White Trumpet Lily, Easter lily, Trumpet Lily
Lilium longiflorum
Family: Liliaceae
What it is like
Bloom Color: White. Main Bloom Time: Early summer, Late summer, Mid summer. Form: Columnar, Upright or erect.
Lilium longiflorum is a BULB growing to 1 m (3ft 3in) by 0.3 m (1ft) at a medium rate. See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 5. It is in flower from July to August, and the seeds ripen from September to October. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is pollinated by Bees. Suitable for: light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils and prefers well-drained soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It prefers moist soil.
Height (m): 1
Where it is found
By the coast, often in pockets of coral rock.
E. Asia - Southern Japan, in the Ryukyu Islands.
Conservation Status:
Countries/locations it is found in
How it is used
Food
Rating: 3
Bulb - cooked. Mild flavoured and slightly sweet. A starch is also extracted from the bulb. The bulb is 25 - 50mm in diameter. It can be used as a vegetable in similar ways to potatoes(Solanum tuberosum). Young leaves and stems - cooked. Eating the leaves and stems severely harms the vitality of the bulb and is not recommended. Flowers. No further details are given. The flower buds are eaten according to another report.
Root: includes bulbs, corms, tubers, rhizomes etc.
Medicine
Rating: 2
The bulb is antiasthmatic, antitussive, expectorant, sedative and tonic (nutritive). It is used in the treatment of coughs, haemoptysis, insomnia and fidgetiness in the later stage of febrile disease.
Antiasthmatic: Treats asthma.
Antitussive: Prevents or relieves coughing.
Expectorant: Clears phlegm from the chest by inducing coughing.
Sedative: Gently calms, reducing nervousness, distress and irritation.
Other
Rating: 2
An essential oil is obtained from the flowers, used in perfumery.
Essential: Essential oils that are used in perfumery, medicines, paint solvents, insect repellents etc.
Food Forest: Plants for Edible Forest Gardens and Food Forests.
Scented Plants: Plants noted for their scent
How it is grown
Landscape Uses:Container, Specimen. Prefers an open free-draining humus-rich loamy soil with its roots in the shade and its head in the sun. Lime tolerant., plants grow well in limestone soils. Plants deteriorate rapidly if grown in deep shade. A very ornamental plant it is often cultivated for the cut flower trade. It is only hardy outdoors in the mildest areas of Britain and even there needs to be grown in a warm sheltered position with protection from early frosts. The dormant bulbs will withstand soil temperatures down to at least -5°c. It can be grown as an annual, the plants can flower in 6 months from seed. The flowers diffuse a pleasant jasmine-like perfume. Hand pollination is required in order to ensure fertilization. Stem rooting, plant the bulbs 20cm deep. Early to mid autumn is the best time to plant out the bulbs in cool temperate areas, in warmer areas they can be planted out as late as late autumn. The plant should be protected against rabbits and slugs in early spring. If the shoot tip is eaten out the bulb will not grow in that year and will lose vigour. Special Features:Attractive foliage, Suitable for cut flowers, Fragrant flowers, Attractive flowers or blooms. The plant is heat tolerant in zones 9 through 7. (Plant Hardiness Zones show how well plants withstand cold winter temperatures. Plant Heat Zones show when plants would start suffering from the heat. The Plant Heat Zone map is based on the number of "heat days" experienced in a given area where the temperature climbs to over 86 degrees F (30°C). At this temperature, many plants begin to suffer physiological damage. Heat Zones range from 1 (no heat days) to 12 (210 or more heat days). For example Heat Zone. 11-1 indicates that the plant is heat tolerant in zones 11 through 1.) For polyculture design as well as the above-ground architecture (form - tree, shrub etc. and size shown above) information on the habit and root pattern is also useful and given here if available. The plant growth habit is a clumper with limited spread. The root pattern is a bulb.
Propagating it: Seed - immediate epigeal germination. Sow thinly in pots from late winter to early spring in a cold frame. Should germinate in 2 - 4 weeks. Great care should be taken in pricking out the young seedlings, many people prefer to leave them in the seed pot until they die down at the end of their second years growth. This necessitates sowing the seed thinly and using a reasonably fertile sowing medium. The plants will also require regular feeding when in growth. Divide the young bulbs when they are dormant, putting 2 - 3 in each pot, and grow them on for at least another year before planting them out into their permanent positions when the plants are dormant. Division with care in the autumn once the leaves have died down. Replant immediately. Bulb scales can be removed from the bulbs in early autumn. If they are kept in a warm dark place in a bag of moist peat, they will produce bulblets. These bulblets can be potted up and grown on in the greenhouse until they are large enough to plant out.
Best place to grow: Woodland Garden Sunny Edge;
Habit: Bulb
Hardiness: 7-9
Growth: Medium
Soil: Light (sandy), medium
Shade: Semi-shade, no shade
Moisture: Moist