Herself’s Houston Garden

Both Mercer and the Conroe Master Gardeners had this plant for sale. I grabbed one at each sale. They remind me of bromeliads, though when they flower they will put up 1′-2′ tall spikes that will be covered with small flowers. I’ll post a photo when they do. Butterflies are supposed to love pineapple lilies. Time will tell.

Eucomis prefer bright sun to part shade and plenty of water, but will rot if cold and wet all winter. They are zoned to 6-7 so winter should not be a problem, summer might be.

Plants may die back in winter, reappear in spring, bloom for 6 weeks. It is likely they will wilt in the summer heat. I’ll update information here as the year goes on.

Easy on the fertilizer, pineapple lilies are easily burned.

Native to South Africa

These are bulbs, do not separate them until they are very crowded. Plant the bulbs in spring, they should flower by the third year. You can also sow ripe seeds once the ground reaches 60′F. Dried seeds will not grow.