Stargazer Lily

I passed by Cartimar today with Glo to get some plants for the house. After picking various herbs, which I will take a picture of tomorrow, there was a wafting scent I could no longer ignore. When I asked the seller what that was, she said it was a Stargazer, and showed me a row of potted beautiful white and pink flowers. I had Glo pick what she thought was the best one of the lot, and she chose one with most of its buds closed.

Stargazers are a type of Oriental lilies developed in California, USA sometime in the 1970’s. They are so named because of their large upright flowers that seem to be watching the sky for stars. They were first bred as pink with a white border on the petals, though two other hybrids have been developed. One is yellow with a bright orange to red speckles, while the second is white with a light green center. One other characteristic that differentiates them from other similar looking Asiatic lilies is their pervading sweet scent.

Right now, the scent is localized in the dining area, though I think that has more to do with the cross-draft coming from the bedrooms than any weakness in the scent. Only one bloom is open right now, so I have five more flowers to look forward to enjoying in the coming days.