Wednesday, September 21, 2016

The lovely little surprise flower

The other day, I was going up the steps and happened to look a little to the right and got quite the pleasant surprise.

The pink rain lily had decided to bloom.
Zephyranthes Grandiflora
This little fellow just hangs out in a pot or garden, taking some watering here and there and perhaps some food, and just when you've forgotten that you have it, It will send up this delightful bloom.

The pink rain lilies, I've found, are a hair more demanding than the white ones, which you could plant just about anywhere and they'd do just fine with a good chance of naturalizing. But the pink ones are so pretty I think they're worth the extra effort.

When they are not blooming, you can tell the pink from the white rain lily by a flatter, lighter leaf, nearly identical to the garlic chives (so you may not want to plant them in the same pot).
Garlic Chives blooming
The white rain lily, on the other hand, has a narrower, darker round leaf. Also known as autumn zephyrlily, white windflower, and Peruvian swamp lily, this flower can be found growing in the wild from the Southern United States to South America.
A white rain lily among the four o'clocks
Zephyranthes is a full sun lover who enjoys a pretty moist soil. The white rain lily will grow pretty prolifically and clump up, so it's a good idea to every so often divide them. They make great passalong plants, as the bulbs are easy to dig up and separate, and the plant weathers a replanting very well.

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