Brunsvigia josephinae
Encyclopedia
Brunsvigia josephinae, commonly called Josephine's lily or candelabra lily, is a deciduous
, subtropical species of Brunsvigia
originating from South Africa
. It is marked by deep pink to red flowerheads which are about 12 to 15 inches long. It flourishes in medium humidity, at temperatures between 50 and 75°F (10 to 24°C). It shoots up from bulbs in March and April, and the leaves develop later. These bulbs can take 12 years to settle before they flower, but they flower annually once established.
B. josephinae is about 0.65 m tall when flowering. Its bulbs are some 200 mm in diameter and usually exposed. Leaves appear only in winter; they are blueish grey and typically range from 8-20 leaves per plant. Dark red, tubular flowers appear in late summer to autumn; they are 15 mm long atop stalks approximately 650 mm long, with 30-40 flowers per plant. Plants may take as long as 14 years to mature from seeds.
The lily was named for Joséphine de Beauharnais
, Napolean
's empress.
Deciduous
Deciduous means "falling off at maturity" or "tending to fall off", and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally, and to the shedding of other plant structures such as petals after flowering or fruit when ripe...
, subtropical species of Brunsvigia
Brunsvigia
Brunsvigia is a flowering plant genus in the family Amaryllidaceae, subfamily Amaryllidoideae. It contains about 20 species native to South Africa....
originating from South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
. It is marked by deep pink to red flowerheads which are about 12 to 15 inches long. It flourishes in medium humidity, at temperatures between 50 and 75°F (10 to 24°C). It shoots up from bulbs in March and April, and the leaves develop later. These bulbs can take 12 years to settle before they flower, but they flower annually once established.
B. josephinae is about 0.65 m tall when flowering. Its bulbs are some 200 mm in diameter and usually exposed. Leaves appear only in winter; they are blueish grey and typically range from 8-20 leaves per plant. Dark red, tubular flowers appear in late summer to autumn; they are 15 mm long atop stalks approximately 650 mm long, with 30-40 flowers per plant. Plants may take as long as 14 years to mature from seeds.
The lily was named for Joséphine de Beauharnais
Joséphine de Beauharnais
Joséphine de Beauharnais was the first wife of Napoléon Bonaparte, and thus the first Empress of the French. Her first husband Alexandre de Beauharnais had been guillotined during the Reign of Terror, and she had been imprisoned in the Carmes prison until her release five days after Alexandre's...
, Napolean
Napoleon I of France
Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815...
's empress.