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Amazon Lily

Urceolina amazonica

Flower
Foliage
Amazon Lily

Amazon Lily brings the lush humidity of Amazonian river margins indoors, its fragrant white blooms rising above hosta-like evergreen foliage when given the warmth and dappled shade it demands.

Urceolina amazonica is a tropical evergreen bulb with specific requirements and, for those willing to meet them, considerable reward. The broad, glossy leaves have the satisfying weight and form of a good hosta, and when conditions align, fragrant white flowers emerge on upright stems to fill a room with scent. It belongs to the Amaryllidaceae family and behaves like many of its tropical relatives: it thrives in containers, flowers most reliably when pot-bound, and resents being disturbed at the roots. Repot only when genuinely necessary, grouping four or five bulbs per six-inch pot with the neck tips just above the soil surface and well-drained, evenly moist medium beneath.

Temperature is the critical factor. Below 68 degrees Fahrenheit the plant suffers and below that threshold for any sustained period it may not recover. In hardiness zones 10 and 11 it can be grown outdoors in 50 percent dappled or bright shade, but in cooler climates it belongs in a warm conservatory or indoor setting where temperatures stay reliably tropical through winter. Blooming occurs in winter, which makes it a useful source of fragrance during the indoor months when most other plants are dormant.

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Zone10 - 11
TypeBulb
FoliageEvergreen
Height1.5 - 2 ft
Spread0 in - 1 ft
BloomWinter
MaintenanceLow
SunDappled sun
DrainageGood drainage
FormClumping
FamilyAmaryllidaceae
LocationsContainer
Resistant toHumidity
Palettes