Showing posts with label Easter lily. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Easter lily. Show all posts

Sunday, April 12, 2009

Happy Easter



Sunday, April 12, 2009

A quiet 5 AM here on the mountain as the bright stars of last evening slowly turn off one by one as the sun gives thought of welcoming Easter morn to each of us here on the mountain. Last night was a late one for us but I am still on schedule. It's a different story with Gail and Alex who will slumber on for some time. Karl the Wonder Dog made a brief appearance fifteen minutes ago and then gave a little snort and went back to bed. Even from the office I could Gail mumbling as Karl jumped back on the bed with apparent disregard for where his feet landed.

Flowers at Easter time are a welcome sight but here in Vermont there is often a great disparity depending on when Easter falls and what the late season snows have brought. As I travel around Vermont I notice varying degrees of spring bulb flowers in bloom although here our only entertainment is crocus and so far only purple at that. In a week they will be plentiful but the snow has only melted over some of the gardens this week so bulbs are just now reaching for the sun. As such, we usually rely on potted plants to give us some energy to fight off the final throes of winter.

Lilies are a popular Easter plant and we really enjoy them from our days of growing thousands of lilies here on the mountain. The large white lily known as an Easter lily in America is not the lily from Bibical times but instead a hybrid which fares better with the need to be an adaptable bulb capable of being coerced into early bloom on years like 2009. Variation of light exposure and chemicals are now used to regulate bloom time and height but despite breakthroughs, the variables create a challenge for greenhouse growers. Gail bought a lily two weeks ago and as soon as I looked at the bud formation I questioned what Easter day would look like. This morning there is only one kind of ok flower and the rest are curling and discolored. In contrast I have seen years when public houses from churches to restaurants were lined with pots where bloom had just begun and whispers always included "Easter is late this year isn't it?" When Easter is over, cut the stem back to a couple inches and let those lilies dry out a bit. When the garden warms, plant the bulb(s) and feed and water them with care and perhaps they will rejuvenate and bloom another year. It won't be for Easter but usually sometime in August here in the northeast. The picture up top is an Easter lily I bought many years ago. It arrived with some ants enjoying the sweet nectar.

Growers have expanded the lilies they make available at Easter and the colorful Asiatics are now accompanied by many different lilies. The following one is the trumpet Regale which does well in Vermont. It is a July bloomer when grown in the garden.


A final plant which you might consider as a year round houseplant is Eucharis grandiflorum, the Amazon Lily. In the flower world there are over 250 plants which bear the name "lily" but are not true lilies. This is one of them. It's a zone ten flower so it is a house plant here but one we really cherish. Small starts are usually available in greenhouses and on occasion you'll find an errant shipment of big pots at a box store. Typically no one knows anything about them including the price so that's a good time to pick up several as gifts for gardeners who enjoy house plants.


Without doubt you can purchase potted tulips in all kinds of colors, some tipsy hyacinths with great fragrance, and pot upon pot of daffodils or mixes of spring bulbs. These are always a good bet as an Easter present for a senior friend and they're sure to conjure up some memorable stories.

Here on the mountain we'll enjoy Easter Day and we hope you do too!


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where a neighbor reported having to stop yesterday morning just past the intersection of Route 2 and 232 as six moose controlled road access as they made their way down from the mountain tops to summer in the valleys. Use care driving at night as the moose are on the move and they make very poor hood ornaments.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Gardens

Vermont Flower Farm: Our newly updated website---have you been there yet??

Sunday, April 08, 2007

Happy Easter


Sunday, April 8, 2007

21.3 degrees on the mountain. Just back in with Karl the wonder dog. His sniffer was in overdrive this morning as a red squirrel had just dug out a cache of seeds from the wall by the driveway. Karl is difficult to coax back into the house when he has a likable scent, even on Easter morning.

The sky is open and the moon is lingering on the horizon. There is an obvious cloud above Peacham Pond, probably caused by the water that has opened up parts of the ice. The water enters from a couple larger sources like Sucker Brook and the overflow from the white spring but there are a couple other lesser sources that help to weaken the ice and change the surrounding temperature. I won't be surprised if we receive a flurry of sugar snow this morning as the air just "feels" like snow will be part of the morning.

Today is Easter and for the second year in a row we don't have an Easter lily in the house. The Amazon lily, Eucharis amazonica, pictured above, can be a substitute. Easter lilies as we know them are Lilium longiflorums although the lily mentioned in the Bible was really the Madonna lily or Lilium candidum. The flower industry needed a big showy lily with trumpet flowers and big buds and their work is obvious by the millions.

Growing lilies for Easter is a moving target and quite a challenge. When you see one in the box stores marked $6, respect what the grower has gone through. Easter falls on different dates and Easter lilies must be grown in greenhouses. In a state such as Vermont, winter climates are moving targets too. There are temperature and light changes and both of these are critical to bulb production. Growers have resorted to chemicals to regulate height and speed of growth. At the end of a winter like this one where February and March had many nights close to or below zero, the production costs rocketed just to keep the bulbs growing. A producer's goal is to have just a couple buds opening when the plants hit the market.

This year the lilies I looked at had spindly stems and were blooming long before they should have. Florists usually have the best selection which has received more attention, hence the reason why you traditionally pay a little more. It's worth a little more to have a healthy, balanced plant that will be in bloom for 2-3 weeks. At least I think so.

Just in the time I am sitting here, the sugar snow has started. There are 11 blue jays and a pair of doves competing for their Easter breakfast. A lone grackle without an invitation keeps appearing from nowhere.

Whatever your celebration, whatever you have planned for today, enjoy yourself.


Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where the fire in the wood stove feels good to Karl and to us too!

George Africa
http://vermontflowerfarm.com
http://vermontgardens.blogspot.com