False Lily of the Valley – Care Tips for Wild Lily of the Valley Flowers

Have you heard about the False Lily of the Valley? I was wondering why people grow them despite their potential lethality or danger. Should I try planting them or not? What if they’re dangerous to pets or small children? I wanted to know the answer, so I began researching the reason.

Wow, what I discovered was that false lilies of the valley are easy to grow, even if kept in dense shade. Not just this, they smell fantastic when blooming and are visually appealing both during and after flowering.

These are features that make them special even after being dangerous. So why not try growing them? Here, I’ve outlined care and tips that will help you decide where and how to grow them. Let’s delve deeper.

Quick takeaways:

• This little false lily of the valley makes an excellent plant for ground covers in shady areas with the additional benefit of a beautiful-looking garden.
• False Lily of the Valley is a tough plant to cultivate and requires constant care.
• These plants love moisture and are quite drought-tolerant.
• These plants require great attention while planting and especially during the growing phase, but once they are established well one can notice tremendous growth.

A few elaborative facts about the False Lily of the Valley

False Lily of the Valley is a perennial plant like the Rubrum lily that is native to the Pacific Northwest region. These plants can be most useful for ground coverings in shady areas. False Lily of the Valley plant has long, big, and glossy leaves. It can be a bit complicated to grow this plant, but the result is a beautiful garden with tiny white flowers. There are many types of lilies that you can grow in the garden like rose lily, Rubrum Lily, Watsonia Bugle Lily, etc.

The flowers are heart-shaped and they grow on long stalks. The more common name for this plant is “Wild Lily of the Valley flowers”. These plants are identified by the tiny white bell-shaped flowers, that have a delicate scent in the spring, and have a full bloom in shady areas where many plants fail to grow.

The most important and fascinating feature of this plant is the spread or growth of the plant after the plantation. False Lily of the Valley shows tremendous and surprising growth when it spreads wide beyond the areas where it is originally planted. This is the most enchanting feature of this plant which leaves the garden owner a surprise!

Let’s know a few more details regarding the False Lily of the Valley plant.

Common Name	False Lily of the Valley, May Bells, Wild Lily of the Valley Flower, Lady’s Tears, Mayflower
Botanical Name	Maianthemum dilatatum/Convallaria majalis
Soil Type	Rich or fertile soil, Clay soil
Soil pH	Neutral to Acidic
Watering	This plant prefers moist soil and requires regular watering.
Drainage	Needs a Well-drained soil
Temperature	60-70 F temperature is required, the plant does not do well in dry and hot climates.
Flowering/Nonflowering	Flowering
Flower color	White
Flowering Season	Spring
Specialties	These plants can be grown in shady spots. These plants can be easily cultivated under large trees where many other plants fail to develop. It has a quick spread, and before you know it they can cover up a large area. It is a Long-living plant. False Lily of the Valley needs attention to thrive.
Height	6″ to 12″ at maturity
Width	9″ to 12″ at maturity
Sun Exposure	Partial to full sun exposure
Hardiness (The ability to endure difficult weather conditions)	3-8 (USDA)
Native	European regions
Toxicity	Toxic or poisonous to people and animals

Note of caution
False Lily of the Valley is highly toxic both to people and to animals when ingested. Every part of the plant including the attractive orangish-red fruit is highly toxic and may result in vomiting, upset stomach, nausea, heart conditions and much more.

Care Tips for Wild Lily of the Valley Flowers

1. Location –

This plant can be observed in full bloom in shady to partially shaded areas. Too much wind exposure might result in frost, as this is a perennial plant that sheds leaves.

2. Soil and Planting –

Usually, this plant is considered an outdoor woodland flower that is grown below the shade of trees in the open, in a neutral to acidic soil type.

The best time to enjoy these plants is from spring to autumn.

3. Care and Propagation –

False Lily of the Valley is a tough plant to cultivate and requires constant care. These plants love moisture and are quite drought-tolerant. These plants require great attention while planting and especially during the growing phase, but once they are established well one can notice tremendous growth.

A layer of compost can accelerate the growth of this already fertile plant as it grows under the shade of trees.

The plants can be easily grown from seeds, but dividing the rhizome of an already developed and well-established plant can lead to faster growth of these plants. Growing from seeds can sometimes not be as fruitful as these plants require extra care.

4. Diseases and Pests –

This plant is not susceptible to diseases and pests generally.

Important Takeaways

• This little false lily of the valley makes an excellent plant for ground covers in shady areas with the additional benefit of a beautiful-looking garden.
• These plants require great attention while planting, but once they are established well one can notice tremendous growth.
• This plant can be observed in full bloom in shady to partially shaded areas.
• Usually, this plant is considered an outdoor woodland flower that is grown below the shade of trees in the open, in a neutral to acidic soil type.
• The best time to enjoy these plants is from spring to autumn.
• It is an aesthetic plant with beautiful white flowers to enjoy.

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