Lilies

Most of the lilies on this page are Asiatic lilies (Lilium Asiatic hybrids), and they are available in pink, red, orange, yellow, white, and purple. I don’t remember any of their names, except the rubrum (Lilium speciosum var. rubrum) or Stargazer, which is one of the most well-known. The other types here are the tree lily or Orienpet lily, a tall, thick-stalked lily bred from Oriental lilies for their colors and large, beautiful flowers. Mine grow to about 6 feet tall with masses of flowers. I also have Martagon lilies, Lilium martagon, or Turk’s cap lily.  While they are referred to as Turk’s cap, I think of the Turk’s cap more as the native Pennsylvania species that is orange and looks like a small tiger lily. The Martagon has small flowers compared to the Asiatic. Lilium lancifolium, the tiger lily, is an Asian species that is widely planted as an ornamental because of its showy orange-and-black flowers with back swept petals. Tricyrtis hirta, the toad lily or hairy toad lily, is a Japanese species of hardy herbaceous perennial in the lily family Liliaceae. They flower later in the summer and have beautiful, interesting flowers. Finally, the day lilies in the genus Hemerocallis, are not true lilies. In this Greek word, hemera means day and kallos means beauty, which is appropriate, since flowers last only one day. The yellow and maroon varieties were here when we arrived. I planted some that I think have prettier colors.