British Columbia: How to grow gloriosa lily in our climate?

My kind boss in Tucson ordered a bunch of bulbs for me as a gift, and I've just received them. I've never grown gloriosa lily, and wondered if anyone out there could give me some advice. I've got several bulbs (although they look more like tubers to me), and the planting instructions that came with them sound rather odd (plant 2-4' deep!). So... any offers of advice on how to start them and keep them happy in Coquitlam will be greatly appreciated!

 

Are yours more like single fingers or more like tuberous V-shapes? They will eventually be V-shaped. That's only relevant when you plant them. You would place the v flat in your soil, as if you scribed a V in the sand. The open tips of the V will be where they sprout. I seem to recall you can tell even when they are finger shaped which end is more the sprouting end, but you still place them horizontally. The 2-4" shallow depth is probably about right, but it will depend on your soil, really. Edit to add: the 2-4 feet depth your planting instructions gave are wrong, absolutely wrong. Sheesh, I was thinking 4 inches was a bit much...

Mine are in a much warmer climate, in very sandy soil, and they move a little every year. What was a nice ring of them is now a loose sprawling oval, five years later, and they are at varying depth because of the sand and whatever disturbs them.

They will vine. The leaf tips will actually trail out into little tendrils that will gently wrap anything to climb, a tree or a fence or a post.

S. African, they like sun. Mine get too little sun, but it's probably quite a bit more intense here. Plant yours in sun, with something they can climb. Mine stopped blooming because of the shade a couple of years ago. They need another 'cane to open up the tree canopy. Good news, bad news sorta thing.

They can look kinda leggy so you wouldn't plant them as solo specimen plants, unless you made a pole teepee or somesuch. I have inverted tomato cages next to most of mine, maybe two dozen at last count.

I don't lift mine, although they need to be moved. I think you may have to treat them as tender tubers or bulbs.