Bulbine
Bulbine is a genus of leaf and root succulents in the family Asphodelaceae, native chiefly to southern Africa with a scattering of species in Australia. Its members range from soft, grass-leaved groundcovers to squat caudiciform curiosities, but nearly all share one instantly recognisable trait: starry yellow-to-orange flowers whose stamens are bearded with dense, fluffy tufts of hair, giving the flower spike a whiskered, bearded look found in few other plants.
Description
Plants in the genus Bulbine are enormously varied in form. Many of the popular garden species produce clumps of fleshy, cylindrical or channelled leaves that are almost grass-like, arising from a short crown and filled with a clear, mucilaginous sap. Others grow from a swollen underground stem or a fat, exposed caudex, sending up a small rosette of leaves in the growing season and retreating to the storage organ during dormancy. A few are true annuals.
The flowers are the constant thread. Carried on slender, usually leafless spikes (racemes) that rise well above the foliage, the six-petalled blooms are typically bright yellow, sometimes orange, and open in succession from the bottom of the spike upward over a long period. Their most distinctive feature is the stamens: each filament is clothed in a conspicuous tuft of woolly, feathery hairs, so that the centre of every flower looks bearded. This fluffiness gives the genus much of its ornamental charm and is a reliable field mark.
Distribution
The great majority of species are concentrated in southern Africa, especially South Africa's Cape regions, where they occupy habitats from coastal flats and grassland to rocky, seasonally dry slopes. A smaller number of species are native to Australia. Plants generally favour open, sunny positions in gritty or sandy ground that drains quickly and dries out between rains.
Notable species
- Bulbine frutescens — the most widely grown species, a tough, spreading groundcover with grassy leaves and near year-round yellow or orange flower spikes; a staple of low-water and coastal gardens.
- Bulbine natalensis — a robust, clumping rosette species with thick, fleshy leaves, popular as an easy container and landscape plant.
- Bulbine mesembryanthoides — a dwarf oddity whose few translucent-windowed leaves sit nearly buried in the soil, prized by collectors of miniature succulents.
- Bulbine haworthioides — a small, choice species forming neat rosettes, grown for its compact form.
- Bulbine bulbosa — an Australian species with an edible bulb-like corm and bright yellow flowers.
Cultivation
As a group, Bulbine species are among the more forgiving succulents to grow, and the clumping types such as Bulbine frutescens and Bulbine natalensis are genuinely beginner friendly. Give them a bright, sunny position and a free-draining mix; the vigorous groundcover species tolerate ordinary garden soil far better than most succulents, provided it does not stay waterlogged. Water regularly through the growing season and ease off in the cooler, darker months. Most are frost-tender and best protected from hard freezes, though the toughest species shrug off light frost and recover quickly.
The caudiciform and dwarf species — such as Bulbine mesembryanthoides — ask for more restraint. They are usually winter growers that rest through summer heat, so match your Watering to their active season, keep the mix leaner and grittier, and hold them nearly dry during dormancy to protect the storage organ from rot. See Repotting for general technique.
In the hobby
The garden groundcovers dominate Bulbine in cultivation and are valued for long bloom, drought tolerance and sheer toughness rather than for named cultivars, though selected colour forms of Bulbine frutescens (clear yellow versus orange) are sold. Bulbine natalensis is also widely traded and appears in the herbal and supplement trade. At the collector end, the window-leaved and caudex-forming species are sought after as miniatures and curiosities. The clumping species multiply readily by division of established clumps, while all can be raised from seed, which many species set freely.
See also
- Asphodelaceae — the family, which also includes Aloe, Haworthia and Gasteria
- Bulbine frutescens · Bulbine natalensis · Bulbine mesembryanthoides
- Soil and potting mix · Watering · Repotting
- Propagation — seed · Propagation — offsets