Lily is a flower that belongs to the genus lilium and comprises of more than 100 species in its family, Liliaceae. They are very beautiful and used as showy garden plants with large flowers. Lilies basically belong to the northern temperate regions. Their range extends across much of Europe, the north Mediterranean, across most of Asia to Japan, south to the Nilgiri mountains in India, south to the Philippines and southern Canada through much of the United States. A few species formerly included within this genus have now been placed in other genera. These include Cardiocrinum and Nomocharis.
They are commonly adapted to either woodland habitats, often montane, or sometimes to grassland habitats. A few can survive in marshland and a single one is known to live as an epiphyte. In general they prefer moderately acidic or lime-free soils.
Garden lilies
Garden lilies are grown in numerous forms and majority of these are hybrid. These include:
Asiatic hybrids: These are plants with medium sized, upright or outward facing flowers, mostly unscented. They are derived from central and east Asian species.
Martagon hybrids: These are based on L. martagon and L. hansonii. The flowers are nodding, Turk's cap style with the petals strongly recurved.
Candidum hybrids: This includes hybrids of L. candidum with several other mostly European species.
American hybrids: These are mostly taller growing forms, originally derived from L. pardalinum. Many are clump-forming perennials with rhizomatous rootstocks.
Longiflorum hybrids: These are cultivated forms of this species and its subspecies. They are most important as plants for cut flowers, and are less often grown in the garden than other hybrids.
Trumpet lilies including Aurelian hybrids: This group includes hybrids of many Asiatic species, including L. regale and L. aurelianse. The flowers are trumpet shaped, facing outward or somewhat downward, and tend to be strongly fragrant, often especially night-fragrant.
Oriental hybrids: These are based on hybrids of L. auratum and L. speciosum, together with crossbreeds from several mainland Asiatic species. They are fragrant, and the flowers tend to be outward facing. Plants tend to be tall, and the flowers may be quite large. An example is Lilium "Stargazer".
Buy lilies online
These flowers are available at most of the florists in Australia. You can shop for them online as well. Many sites on the Internet sell lilies and deliver them at your doorstep. A few of these are listed below.
- www.fastflowers.com.au
- www.dialabouquet.net
- www.rosetime.com.au
- www.flowersallhours.com.au
- www.rosesonly.com.au
- www.flora2000.com
- www.australianflowers.net