Growing Ixia Flowers
Few exotic flowers come in as wide a color range as the fragrant ixia, or the African corn lily. Native to South Africa, the ixia is a star-shaped perennial flower with six petals with a contrasting color in the center of the flower. A member of the iris family, ixia comes in a rainbow of colors from red to purple, pink, white, and peach. Ixia are perfect as a cut flower for a bouquet, and can be grown outdoors during the warm, dry summer months, or cultivated as a house plant year round. Best of all, ixia is the perfect flower for a butterfly garden as it will attract both butterflies and bees for pollination.
When purchasing ixia bulbs from a nursery, make sure they are in excellent condition, which means they should be firm and not have any blemishes upon them. Ixia bulbs should be planted after the last frost during spring. Select an area in the garden which receives six to eight hours of full sunlight or full sun to partial shade. Prior to planting ixia in a garden, prepare the soil, making sure it is well drained, blending in organic compost. Plant each bulb approximately three to four inches apart and four inches deep into the soil. Water the ground where the bulbs were planted, then water on a regular basis once the flowers start to blossom during the summer months. When planting, make sure the narrow, pointed part of the bulb faces upward before covering with a light layer of soil. Once the ixia bulbs start to sprout and blossom, the plants can be fertilized every couple of weeks. Ixia can grow up to 20 inches in height, which may necessitate the use of stakes to help support the plants.
After the flowers have blossomed for the season, deadhead the full stalks at the base. This will help preserve the flower bulbs for next year. Ixia can be propagated through division in the fall, when the bulbs are dug up before they are brought inside to store during the cold winter season. The bulbs are best stored in a clean, dry brown paper bag, but not with other flower bulbs, such as tulips.
Ixia flowers do not have many pests. Slugs and snails will be attracted to the young sword-like leaves of the ixia, it is recommended to use a soap to eliminate these two pests.
As a house plant, ixia should receive between six to eight hours of direct sunlight, best positioned in front of a window facing south.
Image credit: SAplants, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
