August 2, 2020...The Mystic Lilies are in bloom

On July 29, I looked out the dining room window and saw five Mystic Lily stalks.  Later, when I went outside I found more.

I call them Mystic Lilies because that is what Tom's dad called them.  He gave me a dozen bulbs shortly after we moved in this house over fifty years ago.  The bulbs multiplied, I gave some to friends and still they multiplied.  Just the kind of flower I like.  Plant them and they will take care of themselves.

On July 31, the first blooms appeared.

They grow tall, taller than the birdbath.

Just this year I learned their Latin name, Lycoris squamigera.  They are in the amaryllis family.

In the spring, the leaves come up, straplike leaves, densely packed, and over a foot high.  They die back and completely disappear.  But spirit-like, the flowers rise in late July or early August.

There are a lot of common names for them, Resurrection Lilies, Surprise Lilies, Naked Ladies.  Take your pick.  I will always call them Mystic Lilies.