Hurricane lilies are Southern heirlooms, poisonous, too

Have you noticed some red flowers popping up lately, seemingly out of nowhere? Chances are you have been graced by the presence of hurricane lilies.

These flowers tend to show up in August and September — peak hurricane season in Louisiana, hence their name. Long stems give rise to large, showy blooms that usually are red but sometimes display shades of white, pink and yellow. You’ll often find them on old Southern homesites, and they’re a popular passalong plant.

When people say “hurricane lilies,” they’re using an overarching term that includes several different plants. Some interchangeably use the terms spider lilies and surprise lilies. While these plants are similar, they are in fact unique species in the Lycoris genus, which is part of the Amaryllidaceae family. That means hurrican