Description and characteristics of lilies of the Regale variety, planting and care in open ground

Flower growers, using selection and hybridization, create new varieties of ornamental plants to decorate the natural landscape. Wild species are used as parents. The delicacy of the luxurious flowers of the Regale lily is the creation of Mother Nature. The plant was introduced into cultivation unchanged, it is so beautiful, and also unpretentious in breeding and growing.

History of origin

The habitat is rocky spurs in Sichuan province. Huge snow-white flowers with a strong pleasant fragrance served as the basis for the name Regale, which means regal. Lily Regale was introduced into cultivation in 1910 in the USA. A researcher of Chinese flora, E. Wilson, sent plant bulbs to England in 1903, where they took root and bloomed. The plant did not spread in England. Wilson sent several thousand bulbs to Massachusetts, where the lily began to be bred and grown as an ornamental flower.

Dutch flower growers became interested in the new species. 15 years after an English botanist discovered a new daylily, Regale became the most popular variety of its kind in Europe. The wild-growing form became the ancestor of modern lily varieties, united in the group of tubular hybrids.

Description and characteristics of the Regale lily

The height of the stem is from 0.5 to 2.5 meters. The shoots are thin, flexible, leafy. The top and lower tiers end in racemose inflorescences with fragrant “gramophones”. The diameter of the snow-white corolla is from 10 to 20 centimeters, the inner part and stamens with pistil are bright yellow. On the outside, the petals are colored light lilac. The number of flowers on a stem is from 5 to 30 pieces. Flowering period is the second half of July. The fruit is a capsule that opens from the top, filled with translucent seeds.

The leaves are dark green, narrow, leathery, arranged alternately. The bulb is loose, consists of scales, and has a diameter of up to 15 centimeters. The scales of the bulb, dug out of the ground, change color from white-pink to burgundy-purple. At the bottom of the bulb roots grow, reaching a length of up to 50 centimeters.This is where division occurs: new bulbs are formed, which over time become separated from the mother bulb. In the center of the bulb is a growing point from which a single stem emerges.

Pros and cons of the variety

Lily bulbs can withstand soil freezing down to -15 degrees, subject to gradual freezing and thawing. In cultivation, Regale can produce 30 large, heavy flowers, under the weight of which the tall stem breaks off. To preserve the decorative appearance of the plant, support or removal of part of the buds is required.

Features of growing flowers

If you do not adhere to the growing conditions of the lily, the flowers lose their shape and become smaller. Regale is dug up in the fall, using a pitchfork, so as not to damage the root system. For planting next year, the bulbs are stored in a dry place at a temperature no higher than +8 degrees. When planting in autumn, the bulbs are placed in prepared holes.

In the first season, the bulbs develop a root system and grow a flowering stem. Flowering begins the next year.

Choosing a landing site

Regale requires an area well lit by the sun throughout the day. For its thin stems, burdened with luxurious inflorescences, strong drafts are not desirable. For a perennial, choose a place where it will grow for 5 years.

The soil layer should be loose, well absorbing water, permeable to air, and saturated with nutrients. Lilies do not tolerate additives that increase soil acidity. Organic fertilizers (rotted manure) are applied once, before planting the bulb.

Bulb selection

For planting, choose dense, undamaged Regale bulbs with a well-developed root system. Before planting the bulbs in the ground, they are disinfected in a manganese solution (several grains per liter of water) for 30 minutes.After drying, trim the roots, leaving shoots 5 centimeters long.

Planting process

Bulbs in open ground are planted in groups: the distance in rows is up to 20-25 centimeters, in row spacing – 30-40 centimeters. The depth of the hole depends on the size of the bulb: 15-25 centimeters. Planting time is May-September. In temperate climates, the planting site and seedlings should be protected from frost on the soil.

Recommendations for plant care

The Regale lily is not immune to the May return cold. The top of the plant with flower buds dies irrevocably. The plant should be covered with paper or plastic caps. It is equally important to follow agricultural cultivation techniques and prepare flowers for the winter cold. To inhibit the emergence of bulbs planted in the fall, use a snow cover with sawdust, which prevents the soil from warming up.

How to water correctly

Moisten the soil under the lilies depending on the temperature and air humidity from May to the end of July. Regale does not tolerate dry and waterlogged soil. Water getting on leaves and flowers causes burns. Irrigation should be done in the morning if the top layer of soil has dried out by 2-3 centimeters. When budding stops, watering ends.

Mulching

Soil mulching is used if lilies are planted in a separate group in a flower bed. After planting the bulbs, the holes are covered with a layer of dry peat, straw, and sawdust from deciduous trees. Coniferous sawdust is not used for mulching so as not to acidify the soil. Wood ash is added to peat for the same purpose.

If Regale grows among perennials, then the planting site does not require additional protection.

How to fertilize

To feed Regale, mineral fertilizers are used so as not to infect the bulbs. At the beginning of the lily's growing season, calcium nitrate is needed (1/4 teaspoon per half bucket of water). Fertilizer is applied to the soil after watering 2 times with a 2-week break. For abundant flowering in July, plants are supported with full mineral fertilizer (2 times a month during watering): 30 grams per bucket of water. At the end of flowering, phosphorus and potassium fertilizers are applied once.

Preparing for winter

By winter, the above-ground parts of the plant die off. The bulb remains in the ground, in which, during the warm period, a growth point has been formed for the future period, and in the scales there is a supply of nutrients. Lily is a frost-resistant plant. In regions with warm winters there is no need to protect the bulbs from freezing. In other areas, the flowerbed is covered with a thick layer of foliage and spruce branches.

Protection from diseases and pests

In the Regale lily, a fungal and viral infection affects not only the aerial part, but also the bulb. Fungal infection, foci of disease:

• rust – leaves;
• penicillosis - all parts;
• blue mold – bulbs;
• gray rot – leaves, stems;
• phytium – roots;
• rhizoctonia - bulbs;
• anthracnose - all parts;
• Fusarium - bulbs.

With the exception of gray rot, it is impossible to overcome the infection. The flower should be dug up and burned, the soil should be changed, or nothing should be planted in this place for 5 years. Prevention - healthy planting material. Through aphids, viral infection occurs with mosaic, variegation, and rosette. Sick plants are destroyed. Prevention – control of aphids.

Pests of lilies:

• aphid;
• spider mite;
• lily fly;
• May beetle larvae;
• lily rattle.

Control methods include timely treatment with insecticides.

How to propagate correctly

Lilies are propagated by seeds, pups, and scales. Seeds can be planted in March and seedlings can be obtained or sown in open ground in May. In the first case, planting is carried out in a container with sandy-humus soil in rows to a depth of 2 centimeters. Shoots appear on the 20th day. In May, the grown seedlings are transplanted to a permanent place.

Seeds are sown in open ground in the same way as for seedlings. To retain moisture, the soil is mulched until sprouts appear. The division of the bulb is carried out in the 5th year. By this time, additional bulbs ripen and produce flowering stems. The bulb is divided when it is dormant and the above-ground part dies. After being removed from the ground, the bulbs are separated from one another and planted in prepared areas.

Examples of use in landscape design

Lilies are planted in a separate group in the center of the flowerbed, next to low-growing annuals or perennials. Regale in this case is the main color accent that sets off the lower decorative tier. When planting among tall plants your snow-white lilies The texture emphasizes the shades of perennials growing nearby. Regale is not recommended to be planted in the shade of trees.