Saturday, August 4, 2018

GARDENS: Naked ladies and phlox

Usually the Naked Ladies (Lycoris squamigera) simply appear by my walkway, causing me to stop and gape in utter astonishment, but this year I had some warning: the ones on the west side of my house bloomed well before the ones on the east side appeared.
These beautiful flowers are members of the Amaryllis family and are also known as "surprise lilies": because the stems are bare and unobtrusive, it seems like the flowers appear magically overnight. Highly recommended as a boost to the sometimes drooping late-summer garden.
By the way, my phlox have never had a better summer. Their lush, deep pink, fragrant flowers are blooming and reblooming, and the leaves, which in previous years have been prone to powdery mildew, are staying green and healthy.

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