don’t forget the lilies

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Lilium ‘Black Charm,’ whose first bloom opened June 1st.

Against the backdrop of my increasingly scrubby, grassy, agave-filled garden, lilies look like something that glided in on a red carpet.
When they’re in bloom, I always crave more. Beautifully easy in containers. This one overwintered in a very dryish container in the pot ghetto but did get the occasional sprinkle.
Unlike lots of other bulbs, lilies never go completely dormant so will need some moisture year-round. Abandon them to a no-rain winter at your peril.
Plan ahead and order via catalogues in the fall for the best selection. Or, like me, leave it to chance to find bulbs in bins at the nurseries in spring, if you can find them then at all.
I like them in containers for 1) the best drainage and 2) as a means to keep track of them.
As often as I change things up, I’ve been known to unintentionally slice through bulbs with a shovel, a feat always accompanied by a stabbing pain to the heart as well.


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8 Responses to don’t forget the lilies

  1. Kris P says:

    That one gorgeous lily! I should try planting them in pots – they only seem to last a few years in the ground.

  2. Alan @ It's Not Work, It's Gardening! says:

    Those of us with deer know who else loves lilies. 🙁 That one is a beauty!

  3. Peter/Outlaw says:

    And always remember the Alamo. Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: yet I say unto you, that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. That’s a gorgeous flower. Black lilies matter! I’ve been growing a few in pots lately as well and they seem to not mind too much.

  4. Jane Strong says:

    To Peter: Love all your quotes!
    To Denise: Great color.

  5. Denise says:

    @Kris, I’m pretty sure I found it at Roger’s a couple years ago. Not many other nurseries offer lilies.
    @Alan, it’s always something, isn’t it? No deer here, but lots of urban wackiness and not much water either…
    @Professor Peter! Your ability to quoteth astoundeths!
    @Jane, I second you on the quotes and the color.

  6. Lorinda says:

    What a gorgeous color. I’d be afraid they’d get sunburned in my yard.

  7. hoov says:

    That’s such a beautiful color. I have a few survivors left from the last appearance of B&D at the SCP garden show, but having seen what they can do in Portland, I’m embarrassed to buy new ones. Perhaps it is good there are plants that do not thrive in Southern California.

  8. Denise says:

    @Lorinda, the clouds have been kind to flowers this May/June. They don’t get much afternoon sun either.
    @Hoov, these seem to be thriving and multiplying. I always thought lilies were a bridge too far for SoCal until friends in Torrance grew massive, gorgeous lilies, but always in big whiskey barrels.

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