Earth Almanac: July/August 2009

Lily of the Moonlight

When the earth is wet with day-old rain, and summer sunsets fade over Alabama, Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas, rain lilies unfurl their blossoms, scenting the evening with sweet, spicy fragrance. On gangly, leafless, foot-high stems the six-petaled flowers nod in the night wind. They’re white, sometimes with a splash of pink after a few days, a hue enhanced by moonlight and starshine. Like many members of the amaryllis family, these plants have adapted to arid conditions by storing water in their bulbs. A thousand or more flowers may open simultaneously across a rain-washed desert plain or along a roadside. But appreciate them while you can because their beauty is fleeting. Within two days they’ll fade and wither. These bulbs will naturalize well in your lawn or amid low vegetation. If you live in a climate where the ground freezes, grow them in pots; after they bloom allow the flowers and stems to ripen and die. Then keep the bulbs in a warm place for half a year before watering. Or, after the danger of frost is past, you can plant them outside.