Western Red Lily Centennial Project

In 1941, the Western red lily was named Saskatchewan's floral emblem. In 1969 it was put on Saskatchewan's official flag. As the centennial year of our province approached it was decided that distribution of Western red lilies to communities throughout the province would be a wonderful way to increase awareness and education about Saskatchewan's natural history, as well as celebrate our centennial with a lasting memorial for future generations. Widely recognized by its fiery orange blooms, the Western red lily grows throughout most of Saskatchewan. Unfourtunately, the lily's bright splash of colour has become an increasingly rare sight in our province due to loss of natural habitat and fire suppression.

In the year 2000, the Shand Greenhouse agreed to take on the task of determining how to grow and distribute these plants effectively. Research into developing methods for the mass propagation of lilies under greenhouse conditions began in 2001. Studies included three main stages – seed germination, survival after outplanting and acceleration of lily development.

• Germination trials were conducted to determine if seeds needed any special treatment, soaking, or stratification prior to sowing to encourage rapid germination.
• The next stage examined the survival of lilies inoculated with nitrogen fixing micro organisms. Lilies often naturally form symbiotic relationships with such micro organisms and research was being used to determine if these relationships must be artificially induced to ensure survival after outplanting.
• The final stage of research was designed to determine if the rate at which the lilies reach maturity may be accelerated. It is possible to force younger plants into flowering phase by exposing them to shortened, artificially induced seasons. This trial also incorporated the testing of tissue culture bulblets which were grown on an artificial media in a lab from segments of an existing mature bulb.

Research trials were outplanted into 5 different test beds around the province. In the summer of 2004 after 3 years of research, we finally saw our first blooming lily. We were thrilled. Our excitement increased as reports of blooming lilies came in from our testing sites.

We set ourselves the ambitious goal of growing 100,000 lilies for distribution in the spring of 2005. We chose to put the plants through 2 accelerated forcing cycles, and to inoculate them with a micro organism found in Saskatchewan soils. It took about 56 weeks from start to finish to have these lilies ready for outplanting. The fall, winter and spring phases took place in the back of a refrigerated semi trailer which sat on our grounds for 6 months. The summer phase took place in the greenhouse.

Through the Western Red Lily Centennial Project, the staff at the SaskPower Shand Greenhouse has come to realize the deep and longstanding relationship Saskatchewan people have with our provincial floral emblem. We've been inundated with letters, email, and phone calls from people who just wanted to wish us good luck or share their experiences.

We received one email from a woman who is rehabilitating a piece of boreal forest and inadvertently restored a habitat for Western red lilies. She writes, "My husband, family and friends know of the severe consequences of disturbing this little piece of perfect that could be so easily lost." Many callers have shared memories of walking through fields of lilies in the past. The lily stirs memories of childhood, lost loved ones, and the beauty of Saskatchewan's natural prairie.

The core staff of the greenhouse has been putting time into this project for almost four years now, but since we started the lilies for distribution, we've had to enlist some help. Each tray of lilies was handled no less than eight times, not including preparation. Each of the 1801 trays was hand sown. Our part-time crews spent hours making trays, sowing seeds, moving trays around, condensing empty cells and making boxes for packaging and distribution. This does not include the staff that undertook the daily care of the plants, opened the many entry ballots, contacted the winners of our lily draw, folded letters, talked to partners, distributed plants and all the many other details that go into making a project like this a success.

Lilies were distributed to over 50 locations around the province in June of 2005. Over half of the lilies were distributed through our partner groups:

• Saskatchewan Horticulture Association
• Saskatchewan Parks and Recreation Association — Communities in Bloom
• Nature Saskatchewan
• Association of Saskatchewan Urban Parks and Conservation Areas
• Saskatchewan Learning

Saskatchewan Learning also put together educational modules for various age levels dealing with the Western red lily and its environmental and social implications. The remaining lilies were distributed through a free public draw. We had over 8,000 entries, 1,000 of these received lilies. The SaskPower Shand Greenhouse no longer has lilies available for distribution; however we would like to thank the many individuals involved in the Western Red Lily Centennial Project. Your enthusiasm and love of Saskatchewan's floral emblem, helped make this special centennial project a success.

There are some people living in Saskatchewan today who have never seen a Western red lily up close. As our project comes to conclusion, we hope we've been able to introduce a few more people to our province's floral emblem so that they, too, can cultivate memories of this stunning flower for generations to come.

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