The Fox cooked yesterday, a beef in ale casserole. By the time it was almost complete it was still too early to eat but not enough time to do anything much. We decided to switch off the cooker & sit outside over an aperitif or two before dinner, watching the birds flitting to & fro from their feeders.
When we came in, the Fox got the casserole back on to warm it up & put some potatoes in the microwave for jackets. Suddenly I shrieked, "Look! Look!"
He turned round alarmed. He thought either I'd had an accident or he'd done something wrong. It was neither of these. Instead one of the tiger lily buds had started to open. The first petal was unfurling.
From then on we kept looking from time to time. By the time we'd eaten, it had opened up further. The stamens were protruding. These seemed 2-3 times as big as those on the already open flower.
By the time it was nearer 9pm, the Fox insisted I had to get up from the settee I was sat on in the lounge and see something amazing. Now both buds were open. The first one was wide open, even beginning to curl back in the characteristic way lilies, especially tiger lilies, do. The full glory of the orange-red tips & spotted orange-yellow centres was apparent.
So it was eagerly I got up this morning. Now both buds are fully opened & curled back. The stamens are still larger than the earlier flowers. They seem both fatter & longer. Is this just because no insect has yet visited collecting some of the pollen? I wonder. Whatever the cause they are magnificent.
Showing posts with label lilies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label lilies. Show all posts
Thursday, 8 July 2010
Tuesday, 6 July 2010
Tiger beauty
Yesterday I tried to write a blog. Every time I did I had a problem. First I tried to put in a hyperlink & then couldn't get out to write normally. I had to scrap the sentence I'd written & start again. This time I'd barely got started when the phone rang. By the time I'd got back I'd recovered from the urge to throw something at the computer for its earlier lack of cooperation, but I'd also lost the thread of what I was going to write about - something to do with a comparison of the literary styles of PG Wodehouse & Raymond Chandler. The thought had been inspired by listening to "A Point of View" on BBC Radio 4 on Sunday. Still that is now lost.
Instead I'm going to write about the garden once more. At one point yesterday I was out in the garden when my eye wandered in the direction of the flattened yellow loosestrife. It was a bit of red-orange that caught my eye. Upon investigation I discovered it was a couple of lilies in flower. They too had been flattened.
Most of the lilies that grow in the garden are day lilies. As these flowers rarely last more than 24 hours it isn't worth cutting them. However, the flowers that had flattened in the recent strong winds were tiger lilies, a welcome self-seeded arrival. So I duly cut them & put then in a vase. Since then I've spent much time just looking at, & admiring, them.
I'd always assumed lilies, like most flowers, emerged from a sepal bud. But no. On these the bud itself is slowly turning more orange. Through the green of the buds I can just manage to distinguish the characteristic spots which make these tiger lilies so special. I'm looking forward to watching them opening out over the course of the next few days.
Meanwhile the Fox was surprised when he moved the vase. His hand accidentally brushed against the flowers. Suddenly his hand was covered with a deep orange powder. He must have brushed against the stamens & was now covered with pollen. The sheer quantity amazed him.
Instead I'm going to write about the garden once more. At one point yesterday I was out in the garden when my eye wandered in the direction of the flattened yellow loosestrife. It was a bit of red-orange that caught my eye. Upon investigation I discovered it was a couple of lilies in flower. They too had been flattened.
Most of the lilies that grow in the garden are day lilies. As these flowers rarely last more than 24 hours it isn't worth cutting them. However, the flowers that had flattened in the recent strong winds were tiger lilies, a welcome self-seeded arrival. So I duly cut them & put then in a vase. Since then I've spent much time just looking at, & admiring, them.
I'd always assumed lilies, like most flowers, emerged from a sepal bud. But no. On these the bud itself is slowly turning more orange. Through the green of the buds I can just manage to distinguish the characteristic spots which make these tiger lilies so special. I'm looking forward to watching them opening out over the course of the next few days.
Meanwhile the Fox was surprised when he moved the vase. His hand accidentally brushed against the flowers. Suddenly his hand was covered with a deep orange powder. He must have brushed against the stamens & was now covered with pollen. The sheer quantity amazed him.
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