All About the Lily of the Valley
This little flower is considered pretty by just about everyone who sees it. It seems fragile and pure and is the flower assigned to the month of May. Lily of the Valley has been said to have come to life from the tears that have fallen from the Virgin Mary’s eyes upon the death of her son, Jesus, on the cross. There are a number of additional religious connotations to the meaning of the flower. In general, it symbolizes humility and purity.
Description of the Lily of the Valley Flower
This is a flower that has no equal. It is very possible, unless botanists find more and other evidence that the Lily of the Valley stands alone in its genus. It does not belong to the genus of the lily despite its name. It grows all throughout the European and Asian continents and loves the cooler climates. The Lily of the Valley grows two big leaves per flower that seem to shield the flower from any harm. Those leaves grow as tall as or taller than the flower itself. On the single stem of the flower, you may find a collection of up to fifteen small, white, bell-shaped little flower caps. It grows perennially and propagates through the underground spread of rhizomes.
Uses for Lily of the Valley
A bouquet of Lily of the Valley would probably not look very good since the flower has such small florets on it. It could, however, look very pretty in a bud vase on a table with a dark cloth on it. The green of the leaves and the snowy whiteness of the flowers would make a great looking contrast with a dark blue or burgundy colored table cloth. The wonderful, heady scent of the Lily of the Valley is what most people notice about it right away. For a small, fragile looking flower, its scent rivals that of a much bigger, taller flower. It seems they announce the spring along with several other flowers. Being shorter than some of the other early bloomers, they could easily provide some fullness on the ground. Along borders of driveways or around ornamental trees, they look just phenomenal.
Growing Lily of the Valley
Even though the Lily of the Valley prefers cooler temperatures, it will grow in warmer as well. If you plan on having Lily of the Valley in your yard or garden, there are two things you need to be careful about. One is the poisonous nature of the plant, for humans and pets. The other is the way the flower reproduces may make it difficult to get rid of it once it has established itself. Since its root system creeps underground, you may have to really work on eliminating it. However, if your plans are to have them around to make your yard just beautiful, then you will have no problem because they will multiply on their own. Find out about how the Lilies of the Valley like to live, whether they want lots of water or just a little, what type of soil is best for them, how much sunshine they need during the day, then you are set with growing beautiful Lily of the Valley flowers.