How to grow and care for calla lilies (Zantedeschia)

Buy calla lilies as rhizomes or as pot-grown plants, to grow in pots of peat-free multi-purpose compost in a sunny frost-free spot indoors or outside. Keep watered and feed regularly, then bring indoors in autumn to overwinter before replanting the following year.

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• Planting calla lily
• Caring for calla lily
• Propagating calla lily
• Pests and diseases
• Where to buy calla lilies
• Calla lilies to grow

Where to grow calla lily (Zantedeschia)

Calla lilies can be grown in the garden, in pots or in a border – a bright, well-lit spot out of the strongest midday sun is ideal. Avoid full shade but partial shade is tolerated. Calla lily must be sheltered from wind. In winter, dig them up and move to a frost-free spot such as a well-lit windowsill, a conservatory or a heated greenhouse. They can be planted back into the garden the following spring, once all risk of frost has passed.

When to plant calla lily

Plant calla lily outside from mid-spring, after all risk of frost has passed. Indoors, calla lily can be planted all year round.

How to plant calla lily (Zantedeschia)

Calla lily grows from thick rhizomes or fleshy roots that are sold when dormant in winter or spring. Ready-grown plants can be bought in spring and summer, often when in full flower.

To grow from dormant rhizomes, buy in winter or spring and plant 8-10cm deep in a good, peat-free multi-purpose potting compost. Either pot up and start into growth indoors for earlier flowers, or plant outside after the frosts. Plants raised indoors need to be gradually hardened off or acclimatised to the outdoors by standing out for increasing periods of time.

If growing calla lillies in the ground, improve soil by adding plenty of well-rotted compost or a proprietary soil conditioner. Space plants 30-45cm apart.

How to care for calla lily (Zantedeschia)

Regular watering is important to maintain the handsome lush growth of calla lilies. Ideally, keep compost moist but take care not to over-water. Once flowering shoots of calla lily appear, you can feed every three to four weeks with a liquid fertiliser high in potash, such as liquid tomato fertiliser. However, this isn't essential. Regularly remove dead and faded flower stems and leaves.

Once flowering has finished, continue watering calla lily for several weeks, still taking care not to over-water, until the leaves start to die back. Bring potted plants indoors before the frosts and leave in the pot while dormant. Calla lilies growing in the ground should be dug up and the rhizomes stored in trays of just-moist compost for winter, in a cool frost-free place. In late winter, repot the roots into moist compost and place in a warm spot to start into growth.

How to propagate calla lily (Zantedeschia)

Divide calla lily rhizomes in late winter, before replanting into pots kept indoors until all risk of frost has passed and you can plant them outside.

Pests and diseases

Calla lilies are easy to grow and mainly trouble-free. Aphids may be a problem, particularly on plants growing indoors. Inspect leaf undersides regularly and also look out for a sticky substance on the surface beneath the plant – this is honeydew, which is produced by aphids and other pests. A variety of treatments can be used to combat aphids, though often hand-squashing is all that’s necessary if the pest is spotted early. On calla lilies growing outside, you can let predators such as ladybirds and hoverflies deal with them naturally.

Calla lily (Zantedeschia) varieties to grow

Zantedeschia ‘Captain Romance’ is a rich pink with large green leaves splashed with white. H x S: 65cm x 40cm

• Buy Zantedeschia ‘Captain Romance’ from Crocus

Zantedeschia ‘Odessa’ has almost black flowers that make a striking contrast to the silver-flecked foliage. H x S: 50cm x 35cm

• Buy Zantedeschia ‘Odessa’ from Crocus

Zantedeschia ‘Picasso’ is unusually bicoloured, the spathes purple in the centre with cream edges, and white-spotted leaves. H x S: 40cm x 20cm

• Buy Zantedeschia ‘Picasso’ from J Parker's

Zantedeschia aethiopica has white flowers and can be grown outside all year round in mild areas, in moist soil that doesn’t dry out. Grow in pots, in the ground or at the pond edge. Pure white flowers are borne from late spring into summer, above large, glossy, arrow-shaped leaves. H x S: 1.2m x 50cm

• Buy Zantedeschia aethiopica from Thompson & Morgan

Frequently asked questions

Do zantedeschia come back every year?

Zantedeschia are perennial plants so will come back every year, however they are mostly also tender, so are unlikely to survive UK winters without protection. For the best chances of zantedeschia coming back each year, dig up and move your calla lily into a frost-free spot such as a conservatory, and then plant back outside again from mid-spring.

Do calla lilies do better in pots or in the ground?

Calla lilies do just as well in pots as they do in the ground, but bear in mind that in dry summers you will need to water them regularly as they do best in slightly moist soil.