It is too easy to forget that midsummer as well as fall is a time for planting bulbs. This is one of the months (August) for putting in the bulbs of Sprekelia formosissima, an amaryllid from Mexico which is known as Aztec lily, St. James lily and Jacobean lily.
If your ground is heavy, give this bulb a nest of pour sandy soil on top of some good drainage material. It also likes some sun. The time of bloom depends a lot on how much water the plant receives, and when. My bulbs usually flower in June, hut by delaying the watering I have had blossoms much later.
The flower is bright sealing-wax red and measures 7 inches each way. It looks something like an orchid but the seg. ments are narrower. Though the still dark leaves may be up at the same time as the bloom, it is a good thing to plant the bulbs among other dainty-foliaged vegetation.
by R Lester – 62840
