Alstroemeria Species and Hybrids

Click on Topics of Interest:

Height

Dusty Rose

Blooming periods of lavender, magenta and cerise strains:.

Blooming periods of mixed color hybrids

Color and Names

Read more about Alstroemerias:

Back to Plant Culture Page

Conclusions about Environmental Requirements

Origin

Alstroemeria species are all native to South America, from the humid tropics of Brazil to the dry, high altitude Andean plains of Southern Chile. Modern hybrids, bred primarily for cut flower production in greenhouses or mild coastal conditions, are a mixture of many species. The mix is a mystery with radiation and chemically induced mutants also contributing to the present day hybrids.

Some of the hybrids developed for greenhouses are well adapted to temperate-zone gardens but many are not (as we discovered in years of trials). In cold climates, where the ground freezes down to 3" or more, gardeners protect the rhizomes by mulching or bring large containers indoors for the winter months.

Height

We have one variety that is low growing with inflorescence stalks about 12 to 18", and they have remained that way into their 3rd year. It is a very slow grower so we have little hope that these true ‘dwarfs’ can be produced in quantity. We have other varieties that have relatively short inflorescences for the first year of culture and also in the early spring and fall, but they are always taller in the late spring through mid-summer. These show much taller inflorescences (usually 2 to 3’) in the 2nd and subsequent years. Inflorescences are often taller in greenhouses and in the field with wind protection.

Dusty Rose

Dusty Rose is our most vigorous selection. It has dark to light pink (or salmon or coral or rose) florets. The exact shade depends on the climate. This variety is probably identical with 'Regina'. It is vigorous in full sun or partial shade in coastal locations as well as in hot inland valleys of California. It is perennial with stands persisting for over ten years. The major bloom period in Davis is from April/May through July/August with sporadic flowering through October until the first killing frost.

Lavender, Magenta and Cerise Strains

Our lavender, magenta and cerise selections have a similar bloom period to Dusty Rose, although they are perhaps a bit earlier flowering in the spring. Some other selections begin flowering later in June and have major bloom production in August on through October at more coastal locations. Inflorescences may have up to 12 florets per flowering stem.

Mixed Color Hybrids: their blooming period.

Mixed Color Hybrids produce 20 stems/ft2/yr in Davis fields. Bloom period is from late spring through early fall and then the plants become dormant, or at least new shoot production slows considerably. We believe that this is the case in all temperate zone climates. Year-round production, however, occurs in the high altitude tropical growing areas (a Colombian grower of our acquaintance reports no change in productivity year-round) that have relatively high light and moderate temperatures (say 70-75° F. high and 55-60° F. low, average near 65° F.) year-round.

Return to top of Page

Color and names

All alstroemeria flowers are attractive but some are more so to some customers. We have had problems finding names to convey images of the flowering plant. We were told by a customer that 'Dusty Rose' was a better name than 'Coralline', so we renamed our most vigorous selection!

Color is almost everything to some customers. Since there is an extraordinary range of flower color in the hybrids and species, and since we have attempted to name selections to give some idea of flower color, please excuse the inappropriate names. Alstroemeria inflorescences are composed of many flowers (florets) and each floret has 6 perianth segments, not all of which have the same color or markings or size. Perianth segments may have more than one color and may have green or darker colored tips; some interior segments have dark brown stripes against a yellow background, giving a tiger-type floret. Other than the species aurea, we do not have pure yellow. We will have more vigorous mainly white, not pure white, hybrids available in 1996. The 'blushes' have pink, red or purple (with yellow sometimes mixed in) superimposed on a white background, as if the petals were dabbed with rouge.

The overall color impact of an inflorescence, with from 6 to 15 florets, often depends on the distance between the viewer and the inflorescence. At a restaurant table one tends to see the individual alstroemeria floret and the color patterns of the floret segments (including even the color of the anthers and pollen). In a garden on the other hand one usually judges the overall display of the planting, massed florets contrasting with the foliage. There are dark, intense hues as well as pastel shades and some that seem whiter from a distance. Photos may not give the appropriate impression - floret number and hue and foliage vary as a function of season, with more florets of more intense colors and darker green foliage in early spring or fall when it is cool and fewer florets of lighter shades in the warm summer months. Partial shade preserves some colors for a longer period in hot weather.

Return to top of Page