Save The Lilies!

   Those dratted Eastern Lubber Grasshoppers are the bane of just about every gardener on the Coast.  Ever since those critters showed up (basically after Hurricane Camille back in 1969), they have reproduced in great numbers.  Now, millions of the critters hatch each spring and start to munch any plant within sight. It is horrible especially since not many sprays kill them.  There was even one point in time that Pop had resorted to actually spraying with gasoline just to kill them.  At that time, the ground was literally covered...every last inch of it.  It was like something from a horror movie.  Now, I just try to do the "stomp and smash" dance.  It does not even make a dent in the population but does make me feel like I am at least trying.  That said, the plants suffer greatly.

  It seems as if these grasshoppers have an affinity for lilies of any kind.  The soft leaves and stalks are eaten to the ground then the critters start on the bulbs themselves.  Years ago, it was not uncommon to see yards and even fields fully covered in the red blooms of the Lycoris lilies or Red Spider Lilies (also known as Red Hat Ladies and Naked Ladies to the locals.  Both names due to the fact that the blooms sit on top of a spindly stalk with no leaves in sight.)  Now, you are lucky to find a few popping up here and there.  It saddens me to think that one insect can obliterate an entire yard of lilies overnight.  The lubber grasshoppers can if the numbers are vast enough.

  Imagine my surprise when I found a single Spider Lily blooming in the midst of the Zinnias.  Perhaps the grasshoppers overlooked one lily or perhaps they do not care for Zinnias to the point that they avoid them.  It does not matter.  What does matter is that I had the joy of finding the lily after the rains today.  The discovery has ignited a fire inside of me!  My new quest is to find some natural spray (I refuse to spray gas on my garden!) to rid the place of these horrid, toxic critters that have no natural predators.  It is time to break out the "kitchen chemistry" trials in search of something to save the lilies!

Sure Sign of Fall

  Since falling a bit under the weather last month, I have been neglecting the poor garden terribly!  The whole place is wild and woolly.  This afternoon, I went out to find the old cat, Ms. Put, when I realized what a mess the place was.  I felt bad for the overgrown boxes and dried out plants.  Everything has gone to seed which is ok except I need to be out picking those seeds for next spring.  It ain't happenin', folks...it ain't happenin'.

  As I turned to head back inside (without the elusive cat), one garden box greeted me with a happy surprise.  A bunch of lilies decided to bloom in the midst of the overgrown purple basil.  Aww, I needed that surprise.  I say surprise because I had no recollection of planting the bulbs in the box.  I am sure that I probably stuck them there out of pure desperation one day when I had to hurriedly remove the bulbs from the path of my menfolk.  The guys are doing some restoration work on the Little Bayou House and I have noticed that if any plants are within a mile of their feet, the plants are goners.  I hear things like "No, they are not in the way." but then the next thing I see is trampled plants.  I guess they were not in the way anymore after that.  Smashed to smithereens is not too healthy for most plants and while bulbs would most likely survive, I try to dig them before they become unrecognizable as bulbs.  

  During the fall, these lilies always put on a show that is nothing short of spectacular.   The Red Spider Lily can be found growing wild by the masses in fields and along roadsides in the Deep South.  The original bulbs are said to have been brought from Japan in 1854.  One Captain William Roberts acquired three bulbs and carried them home to North Carolina.  Those bulbs are said to not have bloomed until after the Civil War.  By then, the bulbs had multiplied profusely and laid out a carpet of red blooms over the entire south.  

  The Yellow Spider Lilies were introduced much later but have spread just as rapidly as their red counterparts.  It is not uncommon to see vast fields of both flowers blooming during mid to late September.  

  There are numerous whimsical names attached to these flowers. Naked Ladies...due to the lack of leaves when the blooms are present...Hat Flowers...since some say they resemble large hats...and Burlesque Ladies...which alludes to the first name...are all local jargon for the same plant.  Whatever they are called, most folks are always happy to see the flowers in bloom.  With their arrival, we all know that cooler weather is not far behind.  The long, hot, drowsy summer stretch is dwindling quickly to give way to cooler nights.  The flowers are a sure sign of fall.