A new variety of hybrid lily plant bearing large upright-facing flowers of excellent form and long persistence, both on the plant and as cut-flowers. The flowers of the new hybrid are particularly characterized by their large size and substance and by their unusual orange flowers with a large white area in the center of each tepal. This combination is completely new in the Asiatic hybrid divisions of lilies suited to forcing and to mass commercial cultivation. The variety is highly resistant to fusarium disease and shows tolerance of virus. The bulbs may be precooled and forced for cut-flower production. The clone is vigorous and is a good grower and propagator.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
My new variety of lily plant originated as a seedling which first flowered 
in Boring, Ore. in 1988. The breeding efforts had as their objective the 
production of deeply colored Asiatics with a very light to white area in 
the center of each tepal, suited to forcing into flower out of season, 
heretofore unknown in the lily breeding art. 
I achieved the desired objective by intercrossing two unnamed orange 
Asiatic seedlings, each of which had a much lighter orange area in the 
center of each tepal. Both of the unnamed seedling parents were produced 
by me by pollinating an unusual albino-flowered Asiatic mutant seedling 
(also produced by me and never released commercially) with Lilium 
`Sunkissed` (unpatented). Although unpatented, `Sunkissed` was a popular 
garden lily during the 1970's. Two siblings from this cross had orange 
flowers with very lighly pigmented tepal tips, and these were intercrossed 
to produce `Orange Flash`. Two other siblings of `Orange Flash` showed its 
distinctive flower color pattern, but both had distorted flowers. 
The flowers of my new lily are characterized by an upfacing to slightly 
outfacing orientation, large size, and deep orange coloration with a wide 
white area in the center of each tepal. It possesses unusually strong, 
stout stems. In addition, the clone possesses to a high degree desirable 
characteristics of hybrid vigor. The clone is a good grower and 
propagator, as observed as Boring, Ore. 
My new variety of lily plant has been asexually reproduced by me and under 
my direction at Boring, Ore. Successive generations produced by natural 
propagation from bulblets, bulbils, by bulb scale propagation, and by 
tissue culturing from bulb scale explants have demonstrated that the novel 
and distinctive characteristics of my new variety are fixed and hold true 
under asexual propagation from generation to generation.

DESCRIPTION OF THE NEW VARIETY 
The following is a detailed description of my new variety of Asiatic hybrid 
lily, with nomenclature according to the International Lily Register 
(Royal Horticultural Society of London, Second Edition, 1969), and with 
color designations according to the Colour Chart of The Royal 
Horticultural Society, published by the Society in 1966. 
The Plant 
Origin: Seedling. 
Seed parent: Unnamed seedling. 
Pollen parent: Unnamed seedling. 
Commercial classification: Hybrid Lilium clone. 
Horticultural classification: Division IA, Upfacing Asiatic hybrid lily, 
according to the Horticultural Classification of Lilies, Royal 
Horticultural Society of London. 
Form: Single stem, erect and stately. 
Height: 70 to 125 cm from bulbs 14 to 18 cm in circumference, provided 
their light levels are adequate; low light levels may cause "stretching." 
Growth: Vigorous and upright. 
Foliage quantity: Abundant. 
Size of leaf: 10 to 15 cm long.times.0.75 to 2 cm wide. 
Shape of leaf: Lanceolate (pointed). 
Texture: Leathery and glossy. 
Color: Medium to light green, lighter on lower side. 
Bulb size: Any size, ranging to 25 cm circumference commercially. 
Bulb color: White, with flushes of pink or yellow after exposure to light. 
The Bud 
Form: Obtuse, ovoid, and long. 
Size: 9 to 12 cm long and 10 to 14 cm in circumference just prior to 
opening. 
Opening: Bud opens slowly, in response to morning light; this takes about 
one hour. 
Color: RHS CC orange-red 33 D, with green midribs. 
Peduncle: Averages 10-12 cm, but it may elongate if light levels are too 
low or if bulbs have been improperly stored prior to forcing. Color is 
deep green. 
The Flower 
Blooming habit: Annually in midseason; flowers once and profusely. 
Size: Flowers are large-sized, averaging 14 to 18 cm in diameter, reflexing 
at the tips on the second day to 12-16 cm in diameter. The tepals are 
broad: outer tepals are 2.25 to 3 cm wide, and the inner tepals are 30 to 
3.5 cm wide. The outer tepals are pointed. 
Borne: In a single racemic inflorescence producing 4 to 10 flowers from a 
bulb 12 to 16 cm in circumference. 
Shape: Form a broad, flat-faced bowl shape by the second day after opening, 
with the "bowl" 5-7 cm deep. 
Tepalage: Typical of genus Lilium, with 6 imbricated tepals. 
Tepal color: RHS CC orange-red 33 B/C, deepening to 34 C in the area 
parallel to the nectaries and extending 1 cm beyond the nectaries, with a 
pure white area 0.5-2 cm wide extending from that point along the midrib 
of each tepal towards the apex. The width of the white area varies from 
flower to flower but is always wider at the base and narrowest near the 
apex. The nectaries vary from soft green to pale ivory under low light 
conditions, but when grown in bright light are soft orange. They are 
pubescent, with short white hairs noticeable when the flowers are 
completely open. 
Tepal spotting: Tepals are lightly spotted with medium-sized dark 
magenta-black spots in the orange-colored area at the base of each tepal. 
Tepal longevity: Tepals stay on stems about three weeks. 
Pedicel length: Average 8 to 12 cm long. 
Pedicel color: Dark, glossy plum (heavy anthocyanin over dark green). 
Pedicel form: Sturdy and slightly ascending. 
Color changes: Flowers become slightly lighter as the flowers age. Low 
light levels and extreme heat may cause the white area to decrease 
slightly. 
Appearance: Flower is shiny. 
Disease resistance: The flower and plant are resistant to disease; in 
particular, they are resistant to Fusarium bulb rot and Botrytis blight. 
Fragrance: None. 
Lasting quality: The flower is long lasting, both on the plant and as a 
cut-flower. 
The Reproductive Organs 
Stamens: Arrangement typical of genus Lilium. Six stamens with very light 
orange to white filaments 8 to 10 cm long. 
Pollen and anthers (dehisced): RHS CC greyed red 178A to 182 A, may bleach 
to greyed orange 170 A under very hot conditions. 
Pistil: One in number, 6 to 8 cm long, very light orange in color. 
Stigma: RHS CC greyed purple 183 C/D, medium in size. 
Characteristics of ovary: Characteristic of genus Lilium. 
The Fruit 
Fertility: The fruit bears fertile seed. 
Shape: Ovoid. 
Color at maturity: Soft brown, sometimes overlaid with soft plum. 
My new variety of Asiatic hybrid lily most nearly resembles `Charleston` in 
the pattern of its color distribution (with carotene pigments expressed at 
the tepal base and along the tepal margins, but absent in the midrib of 
each tepal), but it is orange rather than yellow. `Sunkissed` has a 
similar but lighter orange color and shows a much paler area at the apex 
of each tepal under hot conditions, but this never shades into true white.