Doryanthes palmeri

What’s going on here? Yes, that is ONE humungous flowering spike of coastal Australian native “Spear Lily”. And yes, it’s a big boy, growing to 8’ tall and 6’ across, and a phenomenal and stunning architectural feature plant well suited to a LOW MAINTENANCE area. Drought tolerant and unfussy about soil (not hard pan clay), it creates a giant clump of handsome, upright, sword-shaped leaves and, after some years – ours have taken 4-5 years – the big event begins. Magnificent, arching spikes – up to 10’ long – start blooming in March and last thru mid-April, displaying densely packed tea cup-sized bright red flowers filled with pools of deliciously sweet nectar. Long-lived – up to 100 years! Can be grown in a barrel sized container. Bees, birds and butterflies. Deer resistant! Hardy to 20-25F.