A Doryanthes palmeri in flower at the Geneva Botanic Garden
Keystone-SDA
A Doryanthes palmeri, also known as a giant spear lily, has flowered in the greenhouses of the Geneva Botanical Garden, more than 40 years after it was sown. This giant lily, originally from Australia, flowers only once in its lifetime.
This content was published on
March 20, 2026 – 14:04
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The seed was planted in 1983. “What makes this phenomenon particularly remarkable is that this plant is grown in pots, under glass,” Vincent Goldschmid, the gardener in charge of the greenhouses, told the Swiss News Agency Keystone-ATS on Friday. These 43 years reflect the continuous work of several generations of gardeners,” he added.
Goldschmid points to the care taken in controlling watering, climate and substrate. “It’s a challenge that’s all the more demanding in a context of organic cultivation,” he said, referring to a report in Léman Bleu, which was also broadcast on social networks by the Geneva Botanical Garden.
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This content was published on
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Doryanthes palmeri is a monocarpic plant, meaning it flowers once in its life and then dies. The bright red flower spike will develop for three to five weeks, before fading. So don’t wait too long before coming to the Geneva Botanical Garden to admire this floral firework.
Another specimen of Doryanthes palmeri already flowered at the Geneva Botanical Garden in 2022. That bloom attracted many curious onlookers, fascinated by this wonderfully rare phenomenon.
Adapted from French by AI/ts
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