Flower ResourcesDiscover the right flowers for your garden.
The lily demands attention . improbable , striking , and intemperately perfumed , she ’s accustomed to praise . Her signature expressive style is captured in the fleur - Diamond State - li . Her effortless saving grace is celebrate in poetry . The lily rules .
For me , the name always brought to beware the elegantcalla lily , the daintylily - of - the - valley , the anuran - spot lily digs . None of which are true lilies . Once I fixed on the genus Lilium , with its six harmonious tepal and its inebriate scent , I understood the flower ’s allure .
Clockwise from the top left:‘Nymph ' Oriental Trumpet ( ivory ) , ' The Edge ' Oriental ( tusk with pinkish edge ) , ' Pico ' Oriental ( wan pink ) , ' Queenfish ' Oriental ( pinko ) , ' Firebolt ' Oriental ( red ) , ' Double Surprise ' Oriental ( double pink ) , ' Carbonero ' Oriental Trumpet ( dark garden pink ) , ' Avalonia ' Oriental ( dark pinko ) , ' Millburn ' Longiflorum - Asiatic ( orange ) , ' Orange Cocotte ' Asiatic ( minuscule orangeness ) , ' Nashville ' Longiflorum - Asiatic ( yellow ) , ' Lesotho ' Oriental Trumpet ( pale yellow-bellied ) , ' Eyeliner ' Asiatic ( bloodless ) . ( exposure by : Dana Gallagher )
The lily first took ascendent in the Himalayas . It adapted to habitats across Asia and Europe , radiate into some 110 native coinage , from the dainty downward - gazing Turk ’s cap Lily , with its tightly arc petals , to the spacious amber band Lily ( rise in Japan ) , with its heady vanilla scent . “ All one hundred lilies are beautiful in their own rightfulness , ” enthuse botanist Robert Griesbach , of Delavan , Wisconsin . “ In a sense what we ’ve been doing is gilding the lily . ”
On the window ledge , top to bottom : ' Orange Cocotte ' Asian ( small orange tree ) , ' Eyeliner ' Asiatic ( white ) , ' Pico ' Oriental ( pink ) , ' The Edge ' Oriental ( white with pink edge ) , ' El Condor ' Longiflorum ( dark pink).Below , top to bottom : ' Double Surprise ' Oriental ( twice pinkish ) , ' Orange Cocotte ' Asian ( small orange ) , ' houri ' Oriental Trumpet ( white with pink bar ) . ( picture by : Dana Gallagher )
Since the 1940s , American growers have been playing lily Cupid , brushing pollen from one “ hefty ” onto the stain of another “ charming ” lily . This painstaking work eventually produced the nine broad lily categories sleep with to the armchair nurseryman , include fragrant Orientals , stout Asiatics , and traditional Easter lily Longiflorums . “ Starting with the potential , ” says Griesbach , “ one can rearrange the material so as to produce something new . ” Like the lily known as ‘ trance , ’ bright Orange River and speckled , achieved by Jan de Graaff in 1941 . Or ‘ Black Beauty , ’ deep maroon and hearty , developed by Leslie Woodriff in 1957 . Or ‘ Silk Road , ’ huge and sweet , farm in the mid ' 80s by Judith Freeman ofThe Lily Gardenin Vancouver , Washington . Lily Hall of Famers , all .
Some lily artist seek perfect color , others project splatters , splotches , and speckles with Jackson Pollack - like abandon . “ It ’s like hemline , ” says Dianna Gibson ofB&D Liliesin Port Townsend , Washington . “ Something is stylish . Then everybody pronounce , ‘ Oh , I do n’t desire that anymore . ’ ” Nowadays there are thousands of lily varieties , and skill stride a brave new world as advanced interbreeding techniques make once inconceivable crisscross ( like Longiflorums with Orientals ) possible . “ It ’s the fresh golden historic period for lilies , ” state Dutch lily consultant Miek Stap . “ There ’s so much new come up . ”
Clockwise from left to right wing : ' Millburn ' Longiflorum - Asiatic ( orange ) , ' Bacardi ' Oriental ( sorry pink ) , ' Otavalo ' Oriental ( pale pink ) . ( Photo by : Dana Gallagher )
The eye - popping result were on horizon at Lilytopia , an 11 - day show boast some 13,000 Dutch lily stem at Longwood Gardens in Pennsylvania last May . There are strong stalks that do n’t require staking , pollenless smorgasbord that wo n’t smear the tablecloth , low - fragrance flowers that are promiscuous on the sinus . There are bud colored deep magenta on the outside , and even bell - shaped blooms .
This revolution benefit not just bouquet , but flower bed . Lily bulb , which should be implant in the spring or fall in a daub with well - debilitate soil and good sun ( though some varietals prosper in partial spook ) , start up to bloom in other June and keep the garden shiny through later August . The “ show , ” as the experts say , moves from bottom to top , opening like dull - motion fireworks , and a single stem of bloom can last two full weeks . At the end of the season , the plant dies back uninfected , leaving little leaf to clear . There ’s no need to dig up the bulb ; the lily returns - and even distribute its exotic beauty - year after year .
Top : ' Carbonero ' Oriental Trumpet ( little red lily)Bottom : ' Firebolt ' Oriental ( larger red lily)Also in the arrangement are hydrangeasHydrangea macrophylla’Horwack , ' Next Generation Pistachio Hydrangea , clematis , and the foliage of rosa glauca . ( photograph by : Dana Gallagher )
tie in : A Guide to Growing Lily FlowersMaking a Flower Crown with LiliesBotanic Notables : The Roselily Collection
