I consider Kathleen Sayce the Guru of Plant Life (GPL) here on the peninsula and I know that lots of other people do, too. In my mind that doesn’t necessarily mean flower gardens (that might be Skyler Walker) or even vegetable gardens (maybe Vera and Jim Karnofski or Larkin Stentz), although I’m sure Kathleen is knowledgeable about both flowers and vegetables. I just mean plants in general.
On occasion I have asked her advice about what to plant when, but I always hope when she comes by that she won’t look too closely at my flower beds. And then, not too long ago, I learned that she is a lily expert and not only raises a number of interesting varieties in her garden, but is also an active member of the North American Lily Society.
When she noticed a (gulp!) lily in a flower arrangement on my mantle, I felt compelled to show her all those tiger lilies that have volunteered in our south garden. The part I liked best about our little walk-about was that she seemed truly impressed with the height of the lilies – especially the one against the house.
Kathleen and I haven’t really had a righteous ‘lily discussion’ yet, but when the topic comes up in casual conversation, I have noticed that height seems to be a positive characteristic. Most of the lilies in our garden are five-ish feet tall, but that impressive one hugging the wall outside our library is at least seven feet. Maybe eight.
Well, even though I had not even the slightest reason for feeling proud of that lily, I did! I felt that both the lily and I had received high praise from the GPL. Plus I learned something. The shiny black seed-like things that grow on the stems of tiger lilies are called “bulbils.” I had already figured out that if allowed to fall off on their own, they are likely to germinate and form new lilies in a couple of years. They are actually the “bulbs” for these particular lilies. Who knew?
Sydney: I didn’t know you were a lily afcionado, nor Kathleen either. I always learn something new when I tune in to your blog. In terms of Peninsula garden gurus, don’t forget Sojourner Smith hidden away in Nahcotta. Since she’s my adjoining neighbor, I have built-in guru visits from tine to time. Had one this morning as a matter of fact: move the horseradish in the fall; put the cardoon over by the elephant garlic; one more year for the roquette then split it in two; yes, those are rutabaga starts coming up…….etc. and while we were talking Farmer Fred stopped by to drop off greens. (Farmstock coming up Labor Day weekend in Naselle…). Love knowing people with their hands in the dirt.