Mystery Lilies Reappear After 42 Years

The white water lilies that gave Lake Lily NJ its name have returned – but no one knows for sure how they got there.

Fragrant white water lilies had adorned Lake Lily since Colonial times but were wiped out during a coastal storm in 1962. This summer, as a committee of local residents made plans to reintroduce water lilies to the lake, two plants showed up on their own. One theory is that the re-emergence was related to a recent lake dredging project designed by F. X. Browne, Inc. The project removed 26,000 cubic yards of sediment from the lake and uncovered a historic spring that once fed the lake with fresh groundwater. It is possible that the dredging may have allowed long-dormant lily seeds under the dredged sediments to take root. Another theory is somebody planted the two lily plants during recent months. An effort is under way to raise money to buy more lilies to be planted in the lake next spring.

http://www.fxbrowne.com/html/lake%20lily%20in%20Lake%20and%20Water%20-%202004.pdf

The (NJ) Press of Atlantic City, 8/25/2004