Lilium martagon
| Lilium martagon | |
| Light: |   |
| Moisture: |  |
| Hardiness: | 4 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Self Pollinated | |
| Height: | 4' |
| Width: | 1' |
| Blooms: | Early Summer-Mid Summer |
| Open Woods Forest | |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Lilium martagon (common name: turk's cap lily)
Propagation: Seed - delayed hypogeal germination[1]. Best sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame, it should germinate in spring[2]. Stored seed will require a warm/cold/warm cycle of stratification, each period being about 2 months long[3]. Grow on in cool shady conditions. Great care should be taken in pricking out the young seedlings, many people 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[K].
Division with care in the autumn once the leaves have died down. Replant immediately[4].
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[4].
Cultivation: Succeeds in ordinary well-drained garden soil[5][6]. Prefers a good leafy soil in sun or semi-shade[7]. Prefers its roots to be in the shade[8]. Prefers a calcareous soil according to some reports[5][9][10][7], whilst one says that it is probably best in an acid or neutral soil[11].
A very ornamental[5] and polymorphic plant[2]. It takes 7 - 8 years to flower from seed[2]. The flowers have an unpleasant odour[2]. The flowers are sweetly fragrant, especially at night in order to attract the night hawk-moth for pollination[12].
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[4].
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[4].
Range: Europe to W. Asia. Naturalized in Britain.
Habitat: Deciduous woods, scrub and mountain pasture, especially on limestone[10].
Edibility: Bulb - cooked[13][14][15]. It is often dried for later use[16]. Rich in starch, it can be used as a vegetable in similar ways to potatoes (Solanum tuberosum).
Medicinal: The bulb is diuretic, emmenagogue, emollient and expectorant[17]. They are used to relieve heart diseases, pain in the cardiac region and angina pectoris[17].
Pollinators: Lepidoptera, self
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
Seed Ripens: Late Summer-Early Fall
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Links
References
- ↑ Royal Horticultural Society. The Plantsman Vol. 4. 1982 - 1983. Royal Horticultural Society, 1982.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Woodcock, Hubert. Lilies - Their Culture and Management. Country Life, 1935.
- ↑ Reed, David. Lilies and Related Plants. 1989.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ Grey, Charles. Hardy Bulbs. Williams & Norgate, 1938.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Phillips, Roger and Martyn Rix. Bulbs. Pan Books, 1989.
- ↑ Knight, F. P.. Plants for Shade. Royal Horticultural Society, 1980.
- ↑ Grieve, Margaret. A Modern Herbal. Penguin, 1984.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Triska, Jan. Encyclopaedia of Plants. Hamlyn, 1975.
- ↑ Fox, Derek. Growing Lilies. Croom Helm, 1985.
- ↑ Genders, Roy. Scented Flora of the World. Robert Hale, 1994.
- ↑ Hedrick, Ulysses. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications, 1972.
- ↑ Hylton, Josie and William Holtom. Complete Guide to Herbs. Rodale Press, 1979.
- ↑ Usher, George. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable, 1974.
- ↑ Uphof, Johannes. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim, 1959.
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 Chopra, R. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants. Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi, 1986.