The Many Faces of Lilies

Over the years, my shop has received so many phone calls, requesting to deliver lilies as a symbolic gesture from the sender.  These calls are sometimes long and confusing to the customer because when asked the question, "what type of lily would you like?," confusion sets in.  Some customers think of a lily as referring to just a single flower type, like a sunflower or a rose.  Well, it's a bit more complicated.

Lilies can refer to flowers such as Oriental lilies, which includes the Casa Blanca lilies, Stargazer lilies, Easter lilies or another variety of the Oriental lily family.  These are the more traditional and common lily flowers.  These lilies, especially the Stargazer lily can be highly scented.  They were traditionally used as wedding flowers and funeral flowers.  Some customers find the perfume-like fragrance of these flowers to be a bit offensive.  The scent can trigger migraines or it can be a reminder of a loved one's funeral.  In the old days, the highly perfumed lilies were used to conceal the odor of death and although no longer used for its odor concealing quality, it has continued to be a popular funeral flower.  Not all of the Oriental lilies are highly fragrant, but it is a common quality among most.




Stargazer Lilies available for delivery in Boca Raton

Next on the list of lily flowers is the Asiatic lily.  The Asiatic lily is a smaller version of the oriental lily and usually not scented.  It comes a wider variety of colors compared to its relative, the Oriental lily.  The most popular Asiatic lily is the Tiger lily, which is bright orange with brown spots or freckles on the inner portion of the petals.  Asiatic lilies and Oriental lilies are not harmful to humans, but can be fatally toxic to cats.

 

The Tiger lily is sometimes confused with the common roadside, daylilies.  Daylilies tend to grow in ditches and will open during the day and close at night.

 

Orange Asiatic Lilies can be purchase from florist, Petals of Boca

Another commonly requested lily flower is the calla lily.  This flower type does not belong to the traditional lily family and looks nothing like it.  Calla lilies can be large calla lilies, which come in white and the exquisite green tones of the Green Goddess.  The smaller calla lilies are referred to as mini or miniature calla lilies and come in a rainbow of colors.  Calla lilies are sometimes called "trumpet lilies" because of the shape of the flower's head or the less graceful, but cute, "pig's ear" which is what an open calla lily flower looks like.


Large, white calla lilies as seen above are popular wedding flowers.

The calla lily is not only a popular wedding flower, but it is also used for modern and masculine flower arrangements.  Calla lilies are not scented and have a long vase life.

Somewhat similar in shape to a fully open calla lily is a peace lily, but they are not related.  The peace lily is rarely used in flower designs.  Instead, it is left on the plant, which is usually sent as a sympathy gift.  The peace lily plant is an indoor plant which requires lots of water and little sunlight, making it a great office plant.

The many faces of the lily continue to present themselves in the form of other unusual lilies, none of which are related to traditional lilies or calla lilies.  Among these flower types are ginger lilies, water lilies, African lilies, gloriosa lilies and lily of the valley.

Information on this article was provided by Petals of Boca, florist in Boca Raton located at 1101 S Rogers Cir#2, Boca Raton FL 33487