Sunday, July 27, 2008

Lycoris squamigera

When it's very hot and almost nothing is blooming in late July or early August and triggered by a nice summer rain, a leafless flowering stalk of Lycoris squamigera magically shoots up out of the ground to a couple of feet in just a few days.

The blooms are pink with a bluish overcast.

After blooming, they disappear until January when the hardy foliage appears. Plant them where they will be in the sun at this time of year for they are storing energy. In April or May when most gardens are in high gear they go dormant.



A good time to dig bulbs is after they bloom and you know where they are. Plant right away and forget them. Plant them with necks just under the surface. I planted mine a little deeper and used mulch since I'm just inside Zone 6. You can always pull back the mulch and wash some of the soil away later in the year. They must be well drained, of course.


11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Gorgeous Rain Lillies. Thanks for the great tip about moving bulbs. I always do that too with my Irises as well.

Lavender and Vanilla Friends of the Gardens said...

Beautiful Lycoris. I grow them but probably not L.squamigera, as my garden is in zone 11. The pink colour is lovely and look great en masse.

Marcie said...

Mother Nature, Thank you for visiting my blog and your nice comment on my haiku!

My husband's cousin gave me some lily bulbs. She gave me several nicknames for them, one of which was "magic lily." I think these might be what they are, though mine haven't bloomed yet (zone 4b/5) so I haven't seen them. Thank you for this information, including the link you provided.

It is wonderful to meet you. I'll be back to visit your blog again.

chey said...

Such an interesting plant! Amazing how the flower stalk comes up without the leaves like that. Very pretty as well:).

Anonymous said...

I have never grown these in any garden I've had but they keep popping up in my reading so I may have to check into it. Did I read that the bulbs were expensive?? They sure are beautiful.

Mother Nature said...

Kathleen,
We call them Naked Ladies and they are known as passalong plants in the South. Not expensive. Winter foliage has to be exposed to light. We may get snow but it doesn't last here.

Aisling,
They have a reputation of an aversion to being moved. I felt lucky mine bloomed after being moved from a Zone 8 garden. They like hot summers where 95° is not uncommon. Since you are in a colder zone, choose the hottest, sunniest part of the garden for them. To move or not to move? This is the question.;)

Zoë said...

I havent seen these before, lovely plants. They remind me of the Belladonna Amaryllis and also Criniums.

Unknown said...

Gorgeous blooms! I don't think they grow in my region but it's always interesting to know and read about places half-way across the world! And being in your garden is such a pleasure!!

tina said...

I always forget about these little guys. I hope they come up and bloom like yours.

Meems said...

Very pretty. Love the color and the shape of the bloom! For my first time I ordered some naked ladies on line and planted them in the spring. Thought I'd try something new (for me anyway). Nothing. No foliage, no flowers. I'm not sure what I did wrong. Yours are perfect.
Meems @Hoe&Shovel

Mother Nature said...

Just forget about them. You still have a chance of flowering in August. Mine bloom earlier here than when I was in Zone 8. Go figure. Look for the foliage to come up in January. If they miss flowering this year, they will probably flower the next.