Lilium is a large genus in the Liliaceae family. This wiki page is for the Asiatic Section from L-O.
Asiatic Section A-C - Asiatic Section D-K - Asiatic Section P-Z
Other Lilium sections and hybrids are linked below.
American Section A-M - American Section N-Z - Candidum Section - Dauricum Section - Martagon Section - Oriental Section - Trumpet Section - Lilium Hybrids - Lilium Index
Lilium lancifolium is a species of lily native to eastern Guam, China, Korea and Japan. This species is commonly called the "Tiger Lily", synonymous with Lilium tigrinum. Its origins are controversial. It is long believed to be a sterile triploid clone not found in the wild and preserved in cultivation as a food crop. The discovery of diploid and the yellow variety flaviflorum upset this idea. There is a double variety 'Flore Pleno'. Height is around 5 feet and flowering time in NW England mid August. Plants are robust and easy to grow. They are not scented.
Plants are notable for having hairy stems and producing large numbers of bulbils in the leaf axils. A bulbil collected in year N can produce flowers in year N+2. Bulbils often have roots whilst attached to the stem. They desire to spend Winter producing lots more roots so should be planted as soon as possible. The Tiger Lily has a reputation as the "Typhoid Mary" of the lily world, being very resistant to disease and virus tolerant which equals a risk to other lilies.
For a spirited pbs list discussion
and for an academic perspective see:
Geographic Distribution and Habitat Differentiation in Diploid and Triploid Lilium lancifolium of South Korea
The first photo by Ron Parsons of plants at the Strybing Arboretum, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, Ca. and the second and third photos by David Pilling, showing hairy stems with bulbils and flowers. Photos four through six from Darm Crook are of a diploid form.
Lilium lancifolium var. flaviflorumMakino Photos #1 and 2 from Göte Svanholm and photos 3-5 from Darm Crook.
Lilium lancifolium 'Flore Pleno' photos from Darm Crook.
Lilium lancifolium var. fortueni(Standish) V.A.Matthews photo from Darm Crook.
Lilium lancifolium var. splendens (Van Houtte) V.A.Matthews triploid photo from Darm Crook.
Lilium lankongense is a species found in north west Yunnan and south east Xizang in China growing at altitudes between 1800 and 3200 metres. Occasionally refered to as the "pink" Lilium duchartrei. Flowers are set on long pedicels in a very open raceme inflorescence, are down facing, fully recurved and scented with 6 to 12 per stem. First photograph by David Victor near Zhongdian, in Yunnan, July 2005. Second photograph by David Pilling of plant sown from SRGC seed exchange in 2007 which first flowered in 2009. All the other photos submitted by Darm Crook.
Lilium leichtlinii is from Japan. The type form of the species has yellow flowers with reddish-purple spots and grows only in central Honshu, Japan's main island, among tall grasses in rich, moist meadows. The variety maximowiczii with orange flowers is found all over Japan and in China and Korea. It is now believed that this variety is the true type and the yellow form should be considered a variety. It appears the yellow form was discovered and named as the type first and then the orange form was botanised. Debate concerning who discovered the lily first has led to the name var. maximowiczii for the orange form. The orange flowered form was once confused with L. lancifolium giving synonyms like Lilium leichtlinii var. tigrinum and Lilium leichtlinii var. pseudotigrinum. It is no longer confused with L. lancifolium but due to profesional ethics on who first named it and published, var. maximowiczii could still change name to var. tigrinum or Lilium pseudotigrinum (false tigrinum). It is also called Lilium maximowiczii. It has been noted (see LilyGerminationBySpecies) that leichtlinii and var. maximowiczii have different germination modes.
The stem is purplish; the buds (and the outside base of the tepals) are woolly (hairy) with some hair also being on the stem and foliage. Height 60-120 cm [2-4'] There are no stem bulbils.
Photos #1-2 were taken by Gerry Danen showing the plants grown in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Photos three to five by Darm Crook.
Lilium leichtlinii var. maximowiczii, the first two photos were contributed by the UC Botanical Garden. Photos three to five by Darm Crook.
Lilium leichtlinii var. maximowiczii mutated clone, two photos by Darm Crook.
Lilium lijiangense (synonym Lilium ningnanense) is found in the Sichuan and Yunnan provinces of China at over 3000 metres. Up to 5 scented flowers in a raceme, stem 60cm. Lijiang is in Yunnan and Ningnan in Sichuan. Photo by John Lykkegaard Johansen.
Lilium mackliniae was found by Frank Kingdon-Ward high in the mountains of northern Burma (now Myanmar), and named for his wife. It was first thought to be a Nomocharis. This is the only plant from ten seeds sown in 1998, from the Royal Horticultural Society Lily Group. It is growing under an apple tree behind my deer fence, and flowered for the first time in mid-May, 2004 in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. Photo by Diane Whitehead.
Lilium nanum is an alpine species native to the Himalayas. L. nanum is a short species, growing 16 to 34cm (7 to 15 inches); the floret is outward facing, pale pink spotted with purple. The foliage is narrow and long; it grows in a very upright position and can extend from mid-point on the stem to well above the flowering tip.
Lilium nanum v. flavidum(Rendle) Sealy is much like the type in foliage and height, but the florets have an outward and downward orientation, aren't as widly opened, are yellow, spot free and have a light blue stigma. This lily is an early flowering species, in zone 1 it flowers by late June early July and senesces ("browns down") by early to mid August. It enjoys a high humus well drained acidic based soil. Five photos of L. nanum var. flavidum submitted by Darm Crook.
Lilium nepalense is a species first found in Nepal, but now known to stretch across the Himalaya into western China. It typically grows in wet forest borders, between 1200m and 3000m. Three botanical varieties are recognised, according to Haw (in "Lilies of China", Timber Press, 1987), all of which occur in Yunnan. The broad leaves and the location make me believe that this fits with var. nepalense. The plant shown was photographed in Yunnan, west of Liuku, near to the Myanmar (Burma) border, at 2,350m. Photo and comments by David Victor.
American Section A-M - American Section N-Z - Asiatic Section A-C - Asiatic Section D-K - Asiatic Section P-Z - Candidum Section - Dauricum Section - Martagon Section - Oriental Section - Trumpet Section - Lilium Hybrids - Lilium Index