Tuberose

About Tuberose

Tuberose grows from a tuberous rhizome and sends up 2-3 ft spikes of waxy white, tube-shaped flowers in late summer, with one of the strongest scents in the garden (UF/IFAS, Texas A&M). It isn't native to the U.S.: it was domesticated in Mexico before Columbus and isn't known in the wild, and the Spanish carried it to Europe in the 1500s (Arkansas Extension, Texas A&M). It's a classic cut flower and a perfume plant, and its nectar draws hummingbirds and moths (NC State).

NC State lists zones 8-10; it can stay in the ground with 3-4 in of mulch in zone 7 (Arkansas Extension, UF/IFAS), but colder than that, dig the rhizomes each fall. Texas A&M advises digging it everywhere except zones 9-10.

When to plant

Timing is counted from your average last spring frost (and first fall frost). Sow & Tell works out the actual dates for your ZIP code.

• Sow seeds outdoors: up to 2 weeks after the last frost

Plant rhizomes 2 inches deep after the last frost, 4-12 inches apart (closer for a mass, wider for single plants) (UF/IFAS, Arkansas Extension, Texas A&M). It needs a long, warm season, so where summers are short, start it in pots indoors in early spring and set it out after frost (UF/IFAS, Maryland Extension). In north and central Florida, plant January-March (UF/IFAS). We found no sourced day count to first bloom, so days_to_harvest is empty.

Soil

Rich, well-drained loam or sandy soil, kept evenly moist while growing; soggy soil rots the rhizomes (UF/IFAS, NC State).

Work a 3-4 in layer of organic matter into the bed with a complete fertilizer such as 12-4-8 at about 1-1.5 lb per 100 sq ft (UF/IFAS bulb guide); follow a soil test where you can.

Feeding

• Once or twice during the growing season, while the leaves are green and growing: complete fertilizer such as 12-4-8, or a bulb fertilizer. About 1-1.5 lb of 12-4-8 per 100 sq ft of bed, scattered around the plants and watered in (UF/IFAS bulb guide).

Soggy soil rots the rhizomes; cut back on water once the leaves start to yellow in fall (NC State, UF/IFAS).

Harvest

Blooms in late summer to early fall, opening from the bottom of the spike up (Texas A&M, NC State). Cut spikes for the vase when most of the florets are open; the thick petals give a long vase life (Kansas State, Arkansas Extension). After bloom, let the leaves yellow on their own before digging (NC State).

Varieties (4)

Extension sources document 4 named tuberoses.

Pests to watch for

Aphids, Twospotted spider mite, Scale insects, Thrips

Diseases and problems

Anthracnose, Root rot, Nematode damage

In the kitchen

Safety: None of the extension sources we checked list tuberose as poisonous, but it isn't a food plant. The scent is very strong, so a few stems go a long way indoors.

Pets: Not listed by the ASPCA (no tuberose entry on its toxic and non-toxic plant lists).