LAMORINDA WEEKLY | Digging Deep-Gardening with Cynthia Naked Ladies and Nasty Non-Natives


Mixed container of herbs and flowers: dill, parsley, basil, zinnia, snapdragon Photo Cynthia Brian

"Let's go into the backyard to admire the Naked Ladies," beckoned a male friend of mine. To the non-gardener, this sentence sounds like a racy pick up line, but to the avid gardener, these bulbous lilies in the Amaryllis family (Lycoris squamigera and Amaryllis belladonna) fill our senses with satisfaction. Watching these bodacious beauties sway in the breeze is intoxicating.

Native to southern Japan, Naked Lady Lycoris squamigera, is appropriately known as Magic Lily and Surprise Plant. Within the genus Amaryllis, Amaryllis belladonna is one of two species, hailing from the Western Cape of South Africa. In late August, early September, they suddenly sprout tall, curvaceous necks stretching towards the sunshine, boasting five to seven four inch long fragrant pink trumpets. The foliage resembles that of agapanthus appearing in the winter and dying back as soon as the weather warms. We always allow the leaves to wither and die without pruning, lest we lose the unexpected arrival of these graceful charmers of summer.

Naked Ladies appeal to my landscape longings for four reasons:

1. Once planted, they require no

work with the exception of

pruning their stems once the blooms are spent.

2. They are drought tolerant, pests

don't bother them, and they grow

in sun or shade.

3. They naturalize, coming up year

after year, offering their cheery

pink faces just at a time that my

garden is looking worn and weary.

4. The deer don't eat them!

Writing about Naked Ladies reminds me of a story from my teenage years that I learned about a few years ago at the wedding of my niece. Growing up on the farm, my sisters, brothers, and I were responsible for cultivating the vineyards and performing numerous necessary ranch chores before we were allowed to participate in other activities. When my sisters and I had dates on Saturday night, we were still required to tractor the fields before going out. This presented a problem because we wanted to wear summer dresses and none of us wanted a "farmer's tan" (dark arms to above the elbows, white skin everywhere else) so we came upon a brilliant idea. We decided to plow the fields in our bikinis in an effort to get the work done and get a full body tan. As long as we wore our cowboy boots, my Dad had no problem with us working this way. We'd slather on the baby oil, climb aboard the Caterpillar, Ford, or John Deere, and row-by-row we'd plow the orchards. Evidently one day my Dad noticed several pick up trucks lined up along our fence. He rode over in the Willy jeep to investigate the crowd of young men peering towards the vineyards. "May I help you gentlemen?" my Dad inquired. "No," responded one of the boys, "we're just watching those three girls over there driving tractors buck naked!" My Dad glanced in the direction of their gleaming eyes. He then glanced at his shotgun on the jeep. Looking directly at the teens, Dad said, "Well, gentlemen, those naked girls on those tractors happen to be my daughters and if you know what's best for you, you'll be moving on!" The trucks sped down the country road in a nano second. Of course, from a distance we did look like naked ladies because the dust and dirt caked to our babied oiled bodies gave us the appearance of being brown all over. My Dad never mentioned a word about this interaction to any of us and we continued to plow the fields in our bikinis until we all moved away from home. To this day, we remain naked ladies, preferring to garden in our bikinis!

The Nasty Non-Natives

Although both the Amaryllis belladonna and the Lycoris squamigera are highly poisonous if ingested, they are welcome sparkling immigrants to our landscapes. California is home to over 4,200 native plant species and is recognized internationally as a "biodiversity hotspot." We also have over 1,800 non-native plants growing in the wilds of the state with about 200 of those becoming what I call the "nasty non natives." These invasive plants disrupt natural habitats, displace natives, and have the potential to spread explosively. Unfortunately, Lamorinda is home to many of these pest plants.

Since fall is one of the best times to improve your soil, it is also the best time to rid your ground of weeds before the seeds have an opportunity to take root. Weeds that are left standing in autumn usually return with vigor in the spring. My suggestion is to learn to identify the predators, get out the hoe, and dig deep. Don't put these in your compost pile as the seeds may germinate and spread more of the nastiness.

Here's a short list of the invasive nasty non-natives that you may encounter in your gardens or on hillsides nearby:

Yellow starthistle

Pampas grass

Artichoke thistle

Scotch broom

Wild fennel

Himalayan Blackberry

Cotoneaster

Water Hyacinth

Leafy Spurge

Myosporum

Poison Hemlock

Purple Loosestrife

Coming up on September 13th, Be the Star You Are!(r) volunteers will decorate the tables at the Books and Bands Bash Benefit with leaves from the vineyards and ripe home grown fruit. Naked Ladies, bikinis, and nasty non-natives will not be admitted. (Get tickets at www.bethestaryouare.org)

"The only limit to your garden is at the boundaries of your imagination."

Thomas D. Church