Comments on: Oxblood Lily Day

By: Phil MacNames Round Rock, TX

Phil MacNames Round Rock, TX — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 21:32:18 +0000

Just realized I failed to list my E-Mail address on my above comment. You can reach me at pmacnames@austin.rr.com. If you want large, healthy oxblood bulbs at reasonable prices I’m the guy you’re looking for.

By: manyannie Many, LA

manyannie Many, LA — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 18:22:41 +0000

I found my first ox blood lilies this weekend near Milam. TX. What a thrill.

By: karen abilene texas

karen abilene texas — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 23:25:20 +0000

can i dig up the oxblood lilies i found in my yard and how can i transplant them

You can dig them up almost any time but I think it’s easiest right after they bloom but before they have too many leaves. Just separate the bulbs and replant them immediately. They are not picky about the depth. Keep them well-watered for a couple of weeks. Or you can wait until the early summer when all the leaves have died down. It’s sometime hard to find them then or to dig them up without slicing into the bulbs with your shovel. The advantage is that they are dormant (no growing roots) and so they don’t have to be replanted immediately. — mss

By: Linda Lehmusvirta Austin, TX

Linda Lehmusvirta Austin, TX — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 19:06:41 +0000

If it’s still cloudy, I bet it looks like a movie screen.

By: Peggy Manor, TX

Peggy Manor, TX — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 10:48:55 +0000

My grandmother had oxblood lillies that grew along her fences in Fedor, TX. Her birthday was in September and her favorite color was red, so the lillies were usually in bloom when we went to visit.

Sadly, she passed away, but the plot where their house stood so many years still had lilies, but not in bloom. My husband and brother dug up several bulbs but with these last 2 summers of drought, they have not produced any flowers..yet.

During her funeral the pastor even mentioned Frieda’s lilies that bloom after every rain.

Thanks for the memory!

Around Labor Day, you’ll probably start seeing the bulbs nose up. When that happens, give them a good soaking. They’ll bloom eventually. Oxblood lilies never give up. — mss

By: Traci, SW Austin

Traci, SW Austin — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 22:35:25 +0000

Wowee, what a great stand you have! Gorgeous! Your oxblood pix make me miss my old yard so much! tho’ not the old plumbing, wiring, or foundation of that house ;) New house is great, new yard, not so much. I had inherited a beautiful stand of these oxbloods on 49th street, but they were blooming when we sold and couldn’t be moved without killing them. And there were only a couple of small bunches left, but how I loved the surprise of their blooms in the fall. Now after a few years in a new tract home with a pretty bare landscape, I finally have the periennial “bones” of my garden established, and I’d love to have some bulbs to give this place some charm and character. Do you have any this season, or has this awful drought taken them? I will buy some, I don’t have anything to trade. Thanks for sharing your pictures, and I hope your fall show is as lovely as ever this year.

By: Samantha, Austin, TX

Samantha, Austin, TX — Sun, 24 May 2009 18:24:15 +0000

I bought some oxblood lilies (or one, rather) in the fall and I left it in a pot until the leaves died. Can i keep them in containers until I have a yard to put them in or do they do better with deeper soil?

THank you!

By: Phil MacNames Round Rock, TX

Phil MacNames Round Rock, TX — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 21:26:43 +0000

I love oxblood lilies and have hundreds in my garden. I know of several abandoned sites in the central Texas area which are home to thousands of bulbs. I frequently dig the bulbs and ship them all over. My prices are very reasonable in comparison to the major websites offering them. If you’d like a bunch please E-Mail me and I’ll get an order to you. My minimum order size is 100 large to jumbo bulbs for $75 plus shipping.

By: Karen Young

Karen Young — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 00:37:09 +0000

yes, would love to plant some oxblood lilies..hope I can find some to buy…thanks for your photos
there was an old homeplace by my parents that had spider lilies everywhere when I was young.. they were magical to me… I haven’t seen any since hurricane Ivan.. I need to find some and start the magic again!!

By: Irene Chesnutt

Irene Chesnutt — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 16:43:20 +0000

Hi, there! After seeing your photos weeks ago I got a pricey order of oxblood lily from the southern bulb co. Now, I look at your pictures and measure each mm. of growth.
I realize I have a long way to go to 2000,
so I can just appreciate your photos periodically.
Thanks, IHC in Beaumont

By: Carolyn in McKinney, TX

Carolyn in McKinney, TX — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 02:40:15 +0000

When I was answering phones for Neil Sperry’s Texas Gardening radio show this morning, a caller inquired about some red lilies she had been given permission to rescue from a construction site. Neil guessed that she had found oxblood lilies. Her call sent me on a search for photos this evening, and I found yours. They are positively beautiful! What a lovely garden you have!

Tell me, please, how much sun the lilies require. (It appears that they tolerate some shade.) Thanks so much! — cs

Yes, oxblood lilies can tolerate quite a bit of shade. They are particular about their siting. They can take sun or shade or a mix. Most of mine are planted under old cedar elms or pecans–trees with a high canopy; I guess you’d call it filtered sunlight. The only time they’ve been unhappy is planted when I let English ivy grow over them and suck up all their water. — mss

By: Randy Fayetteville, AR

Randy Fayetteville, AR — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 00:07:49 +0000

I moved from Austin (East 14th Street on Swede Hill) to Fayetteville in March 2007. I dug up as many Oxblood bulbs from my Austin yard as I could (about 50). I’ve had them in pots and will plant them in my new yard soon. I couldn’t leave without them.

By: Naomi Leander, TX

Naomi Leander, TX — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 09:29:21 +0000

I saw them bloom from a distance – not close enough to look at the leaves. Although the flower shape was definitely more the oxblood flower than the spider lily, either one would make me happy. Thanks again for your help and your garden is beautiful!

By: Naomi Leander, TX

Naomi Leander, TX — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 13:41:30 +0000

Another compliment on your oxbloods! I think there might be a patch near my office in Georgetown; there are no flowers, but lots of stalks. I may (will, who am I kidding) go dig some up and transplant into my garden. Do you think they would be okay if I dug them up now and didn’t wait until summer?

Yes. Keep them in water until you replant them. Get them in the ground as quickly as you can. And don’t worry–even with mistreatment, oxblood lilies are very hardy. Did you actually see them bloom? If the leaves are a deep green with a milky white stripe then those might be red spider lilies instead. If they are oxblood lilies, I hope you are able to rescue them. — mss

By: Jared, Cedar Park, TX

Jared, Cedar Park, TX — Mon, 12 Nov 2007 21:16:11 +0000

Hello,
I stumbled upon your website the other day. It is great! Excellent info! My fiancee and I just bought a house and are looking to spruce up our newly expanded flower garden and fell in love with the oxblood lily. I’ve had a hard time finding them locally or online. Do you know of any place that might have them (or is it too late this year)?
Thanks for any info!
JM

Thanks. Flattery will get you anything–or at least it will get you some free oxblood lilies. I’d be happy to share some with you. If I dig them up when the leaves die down next summer, you can have some before their next blooming season. Most of the local nurseries have them. I’ve seen them at The Natural Gardener, The Great Outdoors, Barton Springs Nursery, and Gardens. The potted plants at The Natural Gardener won’t bloom again until next year. I don’t know what would happen with bulbs planted this late. — mss

By: elizabeth, austin, tx

elizabeth, austin, tx — Fri, 09 Nov 2007 22:53:47 +0000

I was talking to Pam/Digging about my desire to cultivate oxblood lillies in my gardens spaces.
She mentioned that you have lovely, old groupings; that you may have a few left from your last give away and suggested I contact you.
She forwarded your page to me. They are beautiful!
if you do have extra that would be such a treat. if no, perhpaps you could recommend a place I might find some.
Thank you.
EQ

I’d be happy to share some oxblood lilies with you. I’ve emailed you some more info. — mss

By: Lori, south Austin

Lori, south Austin — Mon, 17 Sep 2007 16:17:44 +0000

Wow! Those oxblood lilies are showstoppers! I have to say that your oxblood lily meadow is the loveliest way I’ve seen them used in a landscape.

Thanks. The problem with a big display like this is the other 332 days of the year it’s rather dull. Do you garden in south Austin? We might be neighbors. — mss

By: M2 in Bothell

M2 in Bothell — Sat, 15 Sep 2007 07:50:33 +0000

I like how you share the possession with “Austinites” in general, and I admit seeing them all over town, but to me, they’ll always be your special flower.

By: Annie in Austin

Annie in Austin — Fri, 14 Sep 2007 21:14:57 +0000

Mine are little bouquets this year, MSS, rather than those glorious sweeps of color in your garden, but oh, how they make my heart glad to see them! Thank you, thank you!

I love the purple heart/Setcreasia leaning in to the lower left of your second photo.

Annie at the Transplantable Rose

By: Angelina

Angelina — Fri, 14 Sep 2007 19:59:15 +0000

They are beautiful! I can’t understand why I never actually do that-go and lie on my belly to stare at the beauty there. Like a kid. Or just like an ageless person enjoying the most simple offering in nature.

Simple and yet not simple.