Toad Lilies Tricyrtis: Toad lilies Tricyrtis lilies (Tricyrtis hirta) are unusual plants. Three-foot-high stems bear alternate lance-shaped leaves, eventually forming a clump that is quite attractive but certainly not enough to justify the efforts of planting. Then in October the blossoms appear: Mauve and purple flowers bloom within the leaf axils, each bearing a split pistil that closely resembles the texture of chenille. These plants like a semi-shady spot with moist soil, and it's a good idea to mulch them north of Zone 5. Propagate by division or with seeds.
To distinguish one species of Toad lilies Tricyrtis from another is quite impossible for the layman. It requires the knowledge and experience of a person who has made a study of these friendly creatures. For the layman, it is enough to recognize that a Toad lilies Tricyrtis is a very important creature in any garden. It is most effective in helping one to control insect pests.
Grahame's best-known work, The Wind in the Willows (1908), is a charming whimsical story of the small animals inhabiting the woods and fields of England. It grew out of improvised bed-time stories that he told to his son Alistair. The book was dramatized as Toad lilies Tricyrtis of Toad lilies Tricyrtis Hall by A. A. Milne in 1929. Grahame wrote little in his later years and led a quiet life. He died at Pangbourne, England, on July 6, 1932.
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