have flower colors ranging from orange, red, pink, yellow, and purple.
The perennial types always make the cottage or woodland look lovely, and they bloom throughout the spring season while the annual types bloom during summer. Perennial varieties usually come in dark purple, bright whites, and black color.
This variety of Calla Lilies produce large blooms that are bright yellow. It is commonly known as the sunniest yellow Calla Lily.
NightCap and Night Life:
The NightCap and Night Life varieties have a rich, deep shade of purple. The Night Life is a large flower which is darker and bluer in tone while the Nightcap is a smaller flower which has a redder shade of deep-purple.
California Ice Dancer:
This type of Calla Lily produces a large, pure creamy white flowers on stalks that grow about 0.5 meters (18 inches) tall. Its leaves are a darker shade of green than most varieties.
This variety has a beautiful shade of deep reddish-pink which is neither too dark or too bright.
This triple toned flower grows up to 0.6 meters tall. It has a green to white to pink color that extends from the base of the bloom.
This variety is similar to the Pink Melody. It is whiter than the Pink Melody with just blush or hint of pink on the edges of the petals.
This is one of the most spectacular varieties of Calla Lilies. It is large and has a deep gold edged in red.
Why we should Plant Calla Lilies
They Attract Pollinators
This colorful flower attracts all kinds of butterflies and hummingbirds who search for nectar. If you want a garden full of beautiful birds, you should grow the Calla Lilies.
They Repel Deer and Rabbits
This flower is the perfect choice for unfenced gardens because they repel deer and rabbits. You can fence your property by planting Calla
Lilies to repel these animals.
They Make the Garden Full During Summer
Calla Lilies flourish before other flowers during the early summer. If you want to fill up space in your garden, then just plant at least three rhizomes in the same hole between other plants.
To achieve a more beautiful garden, complement your Calla Lilies with dahlia, Hydrangeas, Astilbes, canna, New Guinea impatiens and Asparagus fern.
How to Grow Calla Lilies?
It’s a better practice to plant Calla Lilies in a sunny place with plenty of light. However, you need to protect them from the full sun during the day. Also, they don’t like to be directly under the rain, so you should find a suitable position where they can be exposed to the sun, and have shade in the afternoon.
Callas grow well on moist soil which is well-drained. If you have any pond, stream or any artificial wet soil in your garden, your Calla Lilies would flower well.
The perfect season to plant Calla Lilies is during the springtime (from March to May). Once the soil temperature is about 60 F, select a well-drained piece of land in your garden, dig the soil a little and add a thin layer of compost and a layer of sand.
Mix the soil, the compost, and sand together. Make a deep hole of about 2 to 4 inches and put three, five or seven bulbs in it. The bumpy side of the rhizome should be facing up while the smooth side should be facing down.
After planting the rhizome, add a thin layer of organic mulch on the top. That way loss of water and evaporation will be reduced. To avoid rot, don’t water the soil too much until the flower starts growing.
Keep at least 6 to twelve inches between each hole. Ensure that your soil stays moderately moist and expect your Callas to bloom in late summer.
How to Care of Calla Lilies
Calla Lilies require moist soil but do not water it too much. This flower is a swamp plant and it cannot tolerate an extended period of drought. Make sure to water your Calla when you spot that the soil is dry but do not overdo it. If you start noticing dark leaves on your flower, know that they are over-watered.
During autumn, keep your plant at 50 to 60 F temperature because they start to grow during this season. In their growth phase, calla Lilies flourish well in warmer locations.
Add liquid fertilizer regularly to the water and fertilize the main plant while it blossoms in the spring and summer.
Repeat this process once or twice a month until early autumn. Once your Callas blossoms, you can stop fertilizing. When the weather becomes cold during winter or fall, the flowers do not need any fertilizer.
Cut off yellow leaves and withered blossoms, you can put the blossoms in a vas if you want. Always trim your plants above the bulbs before its winter.