The former owner of my house left a bed of rather straggly rose bushes and a decidedly Swedish-looking plant that emerged through the Bermuda-covered bed that spring.
After several attempts to destroy the weed, I let the plant grow to maturity to discover exactly what the persistent thing might be.
Beautiful Madonna Lilies
Imagine my complete surprise when June brought beautiful madonna lilies. My experience with “lilies” had been confined solely to daylilies.
I hurried to the library for a book on lilies and attempted to learn everything I could about the madonna.
Anything with that much desire to grow certainly deserved all the encouragement and help I could give it.
Since then, I have become increasingly fond of my sturdy madonna lily. I now have a nice bed of them through cultivation, care, feeding, and propagation.
Transplanting Bulbs In August
Fortunately, I decided to move my bulbs shortly after they finished blooming. It wasn’t knowledge of the plant that led me to move it.
I decided it needed a better location. By the time I had chosen a location and prepared the bed, it was August.
My reading later proved that intuition was right, for August is the only month for transplanting the bulbs. Therefore, this is the only lily that is planted so early.
I now have my lilies planted in front of a climbing rose. After the roses have bloomed, the green background is perfect for the white blossoms of the madonna.
The flowers are waxy white, 3″ inches in length, with about three to 20 flowers in a cluster. They have a delicate fragrance.
By planting daffodils and tulips, one can count on a continuous bloom climaxed triumphantly by the madonna lily.
Precautions Against Diseases
The bulbs should be planted shallow, perhaps 2” to 3” inches in depth. Although some lilies root from the stern and the bulb, the madonna lily roots only from its bulb.
As with most bulbs, the madonna lily should have good drainage. Water should never be allowed to stand around the plant.
Before planting, one should sprinkle the bulbs with sulfur dust as a precaution against disease. In addition, it is best to tilt the bulbs slightly when setting them on the ground.
The madonna should be fed. I have had success with a good balanced commercial plant food.
I dig a small handful of plant food into a circle, and several incites from the beginning growth of the plant as it emerges from the ground.
Controlling Botrytis Blight
This lily likes full sunlight, and although it needs a background planting of green shrubs, it should be far enough away so that its roots are not robbed of their share of moisture and nourishment.
After the plant blooms, the growth should be allowed to mature. Then, in the late fall, the tops should be cut, leaving a short stem to mark the bulb’s location.
The madonna lily’s chief trouble is a botrytis blight that sometimes attacks it.
This may be controlled by a good application of Bordeaux mixture, applied after the ground warms up in the spring.
Botrytis is characterized by browning and scaling of the foliage and buds. The madonna lily is a good in-between plant.
It flowers after the spring bulbs have finished their show and before the annual garden flowers have reached a stage of full blossom.
Because of its adaptability and case in propagation, I cannot recommend it too highly to the beginning gardener. Plant bulbs this August for a beautiful showing next June!
44659 by Catherine Hastings