Facts And Information About Tiger Lily

Most of us refer to the flowers in this picture as an Orange Lily, or a Tiger Lily. But, some people call this Day Lily a "Ditch Lily". It's because this  prolific wildflower is commonly found in ditches around a wide area of America.

There is much confusion about Tiger Lilies. An oriental variety is very similar. The major difference is that the oriental Tiger Lily propagates through a bulbs that forms at leaf axils. The common wildflower Tiger Lily  is a profuse propagator by means of tuberous roots. Both varieties have edible roots and have been used for medicinal purposes. We will focus the remainder of this article on the wildflower variety.  

Do you want to know about tiger lily flowers? Yes! This name sounds strange. Actually tiger lily is an orange flower having dark spots on its petals. These flowers have sweet fragrance and have various other names like ditch lily, Wood Lily, Leopard Lily and Oregon Lily etc. Here in this post, I have collected some facts about tiger lily flowers. If you are interested in knowing about these flowers, then this post will be of great interest for you.

Growing Requirements

These flowers are not difficult to grow at all. All you need to do is to keep the soil wet since tiger lily flowers like dampness. This flower produces bulbs instead of seeds which can be planted in the fall for having mid-summer blooms.

These flowers don’t require to be fertilized. They only need fertilizers if you are planting them in somewhat poor soil. Unlike other bulb flowers, tiger lilies require winter cold to grow healthily. While planting bulbs of tiger lilies, you must make sure that the distance between them should be from 9 to 12 inches. Moreover bulbs should be planted 6 inches deep in a sunny location.

Types of Tiger Lilies

There are two types of tiger lilies named:

• Common wildflower
• Oriental

Wildflower type grows from tuberous roots while oriental tiger lilies are planted by bulbs and they are dug up later and then they are divided.

Other Characteristics

• Bloom size of tiger lilies is from 4 to 6 inches long
• These flowers are 3 inch wide
• Flowers have bright orange or red color having black spots on the petals with six stamens
• Since it stands tall, it makes a beautiful backdrop to garden area
• This plant creates leaves having a width of 2 inches

Interesting Fact

Bulbs of these flowers are dug up and are boiled and then eaten by Americans. This practice is also common in other oriental countries. They taste like potatoes and are commonly used in Chinese dish moo shu pork. Brown pear dessert dish is also prepared from tiger lilies by placing the bulbs inside a pear along with sugar. Then they are steamed and eaten.

These were some basic and interesting facts about tiger lilies. I hope that this post will urge you to grow these flowers in your garden.

Straw Flowers In Hanging Baskets

Strawflower is a tall herb grown for its yellow, orange, red, or white flowers. It is cultivated as an annual— that is, for one growing season. However, the straw-flower is actually a perennial and thus can live for more than one year. The flowers are dried and used in winter bouquets. The strawflower belongs to a group of plants called everlastings.

All everlastings have flowers that last a long time when dried. The strawflower originated in Australia, and is now grown in Europe and America. It grows 3 feet (91 centimeters) tall.Scientific classification. The strawflower belongs to the composite family, Asteraceae or Compositae. Its scientific name is Helichrysum bracteatum.

For something a little different but certainly dramatic consider planting a hanging basket of Strawflowers.Planted alone or mixed in with other annuals strawflower look great and perform well in hanging baskets and hanging planters.

Native to the Australian Outback, Strawflower is a flower with many names. It is also known as a Paper Daisy or an Everlasting Daisy.Botanically they are called Bracteantha bracteata or Helichrysum bracteatum.Don’t despair if you can’t find these plants at your garden centre they are easy to grow from seed – see below.

Great in hanging baskets and excellent as a dried flower for floral arrangements you may become hooked on this great plant.Strawflowers like warm, dry conditions so hanging baskets are ideal for them.While Strawflowers grow best in full, direct sun they also can be grown in semi shade / morning sun positions.

Strawflowers grow to a height ranging between eight and thirty-six inches and will spill over the edges of your hanging basket or hanging planter.Strawflowers are available in dwarf varieties as well as taller varieties – we recommend the choosing taller varieties for your hanging baskets.

We often see instructions “Water occasionally” or “will withstand drought” – we recommend to water well, then to let your hanging basket just dry out before watering it again.

While your strawflower will survive drought conditions it will shrivel up and take time to recover - and your basket will not look great.

For the healthy happy plants, Strawflowers need moist, but well drained soil, they don’t like “wet feet” nor do they do well left without water for several days.

For large flowers and plenty of them - Strawflowers should be fertilized every other week with a low phosphorus fertilizer.

To keep your hanging basket of Strawflowers looking their best you must feed them and most important you must deadhead the flowers regularly to keep the plant(s) looking good.

Deadheading actually encourages continuous blooms.Strawflowers have a long blooming period, from the middle of summer until the first frost.Consider growing strawflowers in your hanging basket if you want annual flowers that will draw lots of attention from your friends and family.

The colors of strawflowers are unique and extremely vivid so your baskets will draw lots of comments.Strawflowers are available in various shades of yellow, orange, tan, red, pink, purple, creamy white and also available in unique bi-colors.

One Gardener wrote of Strawflowers.”The colorful blooms of strawflowers shimmer in the sunlight, and they appear to be coated by fine satin varnish.”

“The beautiful blooms of strawflowers are offset by narrow green leaves on tall graceful stems. The leaves of some varieties of strawflowers are grayish green and extremely eye-catching”.

Yes it is true people love strawflowers for both their lovely foliage as well as the beauty of their brilliant annual blooms.Strawflowers have an added bonus - they work very well as a dried flower.

For dried flower arrangements it is often recommended that Strawflowers should be cut just as they begin to open, then dried head down, hanging by the stem in a dry, shaded area for a couple of weeks.

For the brightest colors hang your Strawflowers upside down in a dark and well-ventilated place.
After drying take them, untie the flowers and use them in floral arrangements in a position away from direct sunlight.

As they tend to be brittle – often their bright flowers as used as in the photo above.
Propagating Strawflower from Seed.Strawflowers are easy to grow from seed. So if you’re searching for strawflowers to grow in your hanging baskets and can’t find any don’t despair - grow them by seed.

Amaryllis Referring To The Bloom

Amaryllis is a genus of plant that has only one species, the belladonna lily (Amaryllis belladonna). Many lily like plants of the same family, however, are commonly called amaryllis, including the daffodil, snowdrop, tuberose, century plant, and more than 1,000 others.

The belladonna lily, which is native to South Africa, grows from a bulb. Its stalk is 18 to 30 inches high. It is topped by a cluster of 6 to 10 trumpet-shaped flowers which grow about 3 inches long. The fragrant, six-petaled blossoms are typically rose red, but they may be pink, purple, or white striped. Long, narrow leaves appear after the flowers wither.

The plants in the amaryllis family have long stems and many long, narrow leaves. The flowers are made up of six petals, and they may grow in clusters or as a single blossom. Some of the amaryllises are especially fragrant more than half of the amaryllis family are grown from bulbs. The remaining plants are grown from cons or rhizomes.

The belladonna lily is a popular amaryllis that blooms from August to October. This lily-like plant grows from a bulb. Its stalk is 18 to 30 inches (46 to 76 centimeters) high. It is topped by a cluster of 6 to 10 flowers. The fragrant blossoms are usually 3 inches (8 centimeters) long and may vary in color from rose-red to white. The narcissuses and snowdrops are other popular members of the amaryllis family.

Tall stemmed, with trumpet-like blooms, the amaryllis symbolizes radiant beauty. However, Greek mythology has it that the flower got its start from a shy shepherdess, who pierced her heart and created a crimson flower.

Amaryllis was a shepherdess who loved Alteo, a shepherd with Hercules' strength and Apollo's beauty. However, Alteo only loved flowers. He'd often said that he would only love a girl who bought him a new flower. So, Amaryllis dressed in maiden's white and appeared at Alteo's door for 30 nights, each time piercing her heart with a golden arrow. When Alteo finally opened his door, he found a crimson flower, sprung from the blood of Amaryllis's heart.

The word "amaryllis" comes from the Greek word "amaryssein," which means "to sparkle," referring to the bloom. Today, the amaryllis symbolizes pride, determination and radiant beauty--the kind that emanates from an inner source and flowers outward.

Beautiful Orchid Flowers As Structural Make-up

Orchid flowers differ from the majority of flower species in both their pollination systems and structural make-up; the male and female parts of the orchid are actually fused together and located to one side of the flower.

Orchids come in all colors except blue and black, and have flowers, depending on the variety, from the size of a pinhead to the size of a pie plate. Some leaves are thick, some are thin, some are tiny, some plants, such as the Vanilla Plant, grow over 15 feet tall.

About 80 percent of orchids are from the tropics in both the New World (Central and South America) and the Old World (Asia and Malaysia). A smattering can be found in North America and Europe.

Orchids have a reputation as being difficult, if not impossible, to grow, especially without a greenhouse.

Orchids are extremely popular as house plants, garden plants and corsage plants and can today be found all over the world. Some people believe that orchid care is very tricky to keep, but the truth is that even novice plant keepers can reach great success as long as they chose the right orchids and are prepared to do some reading.

The orchid family is the largest family of flowering plants and there are over 20,000 accepted species of orchid. The exact number varies depending on which classification system you use. The Royal Botanical Gardens of Kew in the United Kingdom lists 880 different genera and almost 22,000 species, and several hundred species are added each year. Since orchids are so tremendously popular in the floral trade, horticulturists have also created over 100,000 orchid hybrids and cultivars.

By providing these plants with proper orchid care, you can make them last for years and years to come and offer you new delicate blossoms each year. Some orchids can even be coaxed into blossoming more than once a year, while others will retain their flowers for several months if provided with the right kind of orchid care.

Six very important aspects of orchid care are watering, nutrients, light, temperature, medium, and repotting. On this site you will therefore find detailed information about recommended water habits, proper fertilization, how to find the ideal light combination, how to mimic the natural orchid habitat climate, which type of potting medium to pick, and when your orchid should be repotted.

Sunflower Wallpaper

Some folk see a Sunflower as a flower. Others, see it as a vegetable. It is, of course, both a beautiful flower, and a great vegetable! Healthy, nutritious and attractive, Sunflowers have it all. That is probably why sunflowers have spread from their native home in North America, and are now grown around the world!
As homeowners, we adorn our yards and gardens with our choice of dozens of sizes and varieties. We use it to attract birds to our homes. We also enjoy eating the seeds. They are high in protein. Sunflowers are popular as a cooking oil, too.

Sunflowers are also great for kids. The seeds are big and easy to handle, and they require minimal attention. Kids like to grow big things, so a sunflower fits the bill. The end product is not only eye appealing, but makes a great snack. We put Sunflowers, along with pumpkins, as the top two plants for kids to grow.

Varieties of Sunflowers:
There are many types of sunflowers. And, gardeners like to grow a wide variety of them. Sunflowers are basically separated by size. The giant varieties grow over ten feet. Regular sunflowers typically grow from six to ten feet. Miniatures are gaining in popularity as borders. They are very popular in Asia, and grow two to four feet.
Some varieties of sunflowers have one big head or flower. They are usually the giant sunflower varieties. Other large headed varieties, have a few much smaller heads that form on lower branches. Some varieties have multiple heads. These are typically mid sized sunflowers, and are perfect for flower gardens in attracting birds.

Sunflower seeds are usually a dark brown to black, or large, grey and white striped. The latter is the most popular for eating due, to their large size. Don't worry over selection. The birds will eat ample quantities of both, and so will you. Whether you are feeding the wildlife or not, there are plenty of wildlife that enjoy sunflower. They include all sorts of birds of course, squirrels, and rodents.
Giant Sunflowers - Many people find growing these to be addicting. A giant sunflower can be either a very tall plant, or an enormous flowerhead.
Tithonia, or Mexican Sunflower- Grow 4-6 feet tall, with daisy-like flowers. Blooms summer to fall.If you have a pet hamster,mouse, gerbil or bird, adding a few sunflower seeds in their diet as a nice treat.
The sunflower is indeed a remarkable flower. It's brilliant colors, it's towering height; they exude a sense of cheer and a reminder of summer. This page is dedicated to the enjoyment of their wonderful blooms.
You'll find sunflower pictures to enjoy, and to purchase if you wish, as well as some tidbits to help you enjoy them in your own yard or home. Take a look around the page and your day may be better for it!