Guernsey Lily
To have a plant species named after you is an honour and such has been bestowed on the Island of Guernsey with the naming of an amaryllis as "Nerine sarniensis"; Sarnia being the name the Romans gave to the island of Guernsey.
The bulb is indigenous to South Africa and grows in the wild on Table Mountain and other south western mountains of the Cape Province of South Africa. There are about thirty known species of Nerine growing wild in South Africa and some of these have a number of cultivated forms. In its natural state it has several colour forms ranging from scarlet to crimson, but can also be found in white.
Local legend states that the first bulbs were washed ashore on the west coast of Guernsey from a Dutch ship wrecked whilst en route from Japan.
Another story claims that it was introduced by green fingered Roundhead General Lambert, during his imprisonment in Castle Cornet. What now seems more likely is that a homebound Dutch East India Company ship put in at Cape of Good Hope where the crew collected nerines from Table Mountain. Six bulbs were given to Jurat de Saumarez after the vessel was temporarily ‘cast ashore’ on mid seventeenth century Guernsey.
The Guernsey Lily was the first Nerine to be cultivated in Europe and it is reported to have been grown in Paris in 1630. Two hundred years later Guernsey was developing quite a reputation for its several hundred graperies and greenhouses. The beginnings of its horticultural export industry were evident at the time. Nerine flowers were amongst the first blooms to be exported to London. Nerines did not become a major export for the Island, being superseded by gladioli, daffodils, then freesias and latterly roses and carnations.
Each October there is an exhibition of Nerines. Hundreds of varieties in a wide range of colours are shown at the Lower glasshouse, Candie Gardens, St Peter Port. The bulbs form part of the Guernsey National Council for the Conservation of Plants and Gardens.
AUTUMN WALKING FESTIVAL 04 Sep 2010 - 12 Sep 2010
Contact Guernsey Information Centre on +44 (0)1481 723552
Various walks will be on offer during our Autumn Walking Week, offering walks on many aspects of Guernsey life. Take...
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ARTWORKS WITH UK ARTIST BARRY HERNIMAN 30 Sep 2010 - 03 Oct 2010
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Join us on any one or all of our beautiful Bailiwick islands for a full day of painting, socialising and a cuppa. Trees will be the main...
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