How to Grow and Care for Freesia

Freesia Freesia spp. produces exoticlooking floral trumpets commonly used as wedding flowers in bouquets or floral arrangements. This African native can be grown indoors at home under the right conditions in pots or outdoors in the correct USDA zones producing flowers in a rainbow of colors.
The freesia corms enter their active growth phase during the fall which is the best time to plant them if in hardiness zone 9 or 10. If growing these corms in a cold winter zone plant them in the early spring after the last frost.

Seasonal corms grow quickly in spring. Healthy plants should produce five to seven tubular flowers per stem all pointing in one direction like fingers. Freesia foliage is narrow and grasslike.
Choose a sunny garden bed with soil that is rich but not heavy. A sandy garden loam amended with humus or compost is ideal. The corms are small and dont require deep planting place them only about two inches deep with the pointed end facing up.
The plants look best when grouped in bunches of five to seven. Space corms about three inches apart then water the planting area well. Freesias should start blooming about 12 weeks after planting the corms.
What Do Freesia Plants Look Like?
Each freesia stem can grow about a foot high producing six to twelve trumpetshaped upwardfacing blossoms. They grow along one side of the stem in a single line sessile. Their flowers grow from a central stalk that has swordshaped leaves.
Color
There are over 1400 cultivars of freesias they come in many colors including pink red white yellow orange blue and purple.
According to florists specific colors have special meanings. White is most often used for weddings symbolizing purity and innocence. Pink stands for motherly love. Yellow signifies joy and friendship. Red is a symbol of passionate love. Multicolored freesias are