Bush lily

What the sources say about its care

Sources file this plant under other names: Clivia spp (ASPCA, genus only). Citations below point at the name its source uses.

Light

Full sun, Partial shade

RHS · read 13 September 2026

Water

Well-drained

RHS · read 13 September 2026

Humidity

No source read publishes a humidity figure for any plant on this site. What follows is general guidance for foliage plants.

ASHRAE recommends indoor relative humidity between 30% and 60% 30–60%

Penn State Extension · read 13 September 2026

Temperature

How cold this tolerates, not what it prefers. No source read for this site publishes a preferred range for a plant indoors.

H1C — 5–10°C 5–10 °C

RHS · read 13 September 2026

Soil

Chalk, Clay, Loam, Sand; pH Acid or Alkaline or Neutral

RHS · read 13 September 2026

Toxic to cats

Toxic

ASPCA names the genus (Clivia spp.), not the species.

ASPCA, filed as Clivia spp. · read 13 September 2026

Toxic to dogs

Toxic

ASPCA names the genus (Clivia spp.), not the species.

ASPCA, filed as Clivia spp. · read 13 September 2026

Harmful to people

Eating any part may upset the stomach, and the sap can irritate skin. Use gloves and protective gear when handling it.

RHS · read 13 September 2026

How it usually goes wrong

Dry, curled edges on leaves near a heater

A yellow halo sits just inside the brown edge on the bush lily, and new leaves often come in already tipped with brown during the heating season.

The edges fail first because they are the end of the plumbing. Penn State Extension cites 30% to 60% as the recommended indoor range, and winter heating regularly takes a room under it.

Telling it apart: When it started. Edges that browned as the heating came on point at air; edges that browned through a wet summer do not.

Penn State ExtensionBush lily brown leaf tips and edges: causes

Flower buds shed while still closed

Buds on the bush lily stop swelling, turn pale at the base and fall, usually a few at a time over a week or two.

Sudden changes in light, warmth or watering cause buds to be abandoned, because a bud is expensive and the plant cannot tell whether conditions will recover. Its source describes full sun, partial shade.

Telling it apart: When the buds dropped. Within days of a move or a dry spell is the change; buds that drop with nothing changed point at uneven watering or pests on the buds.

RHSBush lily leaves falling off: causes

Leaves hang and feel thin between the fingers

The bush lily hangs evenly all over, and the compost has gone pale and hard. Nothing is spotted or rotten; the plant is simply short of water.

Stored water is spent before the plant gives up anything else, and the tissue creases as it empties. Its source describes well-drained soil, which assumes the store is refilled.

Telling it apart: Water it and look the same evening. A thirsty plant firms up fast; one that does not has a root problem instead.

RHSDiagnose leggy growth on this Bush lily

Pale dry areas across the upper leaves only

Affected tissue goes pale and then papery, and the boundary follows where the light falls rather than the shape of the leaf.

Its source names full sun or partial shade, so the light itself is not the fault. Foliage that formed in a dimmer room is thinner than foliage grown in sun, and the side turned suddenly to strong light bleaches before it can adjust.

Telling it apart: Whether it appeared after a move. Scorch follows a change in position within days.

RHSBush lily leaves turning yellow: causes

Not sure which it is? Ask the diagnosis questions for Bush lily.

Routine care

Watering

Water in the morning and keep air moving. Watering from overhead can lead to leaf diseases, rust among them.

NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026

In summer water generously; in winter keep the compost barely moist.

RHS · read 13 September 2026

Feeding

Outdoors, snails may eat the flowers.

NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026

While in growth, feed weekly with a balanced liquid fertiliser until flower buds form.

RHS · read 13 September 2026

Repotting

Avoid frequent repotting: these plants dislike root disturbance and need confined roots to encourage flowers.

RHS · read 13 September 2026

Propagation

By division or seed.

NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026

Sow seed at 16-21°C once ripe, or divide in early spring or late winter.

RHS · read 13 September 2026

Pruning

Pruning is not needed.

RHS · read 13 September 2026

Pests and diseases

Mealybugs can occur. Diseases: usually none.

RHS · read 13 September 2026

Photographs

About the plant

Native range

S. Africa

World Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.

Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026

Southern South Africa

NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026

S Africa (Natal)

RHS · read 13 September 2026

Climate

subtropical

World Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.

Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026

Growth form

epiphyte

World Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.

Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026

Herbaceous Perennial; habit clumping, erect, spreading

NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026

Clump forming (evergreen)

RHS · read 13 September 2026

Size

Height 18–24 in; width 24–36 in

NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026

Height 0.1-0.5 metres; spread 0.1-0.5 metres after 2–5 years

RHS · read 13 September 2026

Flowering

Flowers gold/yellow, orange, red/burgundy; blooms in spring, winter

NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026

Flowers orange in spring and summer; yellow in spring and summer

RHS · read 13 September 2026

Common problems with Bush lily

• Yellow leaves
• Brown tips and edges
• Leaves falling off
• No flowers, dropped buds

More of the Amaryllidaceae family

• Wild daffodilBuds form and fall before they open
• No photograph yetAutumn Rain-lilySourced care, difficulty not yet judged
• No photograph yetAztec LilySourced care, difficulty not yet judged
• Crinum × powelliiSourced care, difficulty not yet judged

Plants with similar care

• Blue passion flowerA thin dry rim that crumbles between the fingers
• Dog roseEdges of the leaves brown while the middle stays sound
• English lavenderBuds form and fall before they open
• Flaming KatyA thin dry rim that crumbles between the fingers
• Hardy fuchsiaBrown, papery patches on the leaves nearest the glass
• HyacinthFlowering stops while the foliage carries on

Sources

• ASPCA · read 13 September 2026
• Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
• NC State Extension · read 13 September 2026
• Penn State Extension · read 13 September 2026
• RHS · read 13 September 2026
• Wikipedia · read 13 September 2026

What this does not cover

The figures above are what published sources say, not measurements of the plant in your room. They say nothing about your pot size, your water, the season, or how far from the glass the plant stands, and those decide more than any figure here does.

Humidity has no species figure because no source read for this site publishes one, and the only temperature published for this plant is a cold floor. The simulator fills those gaps with general figures for its kind of plant, marked as general and listed on how we read sources. Where a toxicity row says the plant was not assessed, that is the absence of a finding and not a finding of safety.

If something is already wrong, the diagnosis tool asks about the soil, the window and the watering, which is where the answer usually is.