Anyone acquainted with the flowers of the woodland floor holds the trillium in the highest regard. So esteemed are these interesting plants that some years ago, when American naturalists were asked to name the showiest herbs on this continent, the great white trillium (Trillium grandiflorum) ranked sixth in a list of 1080 different plants. It … Read more
The extensive grounds and gardens of F. Edgar Rice in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, were complete with separate daylily, rose, formal, and patio gardens knowingly designed and meticulously maintained – and was an inspiring study for gardeners. Rice, a successful engineer, applied the precise skill of his profession to achieving near garden perfection. By far the loveliest … Read more
The very first days of Spring bring into bloom those appealing members of the primrose family called the Juliana hybrids. They are so named after their parent, Primula juliae, a native of the Caucasus. It was first grown in English gardens in 1911 and is cherished in gardens everywhere for its beauty, its willingness, and … Read more
I like to buy history with my plants, and I was fortunate to get two adventure stories with the zephyr lily. The scientific name of this lily, Zephyranthes commersoni, links it with Bougainville’s expedition seeking new colonies for France after the loss of Canada in the mid-seventeenth century. Commerson, for whom it is named, was … Read more
Trillium cernuum, the nodding trillium, is a comparatively tall sort, growing to the size of the snow trillium, but with a much smaller white flower that droops and is often hidden below the three broad green leaves. It is particularly fond of sandy, acid soils and may be found in the neighborhood of scrub pines … Read more
The red spider lily plant – (Lycoris radiata) raises its red umbrellas in the flower borders of the middle south during September, bringing vivid coloring to the land. The umbrella handle is 2′ feet tall, bearing an umbel 6 1/2″ inches wide, with 5 to 7 red trumpet-shaped flowers. The perianth segments or “petals” are … Read more
Inscriptions of lilies have been found on vases and Assyrian monuments dating back to 1300 B.C. However, until recent years, hybridizers have entirely overlooked the lilies. History tells us that as early as 1535, our native meadow lily (Lilium canadense) was imported to England. For many years lilies were dug and shipped from their native … Read more
Whenever I think of trilliums, I recalled a spring day more than 20 years ago. I was traveling across Vermont and stopped at a train cross. Just as I began to pull away, I happened to look across the car to the fields on the opposite side, and in an instant, I hit the brakes. … Read more
One would not dream of a well-planned late spring garden without at least a few varieties of iris standing among the aquilegia and peonies. But what was the picture a few weeks earlier? Perhaps a small group of daffodils looked out over the expanse of foliage from later blooming plants, or maybe a smattering of … Read more
Years ago, miles of banks along the cuts and fills of Pennsylvania highways had been planted with daylily Europa. When more root divisions are needed, the highway planting crews merely thinned out older plantings for fresh supplies. These highway groupings have spread into weedless and grassless mats of day-lilies which check erosion effectively and permanently. … Read more