The National Plant Collection of Nerine species cultivars and hybrids

Perfect for sunny borders, nerines are autumn-flowering

These are fleshy, rounded, underground storage organs, usually sold and planted while dormant. Examples include daffodils, tulips, hyacinths, lilies, onions and garlic. The term is often used to cover other underground storage organs, including corms, tubers and rhizomes.

Nerine bowdenii with Verbena bonariensis 

Collection overview

In 2020, former Plant Heritage National Plant Collection holder Steve Eyres gifted the hardy cultivars to RHS Garden Rosemoor, adding to the extensive collection of nerines the garden already grew. Around 400 cultivars of Nerine sarniensis were given to Cotswold Garden Flowers near Evesham, where they grow them under glass and have increased their National Plant Collection to almost 700 cultivars.

As a genus, Nerine are

A native plant is one that originated or arrived naturally in a particular place without human involvement. In the British Isles, native plants are those that were here during the last ice age or have arrived unaided since.

© Christopher Whitehouse

Nerine humilis

Nerine bowdenii ‘Stefanie’

A plant produced by crossing two distinct parents, often different species, to produce offspring that combine the characteristics of both. Hybrids can occur naturally, but crosses are often made deliberately by plant breeders to produce plants with better yield, improved flowering or vigour, or improved disease resistance.

hybrid

When and where to see them

September to October are the best months to see Nerine bowdenii in flower. They’re found throughout the garden at RHS Rosemoor but particularly in the beds below the Visitor Centre, the Croquet Lawn borders, Mediterranean Garden and borders in Lady Anne’s Garden. You can also find them in the Fruit and Vegetable Garden, particularly N. ‘Zeal Giant’, which enjoys its position at the base of the sunny walls.

Some of the less hardy species may successfully overwinter in sheltered border spots but until the RHS Rosemoor team have sufficient material to experiment with, they are grown in pots and put on display when in flower, often on the veranda of Rosemoor House.

One of my favourites is Nerine bowdenii subsp. wellsii, native to the Drakensberg Mountains, for its bright pink flowers with narrow petals that are curled along their edges.

Nerine bowdenii ‘Isabel’ has deep pink tufted blooms

Garden use and cultivation

Nerine bowdenii adapts well to a range of growing conditions but prefers a well-drained site in our typically cooler and damper UK climate. They love a sunny spot such as the base of a south-facing wall. Do not plant them too deeply but leave their noses showing above soil level. Once planted they prefer to be left alone to increase and form impressive clumps, producing many flowerheads. When growing N. bowdenii cultivars it is important to remove spent flower heads before the pea-sized seeds develop. If left they will fall among the bulbs, germinate and may eventually outgrow the original

Gardeners often use the word variety when referring to a specific plant, but the correct botanical term is 'cultivar'. Whichever word you use, it means a distinctive plant or plants, given a specific cultivar name and usually bred to enhance certain characteristics, such as flower or fruit size, colour, flavour or fragrance, plant size, hardiness, disease resistance, etc. Additionally, it is worth knowing that, botanically, variety has another meaning - it refers to a naturally-occurring distinct plant that only has slight differences in its looks. For example, Malva alcea var. fastigiata differs from typical plants by having an upright habit.