Story and Photo by Patty Blackburn
I have always enjoyed planting flowers and watching them grow throughout the spring and summer seasons. Flowers such as vincas, dianthus, petunias, geraniums, four o’clocks, and more, but the most amazing flower that I’ve come across is a perennial that flourishes from a bulb. It’s a plant in the amaryllis family and I call these pop up overnight flowers, naked ladies. Other names are resurrection lily, surprise lily, spider lily, and pop-up flower.
These flowers have green foliage that appears in early spring, the same time daffodils bloom. After a few weeks the foliage turns yellow and withers. During this time the bulbs are storing nourishment from the energy of the foliage. Then mid to late July, surprise! Spindly, naked flower stalks with no leaves mysteriously erupt from the ground where the foliage was located. The stalks are only a few inches tall. Then the next day, they are two feet tall with pink buds that open within hours. I really believe if you have the time, one could actually watch the stalk grow!
Since the naked ladies are from bulbs, they are perennials which appear each year. These bulbs grow roots and if left alone they will multiply and produce several of these magical, amazing, stunning flowers to beautify our yards and gardens. If you happen to want to learn more about these flowers, you may google surprise lilies. If you google naked ladies, you may see more than a beautiful flower.
