Spider Lily care and details:Blissful plants with medicinal value

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The spider lily plants are bulb plants with beautiful white flowers at the apex. The flowers have green perianth with white at the top which looks like spiders. The plants are easy to grow and maintain. They are sun loving plants.

Quick Details of Spider Lily

Other Common Names	Spider Lily, Beach lily
Type	Outdoor/ indoor ornamental plant
Maintenance	Low
Flowering	June- October
Light	Bright indirect sunlight
Water	Regular watering
Temperature	Warm humid conditions
Soil	Sandy well draining soil
Fertilizer	Any liquid fertilizer with half its recommended quantity.
Habitat	Central America and Southern Mexico
Toxicity	Toxic to both humans and animals
Common Diseases	Leaf blight
Scientific name	Hymenocallis Caribaea

Spider Lily Buying Instructions

• Buy a plant with maximum leaves and leaves should not have any kind of patches.
• You can buy couple of plants and put together in a pot. This will give a dense look to the plant.
• Do not use too much deep pot for the plant.
• The flower of the plant are poisonous and should be kept out of the reach of children and pets.

Overview of Spider Lily

Spider lily is a herbaceous, bulbous plant belonging to the family Amaryllidaceae. The leaves are dark green, fleshy, shiny and narrow and can grow up to 1 meter long.

The flowers are formed at the tip of the scape. They are sessile umbellate white coloured flowers.The perianth is green tube like.The umbels bear almost 12 flowers.

The Spider Lily plants flower throughout summer. The white flowers produce fragrance and are sometimes used as cut flowers. The plant is poisonous and should be kept away from children and pest.

Special features

During the time of Hippocrates, these plants were used for treating tumours. The oil extracted from the plant was used for treating uterine tumours. The extracts were found to have anti bacterial properties. Researches are being conducted on spider lily and others belonging to the same family to identify there use in medicine.

Usage and Advantage of Spider Lily

• Grown as an ornamental house plant.
• The bulb has medicinal properties.

General Care for Spider Lily

Special Care

The plant care and maintenance is easy. In case of harsh winters, shift the plants indoor at places with enough warmth. Re-pot the plants ones in 3-4 years or when new growth appears. Re pot only during spring.

Soil

A well draining potting mix consisting of sandy, loamy soil suits the best for their growth.

Water

The Spider Lily plants prefer moist soil especially during the growing period. Water them enough to maintain even moisture in the soil. Reduce the frequency of watering during winters. During winters, water the plants only when the soil is dry.

Sunlight

The Spider Lily prefer bright indirect sunlight. They can be grown in bright sunny locations. Placing them in bright spots during the growing seasons aids flower formation and blooming.

Temperature

The Spider Lily prefer warm humid conditions. The plants can not survive extreme cold or hot conditions. The humidity should be around 40-60%. During warmer conditions, when the air is dry, mist the plants to maintain humidity.

Fertilization

Fertilize the Spider Lily plant ones in two weeks during the growing period using a liquid fertilizer. Half the recommended amount of liquid fertilizer can be used to feed the plants.

Pests and other problems for Spider Lily

The Spider Lily are not prone to many diseases or pests. In certain rare cases the leaves can be attacked by fungal pathogens causing leaf blight. Brown spots appear on the leaves which can spread throughout. The leaves wilt and die. This can be caused when there is excess moisture in the leaves.

The infected leaves can be immediately cut off. In case of severe infection, spray any mild pesticide. Avoid overhead watering during humid conditions.

Propagation of Spider Lily

Propagation can be done through division or through separating the offsets from the parent plant.

The mature plants develop offsets at the base of the plants. These offsets can be carefully removed and planted on to a fresh potting mixture.

The plants can also be propagated through division. Divide the bulbs carefully. The bulbs with proper shoot and roots can be removed and separated from the plants.

Water the offsets and bulb cuttings regularly.