Florida’s Winter Advantage
Living in Florida has it’s benefits… among them January and February. The weather cools to the 60s and 70s, all the windows are opened and flowers bloom. January and February mean Crinum Lilies in my yard.
Crinum Lilies
Hardy Plant
Crinum Lilies are hardy plants. Mine appear to thrive on neglect. I planted them in a particularly desolate piece of ground as a last attempt to make it look a little better.
25-foot strip of Crinum Lilies
Besides having a yard that is mostly sand, the strip of yard between my fence and the curb has no regular source of water and is in direct sunlight all day long. Twenty years ago, I started with the ‘babies’ from around the bottom of one plant and was able to grow a strip of lilies 25 feet long. I would throw a handful of fertilizer around them once in a while, but I wasn’t sure of the outcome.
I had a WINNER! They grew where nothing else would… not even grass.
From Bud to Bloom
The bud pods are very large… usually about six to seven inches. They pop up from the base of the plant near the ground.
New Bud Pod
The stems are substantial at about one and a half inches in diameter. You would think they could support nearly anything.
Bud Pod
However, as the lilies open, the flowers become so heavy that the stem leans down on the ground and takes the blooms with it.
Blooms Lying on the Ground
Tie them Up
Blooms Tied to Fence
When the flowers open and become very heavy, I use my chain link fence for support. I use a wide strip of muslin, loosely wound around the stem and tied to the fence. By doing so, I can enjoy the flowers that open, a few at a time, over a period of a week to ten days.
So Beautiful
I am adding a gallery of pictures of my Crinum Lilies. One or two pictures just don’t do them justice. Lots are better. Click on any picture to make it larger, then click on the right or left side of the image to move through the gallery.
Tags: Crinum Lilies8 Comments
Very beautiful! Are they scented too?
Gail, there is no scent that I can make out. Really nice to look at, though.
Ours smell wonderful, like sweet perfume.
Cool plants and good to know they grow with a NON-green thumb…I will have to try these out!
Beautiful! These look a lot like the swamp lilies we saw ar Corkscrew Swamp this year. Of course, the swamp lilies are white.
Have you been able to look at the red blooming trees I posted on Facebook? I’ curious as to what they are.
Madeline, I did look at the trees, but I really couldn’t get a close look at the red flowers… or maybe the leaves are what is red. Just not sure.
Tallahassee is way more north when it comes to winter, and I am thinking that what you saw may have been a red maple.
Wish I could have been of more help.
Beautiful!! I am jealous…of the warm weather down there. 🙂 My flowers are gone but most will be back come spring. Thanks for the pics.
I also planted it year back .The bulb was gifted to me .Its a sheer joy to see the blooms.