Where the rain lilies bloom

Hello, I’m Amanda McNulty with Clemson Extension and Making It Grow. Edward’s family had a farm, sadly now sold, that had one fascinating area – a shady, marshy area going downhill and ending with several acres of a swamp. We loved walking there and transplanted native azaleas and cinnamon ferns we found. Once when the access road was flooded, we walked in from a stream, scrambling down from the paved road over a culvert. When we got to the bottom, we were dazzled by hundreds of pink-tinged lilies blooming their heads off. They were a species of rain lilies, native to the New World. We of course brought some home and they bloomed for us for years. At our wonderful South Carolina treasure, Brookgreen Gardens, I’ve seen vast swaths of them, in a semi-sunny spot under those glorious live oaks.