Question
I have recived a small dark purple calla Lillie with around 15 leaves and 3 flower stems for my birthday in june, at first it had pert leaves and strong flower stems ki kept it in a semi shaded area.  it began to droop so i watered it and sap came from the leaf tips.  I now know this is due to over watering, however the plant still droops. I have repotted, feed, and moved to a sunnier area then to a more shaded area.  But i feel i am loosing my lilie. The leaves droop to the bottom of the pot and it looks like it is dying, there is no yellowing of the leaves but they are becoming bent.  Could you please give me some advice on caring for my favoiurite flower.

Answer
Jo,

Calla lillies are bulbs and like tulips they do not bloom forever. You cannot overwater calla lillies, they are hybrids of swamp plants and like to sit in standing water outdoors in full sun all the time. They will bloom for about a 6-8 week period then the bloom dies back and you can cut it off. The foliage ussually lasts a couple of months longer to feed the bulbs for next years bloom. It will eventually start drooping and die back also.

At that time you need to let the plant dry out and store it in it's pot in a brown paper bag in a dry cool
location. Let it sit for 6 months then start checking it weekly. When you see new sprouts bring it out and start watering it again.  Now, in the meantime, while it is still alive now you need to set it outdoors in tray of water all day so it will get lots of sun and also fertilize it on a weekly basis.  That way the leaves will get the fertilizer and sun it needs to feed the bulbs so you will get flowers again next year.  Mine just came out of my basement about 10 days ago and the new shoots are
about an inch high. They will bloom in July and August and feed the bulbs through September then go dormant and go back to the basement for the winter in late September.

The following website will confirm these instructions.
http://www.flowersbulbs.com/retailbulbcare.cfm

If you have more questions write again. Good luck.

Darlene