Best in a moderately fertile, well-drained soil, in a sunny location. Cold hardy in the ground in zones 7-10 and planted in cool greenhouses elsewhere.

Ornithogalum, is a genus of 80 species in the Lily family (more recently placed in the Hyacinthaceae). They are bulbous perennials found in a variety of habitats and most have white flowers resulting in the common name Star of Bethlehem however Ornithogalum dubium, native to the southwestern cape province of South Africa, is one of the few yellow or orange flowering species in the genus. The name for the genus comes from the Greek words 'ornis' or 'ornithos' meaning "bird" and 'galum' meaning "milk" with one thought about this meaning being a Greek proverb about the rarity of bird's milk or a similar Roman phrase that meant something being wonderful. Another less popular thought is that the white flowers of some species might resemble bird droppings. The specific epithet means "dubious" or "doubtful", perhaps because the Dutch naturalist Martinus Houttuyn, who described the species was doubtful about certain aspects of the plant when he described it as a Ornithogalum.

Interest in growing this plant as a cut flower as well as a flowering pot-plant greatly increased in the early 21st century with this species and other new hybrids of Ornithogalum the result a joint breeding program to improve Ornithogalum. Started in the Spring of 1988 by the United States Department of Agriculture's Florist and Nursery Crops Laboratory of Beltsville, Maryland (USDA) and the University of California at Irvine Arboretum (UCI), much of this work was done by the late Fred Meyer. We sold this plant from 2002 until 2009. 

The information about Ornithogalum dubium displayed on this web page is based on our research conducted in the nursery's horticultural library and from reliable online resources. We also include observations made about it as it grows in our nursery gardens and other gardens we have visited, as well how the crops have performed in containers in our nursery field. We will also incorporate comments we receive from others and welcome hearing from anyone with additional information, particularly if they can share cultural information that would aid others in growing this plant.