Lily of the Valley
Lily of the Valley (Convallaria majalis)
In France this year the traditional May Day street marches are cancelled due to the lockdown for the first time in history. The street sales of Lily of the valley, or Muguet as known in France, is prohibited and producers estimate that at least 70% of the produce will be lost. This flower is known to bring luck and heralds the arrival of spring. This post is dedicated to a simple plant with it's delicate flowers, usually around 8 inches tall but means so much more.
The first lily of the valley to bloom in my backyard. The flowers are sweet scented and shaped like a bell. It is a perennial and grows about 6-10 inches tall. A word of caution - all part of the plant is poisonous if ingested.
The plant is propagated by underground rhizomes. It prefers temperature from 60 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit and is very cold hardy. Every 3 or 4 years dive the bed as otherwise the plants can get too crowded.
The plant tolerates shade very well and is often planted under trees.
I will end this article with one short story. I wanted a bouquet of the Lilly of the valley flowers for my wedding in September. I told the florist as much and she gave me this look and said ,"In September? There is no way you can get it at that time." Well, I was disappointed but decided to move forward and substitute it with cream roses.
A couple of months later we found a house that we liked and we bought it within a few months. We moved in. In the first spring in our house I woke up early one day and went to the front yard with a cup of tea and guess what? An entire patch of my front garden has nothing but Lilly of the valley. The flowers were so pretty and looked like a carpet of green and white, and so fragrant. Since then I planted some in my backyard and it has been thriving ever since.
You see when you have small (or big) disappointments in life it only means there will be something better in store for you if you only wait.
In France this year the traditional May Day street marches are cancelled due to the lockdown for the first time in history. The street sales of Lily of the valley, or Muguet as known in France, is prohibited and producers estimate that at least 70% of the produce will be lost. This flower is known to bring luck and heralds the arrival of spring. This post is dedicated to a simple plant with it's delicate flowers, usually around 8 inches tall but means so much more.
The first lily of the valley to bloom in my backyard. The flowers are sweet scented and shaped like a bell. It is a perennial and grows about 6-10 inches tall. A word of caution - all part of the plant is poisonous if ingested.
The plant is propagated by underground rhizomes. It prefers temperature from 60 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit and is very cold hardy. Every 3 or 4 years dive the bed as otherwise the plants can get too crowded.
The plant tolerates shade very well and is often planted under trees.
I will end this article with one short story. I wanted a bouquet of the Lilly of the valley flowers for my wedding in September. I told the florist as much and she gave me this look and said ,"In September? There is no way you can get it at that time." Well, I was disappointed but decided to move forward and substitute it with cream roses.
A couple of months later we found a house that we liked and we bought it within a few months. We moved in. In the first spring in our house I woke up early one day and went to the front yard with a cup of tea and guess what? An entire patch of my front garden has nothing but Lilly of the valley. The flowers were so pretty and looked like a carpet of green and white, and so fragrant. Since then I planted some in my backyard and it has been thriving ever since.
You see when you have small (or big) disappointments in life it only means there will be something better in store for you if you only wait.
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