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.
