LILIES - RHS Lily Group

affordable book with extensive information on the subject can usually obtain this
work for around £10 to £15.
1943 A Book of Lilies (Dr P. Fred Stoker)
A delightful little book that was published during the war in the King Penguin
series and was restricted to 48 pages. Dr Fred Stoker was a very keen lily exhibitor
with an extensive knowledge of the subject, and he was also a contributor to one
of Elwes’ supplements. There are two plus points to this work. His English is
concise; every word clearly means something, and there is a series of 1/12 colour
plates at the rear of the book reproduced from Elwes’ great Monograph.
1947 Lilies for Every Garden (This work supersedes an earlier book, 1929)
Isabella Preston is probably better known for her work on Syringa x prestoniae.
A number of varieties were raised in various shades of pink. Regrettably the
names have become confused, however they are superb subjects for the large
garden. During the 1930s to 1950s she was well-known for her work on lily
hybridisation. She was one of the first people to apply scientific principles of
plant breeding in an attempt to raise disease-free hardy hybrids which would
withstand the rigours of the Canadian climate.
1950 Lilies of the World (W.D. Woodcock & W.S. Stearn)
William Stearn who started off as a bookshop assistant, ultimately became one
of the world’s greatest botanists and with a concise and precise mind brought
perfection to almost everything he touched. This book is essentially an updated
Woodcock and Coutts. However it has gone up from 242 pages to 431 pages. The
botanical information which was poor in the early edition has been improved,
and there is a much wider coverage of species. Like the 1935 work it can be
obtained at a reasonable price.
1961 The Complete Book of Lilies (de Graaff, Rockwell & Grayson)
The great Dutch-American lily grower Jan de Graaff produced three books on
the subject. One on his own (1951) and another two with garden writers. Oddly
enough the garden writers provided more interest to his work. On this 1961
publication (pity about the title) he co-operated with Rockwell and Grayson, two
well-known American garden writers. This book with 352 pages gives extensive
coverage of the subject with interesting notes on plant breeding.
1963 Garden Lilies (M.E. Leeburn)
The author of this book lived in Northern Ireland and this work supersedes the
one published in 1955. This is a superior work and gives a practical insight into
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