Heralding Fall

I was absolutely delighted to see my oxblood lilies pop up a few days ago following more than 8 inches of rain over the weekend. These heirloom bulbs are often seen around old homesteads in central Texas, where they survive on their own and bloom in great masses of color in the fall. Known by the botanical name of Rhodophiala bifida, these amaryllids hail from South America and produce three or more blood red blooms atop each stem. The dark green, straplike leaves appear after the blooms and persist through the winter months, adding an unexpected bonus to the winter landscape. Then the leaves disappear, and there is no trace of the plant most of the year until the stems push through the soil suddenly in the fall.

Oxblood lilies can be planted under deciduous trees because the leaves generate energy for the bulbs during the winter, when the trees are bare. The bulbs tolerate, even flourish and multiply, in heavy clay soils. Alkalinity doesn't bother them. They make a dependable, showy display following drought, flood, heat, and cold. This year's record-breaking drought proved it. And my own neglect proved it. I was just too busy getting my sons graduated and off to college and my daughter married to bother with the yard this year.

Hmm . . . sounds like the perfect plant for me. Good thing that these bulbs were passed along to me by a friend, because they do not seem to be available in the nursery trade. This fact makes the plant doubly delightful to me. When the first hint of autumn arrives, I can enjoy the beautiful blooms and remember the kindness of a friend.