It's raining lilies!

Rain lilies that you see here in yellow and pink are autumn blooms, lasts for a day and flourishes throughout the rainy season, especially after heavy showers. Soon after flowering, the heads brown and dry up and these are the seed pods. You can harvest the seed pods, break them open and find black flakes. These flakes can be sowed immediately in a slightly moist environment for the seeds to germinate. I have both the yellow and pink ones planted in a shallow rectangular container that I shift around for display. My pink ones surprised me with a bloom this spring. Since I forgot to take snaps, I’ve put up pictures from the web for your ease. There are white rain lilies too, though I’m yet to lay my hands on them.

Where the lilies bloom...

These red lilies were a part of my spring bloom early this year.

Growing lilies in containers brightens up the garden and provides an attractive display for one season, remaining unnoticed for the rest of the year. With careful planning, the bulbs may be lifted after flowering and replanted each year to make room for other seasonal plants in limited spaces. The bought or stored bulbs of the lilies are planted in late summer or early autumn to be ready for display in spring. The bulbs are planted in free- draining fresh compost to avoid water-logging or the bulbs may rot. They are planted at twice their own depth and one bulb’s width apart with the growing tip facing the top. Avoid over crowding bulbs in a pot. Once planted, the bulbs in containers should not be allowed to dry out when in growth and should be fed regularly in 2-3 weeks with high potash low nitrogen fertilizer to boost flowering.

When foliage leaves begin to turn yellow, usually a month after flowering, gently lift the bulbs, clean off the soil, and dead and dry flakes. Cut the drying foliage, leave it overnight to dry, dust them with fungicide and store them in clean labelled paper bags in a cool and dry place in summer. Alternatively after flowering, the bulbs may remain in the pot, kept moist and shifted to a shaded place to rest till early autumn.