Swamp Lily
Yes, this is a Swamp Lily and yes, I am standing barefoot in swamp mud up to my ankles in order to get close enough to take this picture with my iPhone. Stupid on so many levels!
The lily used to live under my front stairs but it never bloomed there so I dug up the whole clump of them, split the bulbs apart, and planted them in three different locations. Since it had never bloomed and had been put there long before I moved in, I had no idea what it was or what it needed in order to thrive. This piece of the clump ended up at the edge of my pond. For most of the year the pond edge is damp but not under water, but during summer it is quite flooded. Hence my need to wade in for this picture.
For the first few years after I moved into my house (1999), I would swim in the pond. But as gated communities began to spring up around my property, the water became polluted and overgrown with algae and grasses. Now it’s a muddy mess with a squishy, quick-sand like bottom that can support only the smallest of fishes. It still attracts plenty of water birds, occasional migrating otters and alligator, and is a good place for bog plants like this one. Eventually my pond will fill in entirely. In the meantime, while it is somewhere between pond and swamp, I will enjoy what is there.
May your weekend be used the same way…enjoy what is there!
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