When we were first married, we bought and renovated a big old 2-story character house in my home town. We were on a corner lot with a large vegetable garden and many flower beds throughout the yard. I recall planting Calla Lilies in one of the flower beds and being so excited when the trumpet-like spathes opened.
Yesterday, as hubs and I were heading out to go visit my Mom, I spied a single Calla Lily in a variety pot in front of our building. Of course, I had to have hubs stop the car so I could hop out for a couple of photos. This was the first Calla Lily I had noticed planted in our part of Saskatchewan since all of those years ago when I planted them.
In doing a bit of research this morning, I learned that the Calla Lily isn’t really a lily at all, but rather is related to Jack-in-the-pulpit and Caladium. This information gave me a bit of a harrumph. Now why would any botanist name a plant a lily when it’s not a lily? Of course, this led to more research. The plant, first discovered in South Africa, was initially named “Calla Lily” in error by the botanist who found it. It has endured more than one name change over its lifetime, but the original, incorrect name is the one that prevailed. Even though lily is incorrect, the word calla is of Greek origin and means beauty. That part of the name is certainly true of this flower.
Photo Note: Due to a gentle breeze, the originals of both of these photos had a bit of blur. I took them into Snapseed and used sharpening in the details tool, and then used the curves tool to apply a soft contrast. These edits helped some, but nothing takes the place of a shot that is crisp to begin with.
“ A name can’t begin to encompass the sum of all her parts. But that’s the magic of names, isn’t it? That the complex, contradictory individuals we are can be called up complete and whole in another mind through the simple sorcery of a name.”
Charles de Lint
Radically Retired 
Your pictures of the Calla Lilies are exquisite. I love the lines of the flower and of course, the color yellow. The quote fits right in with the story of your post. Your post inspires me to take a moment and appreciate a flower or flowers – even more than I already do – and to learn more – more names, more background. Lastly, as a big fan of HGTV shows, I’ve often thought I’d want to renovate an old home – just once – but at this point in my life, that wish will remain one that is lived out vicariously through streaming.
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Thank you for your kind compliment on my photos, Betty! When we renovated that house (built in 1907), we gutted the entire inside, down to the timbers. We replaced all of the old knob and tube wiring and then built it back up from scratch. We also redid the whole exterior, so it was a massive job. A few years later, when we moved to the small city where we’d live for 21 years, the first houses we looked at were old character homes that needed renos. We both decided we didn’t have it in us to repeat the labor and time intensive process. Once was plenty. We could say, “been there, done that, don’t want to do it again”. I love HGTV too – another thing you and I have in common 😊. Have a wonderful day, and happy flower snooping!
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