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 the botanist on that voyage of exploration.
The zephyr, however, was known more than two centuries earlier. When the Spanish conquistadores sailed down a South American river, as yet nameless, they saw along its banks a plain gleaming silver in the sun.
This silver was not the kind they sought. It was instead the sheen of thousands of miniature white lilies in full bloom. The year was 1513. They named the river Rio de la Plata, River of Silver, for the flowers they had seen.
I bought these stories when I invested a quarter in a few zephyr lily bulbs four winters ago. I had never seen the shining silver the Spaniards saw except as pictured in a flower catalog. I wanted to see if the plants lived up to their history.
Also Known As Fairy Lily
As lilies go, the zephyr, also called fairy lily, is neither large nor spectacular. Yet it has a shining whiteness, a charming radiance. However, it is not the bloom for which I value this plant as an addition to my window garden. Instead, its habits endear it to me.
Do you like surprises? The zephyr will give them to you. Most plants’ progress from stalk to bud to bloom is leisurely. You are aware of what is about to occur a long time in advance.
The zephyr lily gives no warning in this respect. As far as I have observed while growing it indoors, it has no season. When it feels the urge to flower, it does so.
I saw a fat, green flower bud break the soil on Friday. Saturday, it was borne on a 2″ inch stem. The following Tuesday, the flower bloomed on its eight-inch stalk, resplendent white above, palest green below.
Try A Few Zephyr Lilies
The unexpectedness of the zephyr’s bloom makes it such a delight. If you are weary of traditional house plants, try a few zephyr lilies.
They grow in the open in warm and colder climates if adequately protected against frost. Because they are small plants, however, they display little in a garden unless grown in masses Indoors, though even a few are impressive, giving variety to the window box.
The zephyr lily overgrows in average garden soil as undemanding as any plant can be. Mine are planted an inch deep in soil that is essentially leaf mold. I have tried them in different exposures and find they bloom best in a south window.
by Brenda Newhoff
6834 by NA