Q: What is a lily?
A: A lily belongs to the genus Lilium,
in the family of Liliaceae, a large plant family with a number of allied sub-groups, containing such genera
as Calochortus (Mariposa lily), Tulipa (tulips) and Hemerocallis (daylilies).The closest
relatives of Lilium are Cardiocrinum, Nomocharis, Notholirion and Fritillaria.
Lilies are true bulbs formed of concentric scales, and the flowers have six tepals (3 outer sepals and 3 inner
petals) which are very similar to each other in size and color. The flowers bloom on an unbranched stem with either whorled
or alternating leaves which are long and narrow (lanceolate). All wild lily species discovered so far are native
to the Northern hemisphere, and are widely distributed across Eurasia and North America.
Many flowers are called "lilies" which are
not - people seem to be at a loss when confronted with a new kind of flower and call it either a rose or a lily for the sake
of familiarity. However, tiger lilies (L. lancifolium, a.k.a. L tigrinum), Easter lilies (L. formosanum)
and Madonna lilies (L.candidum) are indeed true lilies.
Q:What is NOT a lily?
A: Calla lilies, daylilies, rain lilies, Amazon
lilies, Aztec lilies and waterlilies are not true lilies, and some are not even related at all. However, lily enthusiasts
understand how they come to be called thus - they are all beautiful, and "lily" seem to be the default term when other words fail!
Of course, lilies have also been known to Man for thousands of years, so people are familiar with them and relate to
their beauty when seeing an unfamiliar or exotic flower for the first time.
Q: Are lilies difficult to grow?
A: No - and yes! Many true species are for experts only, as their acceptable
habitat is a very narrow range of conditions, outisde of which they will not survive. However, many species, such as
L. regale L. pumilum, and L. lancifolium are very easy to grow under normal
garden conditions, and some hybrids such as 'Red Velvet' and 'Black Beauty' have been in cultivation for many
decades, and are as tough and enduring as any other garden perennial. Modern hybrid lilies have been selected for disease
resistance, vigor and health. Your chances of success increase even more when you buy lily bulbs from reputable specialist
growers who handle the bulbs properly prior to shipping them to customers.
