growing martagon lilies, with a touch of lime

SEATTLE-BASED GARDEN FRIENDS brought me lily bulbs years ago, ones they said were their favorites, but of a type I didn’t know. They were martagon lilies, and when I saw my first flowers the next spring, they quickly became my favorite, too, with their Turk’s cap-style blooms and a natural-looking demeanor—no stiffness, and lots of grace. My gift had come from a nursery near my friends’ garden, which has a great assortment of martagons. In 2013, I asked that expert grower to give us the 101 on them (quick hint: lime desired!), and lily-growing and dividing in general. This is the updated version of that story.

Dianna Gibson of B&D Lilies, in Port Townsend, Washington, took the time away from tree-felling and bulb-harvesting and all the rest of her giant to-do list on the farm to answer my questions this week. Dianna, a longtime source for American-grown lily bulbs and keen gardener herself, has a large selection of martagons, among other goodies.

The so-called martagons—which can loosely refer to the actual species Lilium martagon, or to hybrids of martagon and other species including L. hansonii—bloom just before and with the Asiatic lilies, says Dianna. She calls them, “classic choices for old-style gardens.” The species originated in Europe, and is hardy down to Zone 3, but on the other end of hardiness, “they need some winter chill,” says Dianna, “so Zone 9 works in gardens if they are on the ‘cold side’ of the house and in shade, but not on a south-facing, white house, with a sidewalk.” Zone 8 is safer, and again: don’t bake them in a hotspot.

The ones I was gifted years ago are both hybrids: ‘Mrs. R.O. Backhouse’ (a 1921 introduction that Dianna calls “straw yellow with a soft magenta reverse”–photo above and Read more on awaytogarden.com