THE FOLKLORE OF PLANTS: Lily

Lisa Karen Miller

          The first lily is said to have sprung from Eve’s tears as she departed the Garden. The angel Gabriel is often depicted with a lily, while Mary at prayer is accompanied by lilies in a vase.  The Madonna Lily (Lilium candidum), cultivated for more than 3,500 years, got its name from her.

          In the language of flowers, the white lily says purity, sincerity, majesty, and sweetness. It is a good luck gift to a woman.

          The lily grows wild in every country that was once part of the Roman Empire.  As an effective cure for corns could be made from it, it was often planted near military encampments for the convenience of footsore legionnaires.

          An important component of Midsummer decorations – along with St. John’s wort, rose, and birch – lilies are meant to fend off ghosts and evil.

           When lilies bloomed plentifully, a good wheat crop was expected.  This was crucial when the harvest and the corresponding price of bread was of utmost importance.

          Lily water was reputed to remove wrinkles and whiten skin. The dew on its petals was a prized beauty lotion; young lasses (and not a few older ones) could be found in the early morning collecting it.

          A 1905 account from Rye in Sussex, England, reports that a fisherman’s daughter was seen wearing a bandage.  She “…was pleased to show me her hand bandaged with lily petals pickled in brandy…the rough side of the petals was for drawing, the smooth for healing.”

          German folklore has it that the soul takes the form of a white lily or rose; one of these appears on the chair of one who is about to die. White lilies are also said to spring from the grave of one unjustly executed, while a maiden’s grave will sprout three lilies which none save her beloved should gather.

          Lillie Langtry – actress, “professional beauty,” and one of Edward VII’s numerous mistresses – was called the “Jersey Lily.” She was born on that island in the English Channel.

          Did you know the Easter Lily grows wild in the Southeast?  Beware of mistaking these for onions; they are extremely poisonous if eaten by humans or livestock.  If you are gifted with one from a nursery, plant it in the ground after flowering.  It will return to its normal bloom cycle.

          Asiatic lilies bloom in late spring to early summer, have unscented smaller flowers, and are very hardy. Oriental lilies bloom in late summer to early fall, and have larger, highly fragrant flowers and taller stems, which often require staking.

          Why not plant some lilies, for beauty that need never depart the garden?

© Copyright 2023 Lisa Karen Miller