Nerine bowdenii Favourite

The Nerine bowdenii 'Favourite' is an award-winning cultivar of Guernsey Lily or Jersey Lily, a bulbous plant native to South Africa. This robust variety quickly forms a clump and produces up to 12 flowers gathered in umbels on a floral stem, with undulate petals of a rich, rather dark pink colour, featuring a lighter central stripe, blooming while the foliage is still absent. Its late flowering period, in September-October, is remarkable for its beauty and light fragrance. After flowering, the ribbon-like foliage reappears in small evergreen tufts in winter. Suited to mild climates, this species is ideal for potted cultivation in cooler regions, where it should be sheltered during winter, but thrives in a warmer more Mediterranean climate.

The Bowden Nerine, named "Cape Flower" due to its origins, is said to have been brought to the Channel Islands by sea and stranded there, following the shipwreck of a Dutch vessel carrying its bulbs. This herbaceous plant has a large bulb (3 to 5 cm in diameter), protected by a tunic and extended by a long stem, with a few fleshy roots. It propagates vegetatively by producing bulblets around the mother bulb. In late summer, for 2 to 3 weeks, the plant produces flower stems around 50 cm tall, bearing 7 to 15 lily flowers, 8 cm wide, with narrow petals, undulating at the edges, in a pastel pink shade, marked with a darker pink midline. The flower's centre features long, soft pink stamens. Following flowering, ribbon-like leaves appear, 20 cm long and 1 cm wide, arranged in two opposite rows. The leaves die off at the end of spring, and the bulb then enters dormancy until late summer. During this summer dormant period, the bulb must be protected from excessive moisture. Nerine bulbs do not flower every year, so it is advisable to plant them in groups to ensure annual flowering.

Please note: Nerines are sensitive to polluted urban atmospheres.