Take time to learn about the Easter lily this holiday

Published 12:00 am Sunday, April 4, 2010

Happy Easter!

Perhaps you are going to spend some time today hunting or hiding Easter eggs, eating chocolate bunnies or marshmallow Peeps or attending church. I suppose all of those are considered traditions. Another popular Easter tradition is the Easter lily, because it fittingly symbolizes the spirit of the holiday. Its beautiful trumpet-shaped white flowers represent purity, virtue, hope and life.

John C. Coccaro is county Extension director. Write to him at 1100-C Grove St., Vicksburg, MS 39180 or call 601-636-5442. E-mail him at jcoccaro@ext.msstate.edu.

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In today’s column, I will share with you some tips on how to care for your lily indoors, plus suggestions for planting them outdoors. But, first, allow me to share with you some interesting trivia. 

The Easter lily is native to the Ryukyu Islands of southern Japan, as well as the islands of Okinawa, Amani and Erabu. Though Easter lilies came to England in 1819, commercial bulb production initially started in Bermuda in 1853. At that time, they were actually called Bermuda lilies. A plant virus infestation in 1898 practically devastated the production of these lilies. Around the turn of the century, the Japanese took over the annual growing and exportation of Easter lilies to the United States, and this continued until the start of World War II.

Louis Houghton, a World War I soldier, is credited with beginning U.S. production of Easter lilies. Houghton brought a suitcase full of hybrid lily bulbs to the south coast of Oregon in 1919 and distributed them among his friends and neighbors. The Japanese source of Easter lily bulbs was suddenly cut off during World War II and, as a result, the bulb’s value skyrocketed. Many bulb-growing hobbyists started commercial bulb businesses and were able to cash in on the crop. By 1945, there were about 1,200 growers producing bulbs up and down the Pacific coast.

Caring for your Easter lily is not difficult.

They should last indoors for several weeks. Place them in bright, indirect sunlight and keep them cool — about 68 degrees. Since lilies like moist soil, watering every other day should be sufficient. The plant should not be left standing in excess water. Remove individual flowers as they fade. 

Once the lily starts to wither, consider planting it in your garden. Select a sunny spot. Remove the plant from its original container and loosen the roots. Plant the bulb 3 to 5 inches deeper than it was in its container and cover with soil. Water generously and fertilize with an all-purpose garden fertilizer. The lily’s old shoots and stems will wither and die soon after planting, but new shoots will emerge and flowers should re-appear in late July or August.

One word of caution about Easter lilies to cat owners: don’t let your kitty eat the leaves. Eating just one leaf can cause kidney failure, which could cause death within five days if not treated very early.