At first glance you will not expect the Brisbane Lily (Proiphys cunninghamii) to be an Australian native. A wheel of pretty white flower trumpets sit atop of a firm green stalk high above the large heart shaped leaves to show off the glorious flowers.

The leaves are wide and fleshy and decorated with an interesting pattern of veins. The flowers can be enjoyed in November and December and often you will be treated to multiple flower shows if conditions allow, such as multiple warm wet periods in the sub-tropics and tropics.

The Brisbane Lily (Proiphys cunninghamii) is very similar to the the Cardwell lily (Proiphys amboinensis) which grows in a wider range from Australia to South East Asia and is often known as the Christmas Lily.

This is the ideal exotic bulb replacement for shaded areas of your garden. It naturally has a very English or European garden feel about it, with the striking lily form and beautiful wide leaves providing a useful contrast to the more typical small leaved Australian natives.

The Brisbane Lily would work well planted on the south side of a high fence or the narrow south facing lane between your house and fence. I can also imagine it doing well in a damp courtyard where to can admire the wide leaves and stunning flowers from your home. It’s natural habitat is the damp depressions at the edges of rainforest. It will form neat clumps over time given the right growing conditions.

The Brisbane Lily is also suitable for growing in a shaded container – especially so if you want to grow this beauty out of it’s natural tropical climate. I am sure you could grow it successfully in warm temperate areas if you can provide daily water to a container over the hot days of summer to replicate our sub-tropical wet season.

Also suitable as an indoor plant since it does flower well in the shade. And an excellent cut flower, although it is a shade to waste the seed given it can be hard to source this delightful native plant.

The Brisbane Lily is quite adaptable to different soil conditions, provided you give it ample water and shade. A little sun is okay, provided it’s not direct overhead in the middle of the day. Don’t panic if it appears to die in dry periods! In dry conditions the leaves will die down, but I have been lucky to keep it growing strongly this year with just the occasional supplementary watering. If you’re container growing in the southern states then you will need to give it lots of summer water to encourage flowers, as it naturally blooms at the start of the warm wet season at the start of the sub-tropical summer. Will regenerate after fire.