LILIES - RHS Lily Group

shaped hybrids, a variety of different aurelian hybrids was developed. These
breeds are rarely affected by disease. At most they are sensitive to late frosts,
which can impair their flowering. Carl Feldmaier, the German lily breeder,
describes the aurelian lilies as extremely fool proof.
Pink trumpets with trumpet shaped blooms developed following specific
selection processes. L. N. Freimann from Washington noticed pink petals on one
of his seedlings. He crossbred the hybrid over several generations, selecting
the best seedlings for breeding, until he finally obtained lilies with fuchsia pink
petals. The disadvantage was that the third generation was greatly weakened by
the interbreeding, so he was forced to backcross it with Lilium regale until he
was finally able to sell the “pink trumpets”.
This programme took 15 years. The “king lilies” were developed in a similar
way. In 1941 Freimann sowed some Lilium x gloriosum seed; amongst the
seedlings he found one that was cream-coloured. After five years of back-crossing
and much selection the “golden regales” were introduced in 1946. When one is
talking of yellow and golden trumpet lilies, one breeder must not be forgotten
– Jan de Graaff from the Oregon Bulb Farms. In 1934 the Dutchman emigrated to
America, he bought land and planted narcissus and iris bulbs. At the same time,
lilies fascinated him, so he collected whatever he could get and bred selectively.
From de Graaff’s selection came the white hybrids that are divided into two
groups: the “mountain-hybrid” that have a touch of green and the classic white
“Olympic-hybrid”.
Trumpet lilies are usually divided in four main groups: the ones with Chinese
trumpet flowers (6a), the ones with cup or pod shaped flowers (6b), the ones
with hanging flowers (6c), and, finally, the ones with star shaped flowers (6d).
Trumpet lilies are easily grown in a humus-rich sandy soil, with their heads
in the sun and feet in the shade. Due to their high bud count, trumpet lilies are
more suited to the garden than to the cut flower trade, which has not made wide
use of trumpet lilies because of the problems involved when transporting the
plants (buds easily damaged…etc). Trumpet lilies, as previously mentioned, can
be very free flowering. One variety (‘Heidelberg’) produced 66 flowers! Another
hybrid, ‘Glockenturm’, was photographed with 30 flowers.
Trumpet lilies are rarely found in florists. For the garden however a wide range
of different new hybrids are now available, making it worthwhile for everyone to
try for themselves.
The Editor would like to thank Pontus Wallstén who assisted with the translation of this
article which was kindly undertaken by Gesa Hille.
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