Ah, the lovely lily, slender lady of our garden’s evening shade! Lilies are flowering summer bulbs with shapely, exotic-looking blooms reminiscent of some rare tropical flower, but they grow well in most of Australia’s climate zones. Many lilies have a heady fragrance to accentuate their lovely form. The Lily grows from bulbs planted during the cooler months, and prefer a bit of shade in their day, they dislike the midday sun’s scorching heat and can’t withstand heavy winds.
In the colder regions of the country, you can start your lilies early in pots kept in garden sheds. Lilies prefer moist, acidic soil that is free-draining and prefer to be well watered as they don’t take well to drying out. Lilies have tall stems and do best when grown together with small shrubs along a garden border, or in groups to provide support.
The real, true lily belongs to the Liliaceae family of the genus Lilium, but a number of other plants go by the name lily as well, such as the peace lily (Spathiphyllum), water lilies (Nymphaea), Peruvian lily (Alstroemeria), and day lily (Hemerocallis), all of which have similar shapes to the true lily, but different growing requirements. People began cultivating ‘true’ lilies thousands of years ago, due to their great beauty and heartiness- lilies might appear delicate, fragile even, but they are actually extremely tough!
In Australia, four main types of true lily are the most often grown:
- Longiflorum or trumpet type – These are popularly known as Christmas lilies because their main flowering season coincides with the holiday. Christmas lilies make perfect cut flowers for bouquets and have a wonderful fragrance, too!
- Asiatics – These are truly beautiful blossoms, but alas, they are without any scent! Still, people love to grow them because the group features multiple, lush flowers growing from each stem, and they come in a variety of rich colours.
- Longiflorum Asiatics – These are a human-made hybrid of Longiflorum and Asiatic types and go by the nickname “LA’s”. These wonderful flowers are gifted with the best of both parents, lots of lush blossoms along with a potent perfume, perfect for bouquets!
- Orientals – This type of true lily is known for its gorgeous wavy petals and sweet fragrance, which makes them much sought after as cut flowers.
Lilies are fairly easy to grow, but here are some pointers:
Keep lilies moist throughout their growing cycle, and water generously in the summer. Mulching around them conserves water and helps keep the soil moist and cool, but not damp, they don’t like their feet wet!
Lilies like to be fertilised at least two times during their growing cycle, once when setting buds, then again when after their flowering has ended to enhance next year’s bloom. Use liquid fertilizers.
Once flowering has ended, cut them about halfway down the stem with just a few remaining leaves for the bulb to continue to develop flowers the following year.
Lilies are very pest resistant, but sometimes aphids might attack, a common garden problem that’s easy to fix.
Lilies are one of Australia’s most beloved flowers, and with good reason! Hearty, beautiful, and fragrant, they are truly the splendid queen of the garden!
