Allium?

Here is a link that might be useful: Allium

I have heard them called naked ladies. I don't like the name, some one may have just called them that. There must be a better name.

Naked Ladies? Could it possibly be licoris squamigera?

Here is a link that might be useful: Licoris squamigera

Isn't Lycoris a fall bloomer?

Kevin : /

I really thank you for your help, but what I have planted does not have any thing like that much of a flower at the top. I will have to just search thru some pictures on line. I could take pictures of them now, but I have not figured out how to post them on this website. I uploaded some pictures to the Gallery, but I don't know how to link to them.

Maybe society garlic, Tulbaghia violacea? Based on your description of the flowers, I'd guess this or some sort of ornamental onion - allium - as pitimipinai suggested.

Here is a link that might be useful: society garlic

Sorry that I can not give you a better discription. The leaves are up about 6" in our yard now, in East Texas, the leaves are about 3/4" wide and rounded on the tips. The stim looks much like the picture of the Tulbaghia Violacea, but the stem is violet in color. The flowers a much smaller, if they are flowers. I am going on memory from what they looked like last year.

They are a very common plant, I see them every year popping up in people's yards. I wish I knew how to post a picture on this website.

OK, here are some pictures that I put on my website.

http://www.waskomtexas.com/Garden_whats_it

If you can tell from these pictures please let me know the name of them.

Here is a link that might be useful: Garden_whats_it

Could it be eucomis?

Eucomis has wavy-edged leaves. These look like a member of the Allium or Amaryllis families. Do the leaves have an onion or garlic odor, especially when crushed? What is the scale? How tall does the stalk get, and how big is the flower cluster? Gee, I'm nosy!

Kevin : ])

I looked up both the Allium and the Amaryllis, both have much more "flower". As for size I should have thought to place something in the picture for size reference. In the pictures they are 6' - 8" tall. Once they bloom the stem will shoot up to 18" - 20", it will be a redish violet in color. The edge of the leaf is very smooth and smells a little like grass. No onion smell. The flower cluster will be about 3" across, but very small and now very tight packed. I am going from memory on the look of the flower from a year ago when they bloomed last and I don't know what month it was.

It's going to be virtually impossible to say for certain until we can see the flowers :-) All possible scenarios seem to have been addressed. I'd suggest reposting your question with photos once these plants bloom. Or, visit your local library and go though a couple of good illustrated bulb books until you find a flower that matches.

My wife told me that her sister says that they are Surprise Lilies. I looked them up on on Google. I don't remember them as having as much of a flower as the pictures that I found. I guess I will see sometime this summer.

Thank you all for your help.

If they are indeed surprise lilies, then you might want to rethink your planting scheme. The foliage on these bulbs is summer dormant - it yellows and disappears in early summer and then the flower stems (alone) appear for early fall bloom. Foliage will return in late fall and winter over.

This foliage/flowering habit often makes these bulbs tricky to incorporate in the landscape. They are best planted in clumps in selected locations where a) they can be surrounded by other perennials or small shrubs, b) where the ripening summer foliage is not an eyesore and c) the bulbs when not in leaf OR flower are not disturbed by other gardening activity.

The last time I posted here was in February, well the plants are coming up. They have not completely opened up yet but some should in the next few days. Problem is that we are leaving town for about three weeks on Thursday. I will have my daughter take pictures while I am gone. She can e-mail them to me and I will post them.

Maybe we will now what they are now.

Here is a link that might be useful: Mystery Plants

What a cool path and layout!

For the record, Surprise Lilies and Naked Ladies are the same thing. I hope rolacoy checks in so that he/she discovers the alternate name. LOL

Kate

Thanks for your comments. Naked females may stand in the garden, but then they are not ladies, so I will be happy to use the name Surprise Lilies.

rolacoy,

You have what I'm suppose to have its s surprise or spider lily.

We have waited a long time to see what these flowers are. They are not the flower that I thought they were. I still don't know their name, But I am very new to flowers and dan't know the names of most of them.

You can also see the rest of the garden that I am working on. By this time next year I hope to have the hardscape completed. Then I can devote more time to plants. We planted quite a bit of "Stuff" this year, but I will be wiser next year and get more color.

Here is a link that might be useful: Mystery Plants

Rola--the flower shown in IMG 7957 sure looks like Surprise Lily aka Naked Lady to me.

Nice job.

Kate

I can live with Surprise Lily. I have planted about 150 bulbs, which all put up green foliage in February. However, so far we only have about 8 of them putting up flower stems.

We are leaving town today for three weeks so I will not get to see them all bloom this year. My daughter is to do the watering while I am gone and she is to take pictures.