Potted Calla lily care
I received a potted Calla lily as a gift and don’t know anything about it. I would like some information on how to care for it.
A potted Calla lily will usually bloom for 4-6 weeks. They do well in bright filtered light in the winter months and partial shade in the summer and prefer temperatures of 70-85F in summer and 60-75F in the winter/spring. Cooler temperatures will help keep the plant and flowers longer. Keep the soil evenly moist but not soggy. Wet soil can lead to a fungus rot that affects the roots and rhizome. It is important to allow the water to drain from the bottom of the pot. During active growth and blooming feed your Calla every 2-3 weeks with a well-balanced fertilizer.
When the plant stops blooming and the leaves start to yellow and die back, reduce watering and let the soil dry. Clip off all brown foliage and store the tuber in a cool (42-45F) spot for a resting period of 2-3 months and as long as 8-10 months. This period is important for tuber renewal. Calla tubers can also be stored in paper bag or cardboard box in slightly moistened peat, perlite or vermiculite. In late winter/spring, replant the tuber in pots of fresh, loose soil. Colored callas planted in the spring will bloom in summer and then go dormant in the fall.
If you live in zone 8-10 Calla lily can also be planted outdoors and left year round. In cooler climates they need to be dug up before frost.
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I received a lovely potted calla lily for valentines day and there a few large flowers, and several little ones coming up. the large ones are drooping now (are they spent) and some (only a small portion) of the leaves are good one day and then completely drooped and falling off the next, all of them from near where the plant comes up out of the soil and these specifically look a little damaged, i gave my plant a little more water and put it in more sun this morning was that right? should i remove the dying leaves and cut out the large drooping flowers???
Bacterial soft rot
I bought a potted Calla Lily plant at a local farmer’s market. I was told it would work in my no window, fluorescent light office… but 2 weeks later the leaves are turning yellow and oozing a clear chemical that smells like cleaning alcohol. There are two flowers on the plant that seem to be flourishing, but the smell is giving me a headache and leaving clear liquid on my desk. HELP! What am I doing wrong?
I recv’d a gorgeous mini calla lily plant for Easter The flowers are dying, but the foliage is going strong. Should I invest in a larger pot to preserve the foliage, or would the leaves last long enough to buy a decorative container? Someone PLEASE
advise me
The mini calla lily usually goes dormant so you may want to enjoy the foliage until it dies back.
I received a potted Calla Lily for Mothers Day and it was blooming. I placed the plant in my bedroom which has a west facing window and the window is always open. Now the plant is drooping and loosing all of the flowers and greens. I keep the soil moist and let the water drain, my room does not get direct sunlight so it is shaded. What am I doing wrong.
It needs bright light and cooler temps for continued bloom.
Hi, I have a mini calla lilly plant which stopped blooming. Now there are green bulbs inside some of the leaves. Is this the plants way of reproducing? What are they and what should I do? Thanks
I have a Calla Lilly I recently purchased and it has a leaf turning yellow. Shhould I remove it along with the stem. I have moved the plant to a filtered south window.
Thanks a lot. Before I had read everything on this site I planted the Calla Lily in a different pot. It was root bound and I had always been told to cut back some of the roots. Will I have harmed my plant. I did not cut the roots back much.
Dripping leaves
I received a potted Calla Lilly for Mother’s Day. I recently repotted into larger container indoors. The plant has done fine but in the last two days i”m noticing clear liquid( with no odor) dripping from the ends of the leaves. Is something going wrong?
Hi, I purchased a Calla Lilly that was beautiful. However, i put it outdoors in a bright shaded area and i noticed that it started to wilt by the end of stem? I then bought it inside and it didn’t do any better? It’s in a pot with drainage and i keep it moist? What am i doing wrong?
Thx, Florida
I have to tie the stems up on my Calla Lily so they will not fall down. Is the plant dying?I still have new Green coming up in the dirt. Never had this kind of problem with a plant.Is the Calla Lily a hard plant to grow? Could something have been wrong with it when I bought it. I have it in a North window now. It was in a south window. It does not look like the plant I bought.
I live in Palm Springs and as most know, it can get over 100 degrees here in the desert. I have my calla lily outside, but in the shade. I water it every few days to keep it moist. Ive noticed its starting to turn brown and droop a little. Is that due to the heat or the watering? I read that it needs sun, the sun burns it too quickly.
Please help me.
My calla lily blooms are bent over. Does it need more sun. it is on the east side of my home. Also , I have noted a pod growing in the center of the flower. How do I get it to bloom more for this summer?. I am in Cincinnati, Ohio
all of the blooms on my calla lily started shriveling up and dieing and i paniced but now i think they are just need to be clipped since it also put out three new leaves so do i wait for the blooms to become yellow and dead since they have fallen over but the bloom itself is fine and so is the plant?
so, i bought a black calla lily earlier this summer. its been slowly dying since i bought it, and now theres only 1 leaf left. i dont think the location is the problem. help!
*Storing calla tubers
When a calla lily goes dormant what care does it need? Mine was pinkish – would you call this colored? Thank you.
I received a potted lavender/purple calla lily plant last month, and will be moving in the next month or so. How can I ensure that the plant survives the trip, or will I need to just take the bulbs? What is the best way to save this gorgeous plant from the stress of travel and new climate? Moving from Arizona to mid-west. Thanks!
It’s starting to develop the yellow leaves now, as you’ve said, and I’ll let it dry out a great deal before the trip. Thanks so much for your help!
Hi! I just received a colored calla lily, and I’ve been reading that they bloom in the summer then go dormant in the fall – but it’s February, and it’s blooming (gorgeously)! When should I expect it to go dormant, so I don’t think I killed it and throw it away (I’ve done that with other plants before!)?
Thanks!
Planting time
My Friend bought me a potted calla lily plant as a going away gift. I wanted to plant it in the ground because I am not very good with potted plants. WHen is the best time to do that and what kind of care should I give it?
bloom die before opening
I bought a calla lily a couple weeks ago, and it’s had several blooms, but they die before they even open. What am I doing wrong?
I just bought a bulb and would like to have it blooming in July to use for my sister’s wedding. How long does a bulb generally take from planting until bloom?
I live in Texas, so I am in the process of getting my bulbs going again. I am new to calla lilies, so I am not sure what is normal. After the leaves died in the late fall, I cut off the plant to the ground to allow it to go dormant, and have not watered the pot all winter. I watered a little starting about a week ago. Today, I went to dig up one of the bulbs and the bulb was white and mushy and fell apart when I tried to move it. Any idea what it might be? I have 3 other bulbs in the same container so I am wondering if they have any chance of coming back. I appreciate any advice! They are wonderful flowers, so I really hope they come back!
I planted colored calla lilies and the lily itself is turning a darker red almost brown than what it was and the petals are turning towards each other. I live in north Texas and have been watering but not over watering. My husband thinks I am not watering them enough. It’s been around 70 to almost 80 during the day and low 60’s in the evening. I would appreciate any help.
I bought a beautiful white calla lilly in a pot and we planted it in a planter outside. It is doing very well and has beautiful flowers. There are a few flowers that the petals are turning brown but there are more flowers coming up. Are we supposed to cut the flowers off once they start dying? Will this help spur more growth of flowers? Thanks for any advice.
Hi Charlene
Yes, cut the flowers off, it will help stimulate more flowers. Use a sharp knife and cut the flower and stem.
I bought a calla lily a month ago and I re potted to a 7″ diameter a 6 1/2 ” tall pot.Do you think it will be fine or should I get a bigger pot.
transplant shock
I just planted a couple of Black Jack Calla Lily’s yesterday that I got from my mother’s funeral and they are wilting. I am in zone 7 and they get sun until 1:30 pm. Do you think they may just be going through shock right now? I really don’t want to loose them. These are the first calla’s I’ve ever planted in the same soil my hydrangea and hosta are in and those plants always do well. Thanks for any info!
I have a small calla lily pot. I keep it indoors. It had been doing fine blooming, full of life then I noticed slowly it was turning yellow. So I put it in the shade cut back its water supply. Snipped all the dead leaves. Then today I noticed it wasn’t getting better. So I ran my fingers on the leaves and noticed there were little nat like yellow insects under the leaves. A lot of them. What are they and where could they have came from?
Plant calla bulb
Can you please tell me how to tell the top from the bottom of the
callalily bulb, how do i know how to plant
Overwatering
I bought a colored Calla Lily about 2 weeks ago. I live in North Carolina and had it inside for the first few days and had read that they needed plenty of water. I think I over watered it because soon after the leaves started to yellow and so I took it outside for more light, but then all the stems and leaves started to fall off at the soil where they had becme mushy. I dug up the bulb tonight and there is one slight soft spot on it, but it mostly seems firm still. I have it sitting on the top of the soil right now to try and dry it out some. What should I do next? Can it be saved and replanted sometime soon? PLEASE HELP!
i bought my wife a potted purple calla lilly for her birthday since its her favorite flower. we live in miami, florida (hot and humid) and we are trying to figure out how to care for it. do we leave it inside with AC running between 73-77 degrees and little sun or do we put it on our balcony in the sun or in the shade where it can be 80-95 degrees? please help! I dont want it to die! thank you!
Hi! My sister bought me a calla lily and it’s not very well. Reading everything above I think its got soft rot. Had to repot it and the bulb was soft, and the leaves and flowers keep drooping and going soft as well. When they do, the smell reminds me of rotting fish. Is there anything that can be done to try and save it? I’ve tried not to get it too wet, and kept it as cool as possible, but it doesn’t seem to be helping. Please help!
Hi there,
I just bought some mixed Calla Lilies (pink, white, purple) and I live in Upstate New York. I was wondering if you thought there was any hope that my calla lilies would bloom this summer if I planted them immediately? Thank you!
Size pot
I bought a potted pupal calla lily last fall it was at the end of its blooming cycle and i allowed it to go dormant over the winter. I live in Idaho so its is just starting to stay warmer. I was wondering what size of pot and what kind of soil I should replant it in its not really growing or anything yet but the bulb has sprouts starting. Thanks for any information.
Calla light requirement
OK, I’m new to learning about Calla Lilies so if you don’t mind I have one more question…The package says the Callas want “Full Sun–6+ hours of direct sunlight” and while reading through the Q&As here, I see that you say colored callas want full sun whereas white want filtered. Then can I just ask why you recommend planting them in partial shade, considering most of the mix is colored? However, I would be absolutely delighted to plant them in partial shade because that’s what most of my garden is!
I bought a bright pink calla lily last May. It grew well, bloomed and then went dormant. It recently began blooming again, but for some reason, the flowers are white. I recall the tag mentioning something about the vibrance of the color in relation to some external factor, but can’t remember what. I would love to see that beautiful pink color again, but don’t know what to change. The plant is thriving (although the flowers are so tall I’ve had to stake them to keep them from falling over). Any advice is appreciated.
Hi Andrea
Perhaps it needs more sun light. Full sun promotes brighter colors.
It is a potted peace lilly and the leaves are turning brown. Thanks.
Thanks, I did repot it, I’ll Have to watch the watering. I would like to know if I should cut the brown leaves off, or leave it alone?
Thanks for your help.
I have a Giant potted lemon tree. This tree gets tiny lemmons then they fall off, also it is three years old and this year it just has green leaves and gets taller, thats it. Any advice? Thanks.
Removing callas
I have a huge white calla lilly which was here when we moved in in 1961. It needs moving because it gets to much sun and the leaves turn yellow but how on earth do I get all of the tubers out of the ground. Heard all I had to leave was a small piece of the tuber and it would grow into more calla lillies which I definitly do not need. Would screening the soil help? My husband has suggested Round Up which would be the very last resort if at all.
In the meantime I need to tye them up. What configuration of posts do you recommend?