Turk's Cap Lily
Growth Habit
GeophytePropagation
Cold moist stratify; needs light to germinate, cover with sand not soil
Biocultural Value
Bulb can be cooked. It has a starchy and slightly sweet taste and fleshy texture. Used like potatoes or as a thickener in soups.
Wildlife Value
The Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly, as well as Spicebush and Pipevine swallowtails and Great Spangled Fritillaries are one of the most common pollinators. Ruby-throated hummingbirds also visit the flowers.
Location
Mundy Wildflower GardenCultivation
sun; moist, acidic, good drainage
Description
Stout and erect, to 25dm; principal leaves whorled, the upper alternate; leaf blades lanceolate, tapering to both ends, smooth or slightly rounded-papillose along the margins; flowers 1-many, nodding from long, erect or ascending pedicels; tepals strongly recurved, lanceolate, 6-9cm, orange or orange-red, spotted with purple; filaments long-exserted, outcurved distally, the anthers widely separated, mostly 15-25mm, flower buds 3-angled. Wet meadows and low ground. MA and se NH to GA & AL. July to September.
Source of plant
Mount Cuba Center, Sunshine Farm and Gardens, Polly Hill Arboretum
