INDIAN APOLIS

INDIAN APOLIS

Besides the Easter bunny and eggs stuffed with candy, one of the other things that is associated with the Easter season is Easter lilies.

Matt Maxwell, the manager of Crossroads Greenhouse, which is leased by Heartland Growers, said Easter lilies are known for their white flowers and sweet fragrance and are a native plant of Japan.

“When the flower opens up, it is very fragrant. For me, when I smell an Easter lily, I think of spring,” he said.

Maxwell has been the manager of Crossroads Greenhouse for 27 years, and when Heartland Growers began leasing the greenhouse in 2006, he and his employees began growing 40,000 Easter lilies each year. When they are ready, they are shipped to Heartland Growers to be distributed.

“We grow Nellie White Easter lilies, which is the most common variety. There are a few other varieties of lilies that some growers have, but Nellie White is the standard Easter lily plant,” Maxwell said, adding that there are not that many Easter lily growers left.

He said the same amount of lilies still are being grown each year, but larger growers are just growing more since the number of growers is down, which is why most operations focus on growing Nellie White lilies.

The greenhouse grows the Easter lilies from bulbs, which they get every year in December from a place in Northern California.

Maxwell said one of the greatest challenges of growing the plant is the date that Easter takes place each year.