BELLADONNA LILIES

Amaryllis belladonna, the Jersey lily, belladonna-lily, naked-lady-lily, or March lily, is a plant species native to Cape Province in South Africa but widely cultivated as an ornamental.

It is reportedly naturalized in many places: Corsica, Portugal, the Azores, Madeira, the Canary Islands, the Scilly Isles of Great Britain, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ascension Island, Australia, New Zealand, Mexico, Cuba, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Chile, California, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and the Juan Fernández Islands.

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AGAPANTHUS

Agapanthus is the only genus in the subfamily Agapanthoideae of the flowering plant family Amaryllidaceae. The family is in the monocot order Asparagales. The name is derived from scientific Greek: αγάπη (agape) = love, άνθος (anthos) = flower. Some species of Agapanthus are commonly known as lily of the Nile (or African lily in the UK), although they are not lilies and all of the species are native to Southern Africa (South Africa, Lesotho, Swaziland, Mozambique) though some have become naturalised in scattered places around the world (Australia, Great Britain, Mexico, Ethiopia, Jamaica, etc.). 

Species boundaries are not clear in the genus, and in spite of having been intensively studied, the number of species recognised by different authorities varies from 6 to 10. The type species for the genus is Agapanthus africanus shown here. A great many hybrids and cultivars have been produced and they are cultivated throughout warm areas of the world.

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TULIPS

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IRISES

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FREESIAS

We have a flower garden in our backyard and it is a pleasure to see the arrival and departure of the seasons, each bringing with it a bounty of floral gifts. It's always a pleasure to cut some flowers from one's garden and bring them into the house. Freesias are particularly rewarding as they need little care, bloom profusely and many varieties are scented beautifully. Many of the new large-flowered cultivars come in some astounding shades.

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HYACINTH

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JONQUILS

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BLACK TULIP

A FLORAL TRIBUTE TO BLACK LIVES UNJUSTLY LOST OR WASTED

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MONTBRETIA

Montbretias belong in the the Iridaceae family of bulbs, the Crocosmias having originated in Southern Africa. Montbretia is a hardy member of the Crocosmia group and is very easy to grow. Crocosmia × crocosmiiflora (Montbretia) is a garden hybrid of C. aurea and C. pottsii, first bred by Victor Lemoine in 1880.

The variety illustrated here is ‘His Majesty’.The orange flowers are trumpet shaped and appear alternately along the stems. The leaves are long and narrow.This is one of the few summer flowers in our garden that make a pretty display and can grow wildly. Some people call this a "wild gladiolus", but the wild gladiolus is pinkish in colour.

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BOUQUET

The Spring flowers are out and as every year the bulbs especially make for a splendid display. Here are Dutch irises, daffodils, freesias and jonquils, accompanied by stocks, carnations and rosemary.

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PINK FAWN LILY

Erythronium revolutum is a species of flowering plant in the family Liliaceae, which is known by several common names, including mahogany fawn lily, coast fawn lily, and pink fawn lily. It is native to the west coast of North America. Erythronium revolutum, a hardy perennial wildflower, grows from an oval-shaped bulb 3–5 cm long, producing usually two wide, flat, mottled green leaves near the ground. It is indigenous to Northwest Washington.

The plant flowers between March and June. Each bulb sends up a long, naked stalk bearing one or two showy lily flowers. The stalk bows at the end so that the face of the flower points at the ground. There are six tepals in shades of pink or light purple which may have yellow or white spotting toward the centre of the flower. The tepals may be straight or recurved so far that their tips meet behind the flower; they tend to recurve further as the flower ages. The anthers are bright yellow.

E. revolutum can be distinguished from related species by its pink flowers, swollen anther filaments and mottled leaves. The fruit is a capsule up to 6 cm long. Erythronium revolutum is cultivated as an ornamental plant, for use in traditional and natural gardens. Its combination of attractively patterned leaves and graceful flowers in mid spring make it a desirable plant. The best forms (often called var. johnstonii) have darker, richer pink flowers and well marked foliage.

It should be planted in a shady spot (ideally beneath deciduous trees or shrubs) in humus-rich soil that does not dry out and is rather damp in spring. It will naturalise over time by self-seeding, though as seedlings take several years to reach flowering size this can be a slow process. This plant has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.

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IRIS

Iris is a genus of about 300 species of flowering plants with showy flowers. It takes its name from the ancient Greek goddess of the rainbow, Iris, referring to the wide variety of flower colours found among the many species. As well as being the scientific name, iris is also very widely used as a common name for all Iris species, though some plants called thus belong to other closely related genera. A common name for some species is 'flags', while the plants of the subgenus Scorpiris are widely known as 'junos', particularly in horticulture. 

It is a popular garden flower and its blossoms provide wonderful splashes of colour in the Spring garden. The genus is widely distributed throughout the north temperate zone. Their habitats are varied, ranging from cold and montane regions to the grassy slopes, meadowlands and riverbanks of Europe, the Middle East and northern Africa, Asia and across North America. Irises are perennial herbs, growing from creeping rhizomes (rhizomatous irises) or, in drier climates, from bulbs (bulbous irises). They have long, erect flowering stems which may be simple or branched, solid or hollow, and flattened or have a circular cross-section. The rhizomatous species usually have 3–10 basal sword-shaped leaves growing in dense clumps. The bulbous species have cylindrical, basal leaves.

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ORIENTAL LILY

Lilium (members of which are true lilies) is a genus of herbaceous flowering plants growing from bulbs, all with large prominent flowers. Lilies are a group of flowering plants which are important in culture and literature in much of the world. Most species are native to the temperate northern hemisphere, though their range extends into the northern subtropics. Many other plants have "lily" in their common name but are not related to true lilies.

Lilies are tall perennials ranging in height from 60–180 cm. They form naked or tunicless scaly underground bulbs which are their organs of perennation. In some North American species the base of the bulb develops into rhizomes, on which numerous small bulbs are found. Some species develop stolons. Most bulbs are buried deep in the ground, but a few species form bulbs near the soil surface. Many species form stem-roots. With these, the bulb grows naturally at some depth in the soil, and each year the new stem puts out adventitious roots above the bulb as it emerges from the soil. These roots are in addition to the basal roots that develop at the base of the bulb.

The flowers are large, often fragrant, and come in a wide range of colours including whites, yellows, oranges, pinks, reds and purples. Markings include spots and brush strokes. The plants are late spring- or summer-flowering. Flowers are borne in racemes or umbels at the tip of the stem, with six tepals spreading or reflexed, to give flowers varying from funnel shape to a "Turk's cap". The tepals are free from each other, and bear a nectary at the base of each flower. The ovary is 'superior', borne above the point of attachment of the anthers. The fruit is a three-celled capsule.

Oriental lilies are based on hybrids within the Lilium section, specifically Lilium auratum and Lilium speciosum, together with crossbreeds from several species native to Japan, including Lilium nobilissimum, Lilium rubellum, Lilium alexandrae, and Lilium japonicum. They are fragrant, and the flowers tend to be outward facing. Plants tend to be tall, and the flowers may be quite large. The whole group are sometimes referred to as "stargazers" because many of them appear to look upwards.

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