How to care for calla lily (Zantedeschia)

Zantedeschia · Calla

Calla lily (Zantedeschia) — a tender African plant grown from a rhizome, 30–75 cm tall, with glossy arrow-shaped leaves, often speckled white, and vase-shaped spathes in yellow, orange, pink, red, purple or white from late spring into summer. The pot callas are hybrids of Zantedeschia elliottiana and Z. rehmannii. Calla lily needs full sun. Water it about every 5 days while it grows.

Checked against sources: November 5, 2026

Watering and repotting calla lily through the year

It lives indoors all year, so it has no sowing or planting dates: it grows from March to September and rests from October to February (the other way round in the southern hemisphere).

Repot it about every 12 months.

When to plant calla lily?

Plant or repot calla lily in spring, as it starts into growth; early to midsummer also works. It is a houseplant, so it has no outdoor planting date and no frost decides it: just avoid autumn and winter, when growth slows and fresh compost stays wet too long. After that, move it to a slightly larger pot about every year, or sooner once roots circle the pot or grow through the drainage holes.

Watering in the growing and resting halves of the year: Watering and repotting calla lily through the year.

Sources: RHS: How to repot a plant · Penn State Extension: Repotting houseplants

Quick facts

Type	Houseplant
Latin name	Zantedeschia
Family	Araceae
Also called	Calla
Light	Full sun
Frost	does not tolerate frost
Repotting	every 12 months
Grown in	At home

Where does calla lily grow?

50,968 records of the plant in gardens, fields and the wild worldwide; most photos come from South Africa, New Zealand, Portugal, Australia, and United States.

World map: where calla lily has been recorded — Darker green means more records. Photos are real observations from those countries — tap one to see it. Map and records: GBIF.org (2026-10-28), © OpenMapTiles © OpenStreetMap. Photo: Njabulo Skhosana, ali.ritter, patrycja.anna.kuba, Thomas Mesaglio, Matt Mm, Rafael Carbonell Font, andy Brad, Denis Bastianelli (CC BY / CC0).

Calla lily, South Africa — Darker green means more records. Photos are real observations from those countries — tap one to see it. Map and records: GBIF.org (2026-10-28), © OpenMapTiles © OpenStreetMap. Photo: Njabulo Skhosana, ali.ritter, patrycja.anna.kuba, Thomas Mesaglio, Matt Mm, Rafael Carbonell Font, andy Brad, Denis Bastianelli (CC BY / CC0).

Calla lily care by growth stage

At home

Stage	Watering	Temperature	Feeding
Growth	every 5 days	—	balanced (NPK), 14 days into the stage; balanced (NPK), 28 days into the stage; balanced (NPK), 42 days into the stage; balanced (NPK), 56 days into the stage; balanced (NPK), 70 days into the stage; balanced (NPK), 84 days into the stage; balanced (NPK), 98 days into the stage; balanced (NPK), 112 days into the stage; balanced (NPK), 126 days into the stage; balanced (NPK), 140 days into the stage; balanced (NPK), 154 days into the stage; balanced (NPK), 168 days into the stage
Winter rest	—	—	—

Growing notes

Light

Plenty of light; it grows in sun or partial shade but usually flowers best in full sun.

Soil

Multi-purpose or loam-based potting compost in a pot just a little larger than the rhizome. Set the rhizome near the surface, buds up and its top just showing. It needs better drainage than the white arum lily (Z. aethiopica), which grows even in pond margins.

Care

Start dormant rhizomes in a warm, bright place in early spring and water sparingly until shoots appear, usually within a couple of weeks; overwatered rhizomes rot. Once in full growth water regularly but never leave it standing in water, and feed with a balanced liquid fertiliser every two weeks until the flowers fade (a high-potash feed weekly while it flowers boosts flowering). Pull out faded flower stems at the base to get more. After flowering the leaves die down; then give it a winter rest with little or no water, ideally dark and frost-free, above 10 °C for a potted plant, and water again in spring when shoots show. Below 5 °C it can die. Under glass and indoors watch for aphids, red spider mites and whitefly. Large rhizomes can be cut into pieces, each with a bud, in spring. Toxic to cats and dogs — chewing it releases calcium oxalate crystals that cause drooling, mouth pain, pawing at the mouth and vomiting.

Pests and diseases of Calla lily

2 problems are recorded for calla lily; each has a page with symptoms, treatment and prevention.

Pests

Other plants of the Araceae family

Calla lily belongs to Araceae; 12 other plants of this family have a guide here.

Plant lists it is in

What to grow on a windowsill or balcony

Part of: Houseplants · Houseplants for a sunny window · Thirsty houseplants · Houseplants to repot every year

Sources

Figures checked against these sources.