I don't know why a clivia that is healthy enough to bloom would have most of its leaves yellow. Usually only the oldest leaves begin to yellow and die. I pull them off gently. Is it possible the leaves are sun bleached? I would guess they need to be in full shade in your climate. The other possibility might be fertilizer burn, which would require major flushing or repotting.

As for the offsets, don't remove them unless they have at least four leaves and have reached a good size. You want them to have roots of their own before cutting them free. You don't need to remove offsets. I have a 10-year old plant with five offsets in a three gallon container. Its terribly rootbound, but all the offsets bloomed last year and made a stunning display. I may just keep them together and move to a larger pot.

Hi Ohiofem,
Could you post a picture of your 10 year old plant and offsets in bloom..I'd really love to see it!! If you've already posted it in another thread just tell me where to look and I'll find it!

Thanks,

Donna

Donna: Sorry to say I never took a picture of it. It was my first clivia, a Solomone yellow with tulip shaped flowers. I've grown to prefer big open flowers, broad leaves and peach or pink shades. It's been neglected and consigned to my office. After last year's flowering display, I suppose I should treat it better. But I caught the clivia bug, and I'm having more fun trying to breed my dream plant. There's no more room at my house. It's interesting that the plant seems to thrive in an office environment. It blooms in June without ever going through a cooling period.

Hi Ohiofem,

I was wondering, since you have been growing clivia for some time now what you would recommend as a very good or possibly the best yellow.

I'm interested in saturated color of course, but don't want an overly huge plant. And of course the wider the leaves the better..and of course.. a nice good size flower head..(I don't want much do I.) I see that there are San Marcos yellows availible here and there as full grown plants and then there is Arturo's yellow, and I'm going to google Solomone yellow right now.. I'm sure there are many gorgeous yellows, but one that I might be able to find to purchase in the not too distant future..

I hesitate to buy a full grown plant as I promised my husband these wouldn't get very big (he believed me;-)) so if I start out small as with the seedlings I can sort of edge myself into this without making too much of a splash..if you know what I mean..
I appreciate your advice and anyone else who might have any thoughts or comments would be appreciated too..

Thanks in advance,

Donna

Hi,

Thanks for your input. The blooms are big. The plant is in the shade. Infact it is very neglected - watered but fertilizer has been put. Occasionally I have added eggshells to it on the top. Other than that the top of the soil in the pot is hardened a little bit. Do you think I should add some kind of fertilizer and rich potting soil to it? It is still in bloom, so should do the stuff after it finishes blooming?

Thanks,
Purnima

It sounds like your problem is caused by lack of fertilizer and poor soil. Egg shells will be no help at all. They take years to break down and even when they do, the calcium they contain is in a form plants can't use. For now I suggest you use a soluble fertilizer with about equal amounts of NPK and use it according to package directions. A higher N value would probably be OK because the yellow leaves suggest a Nitrogen shortage. Once it is done flowering, you should transplant it, trying to remove as much of the old soil as you can. You could use something like cactus and succulent soil. Clivias need very loose, fast draining soil. If you're brave, you could cut off the largest offsets and put them in their own pots, but that's not necessary if you have a pot that is large enough. If you really don't want to use chemical fertilizer, you could use a fish emulsion and seaweed blend, but it's more expensive and kind of stinky.

Hi,

These pictures show the yellowing of leaves. I just placed the pots in this location and some sunlight can be seen. But the yellowing was there even in total shade.
[IMG]http://i681.photobucket.com/albums/vv171/purnima_n/IMG_2738.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i681.photobucket.com/albums/vv171/purnima_n/IMG_2739.jpg[/IMG]

Thanks,
Purnima

Here are your photos:
{{gwi:571738}}

They don't look too bad. Better soil, a little fertilizer and a little light should clear up the yellowing. Clivias are tough. If you put them all in a bigger pot, you could have a great display.

Do you think that re-potting them in clay pots would make for better drainage and more aeration for the roots so they would dry out more quickly? I know many of you use plastic successfully and I know large clay pots are very heavy..just a thought.
Donna

Now that I look again more closely, maybe those are clay pots..sorry..

Thanks for all the replies. I will wait till it finishes blooming and then add fertilizer and repot. The pot is not clay. Maybe I will transfer it to a big clay pot.

Purnima

I see some sun damage on some of the plant leafs it is the leafs that turns yellow with the brown spots on it. I all so see that some of the plant leafs on the left hand side of the photo start to die back. Most of the time this is because the water draining in the pot on that side of the pot is not very good. Turn the pot on its side and look if some of the draining halls are not blocked at the bottom. I will also remove the water tray at the bottom of the pot for better draining. I all so see that the plants are more of a light green. This might also be a good time to think of reporting these clivias.