Has anyone here grown Gold Band lilies from one year to the next?

My question is: how tall will my Gold Band lilies get? This year they're a uniform 24" in height. I read that they might attain 6' (??); if so, I need to find them new digs, since I bought them with the idea that they would just be border lilies.

I've grown them for a few years, and they are not 6', I'm going to say 3.5-4. They're done blooming now, so I'm not sure which ones they are, or I would measure. But they're not 6 footers. New digs, LOL, Chelle.

What's so funny, Polly?

[ right along with you! ] I love to laugh...and gotta grin at least twice a day; if not my face feels broken.


Thank you so much for your response!

I'll evidently need to find them a new place, and this gives me some time to ponder before it ends up being a rush-job.

Well I did go out and measure my two, and 3.5-4ft is spot on. From bullbs, I've had them for 5 years.

I do recall reading in an old NALS yearbook (ca. 1963) about a certain strain that someone grew out east (New York?) that normally grew 6ft and perhaps more. The name "Virginalis" sticks in my mind, but really nave no idea if that is correct. I don't know if it still survives in horticulture now or not.

Lily (Lilium auratum var. auratum) this might be it, Rick.

Thanks for the input!


I just thought of another question on these; do they absolutely have to have perfect drainage over the winter? Right now, I have mine in slow-draining clay.

Regarding Lilium auratum var. auratum (syn. virginale), I must be mistaken, then. A quick taxonomy lesson for those who care:

When a species variety (different from a cultivar name like Black Beauty, Stargazer, Casa Blanca, etc.) is designated as separate from the regular species type, then other plants of the same species are automatically categorized as the regular type, and given the varietal name that is the same as the species epithet (name).

Thus, when Lilium concolor var. coridion was named as different from the regular Lilium concolor, then the regular Lilium concolor full name automatically became Lilium concolor var. concolor. Usually, however, this extra "copied" name is not written, and is merely taken as implied.

So Lilium auratum var. auratum is the regular species type, and wouldn't be that extra large growing strain that I alluded too. Although, it could very well be within the Lilium auratum var. auratum group.

Similarly, Lilium leichtlinii var. leichtlinii is the normal yellow flowered type, and Lilium leichtlinii var. maximowiczii, the orange.

Thanks for the nomenclature explanation, Lefty.

From what I understand, the lilies Chelle is describing were sold as short (24") border lilies having a cultivar name of Gold Band. It was entered in the data base as cultivar Gold Band as was Sue's lily. Chelle's lily looks like L. platyphyllum with the spots and Sue's looks like virginale (without spots).

I am not aware of a cultivar name Gold Band. Gold Band is a common name for L. auratum. With the Online Lily Register permanently removed from the internet I can not check to see if there happens to be a cultivar name Gold Band. It is also not listed in the most recent supplements or the Dutch data base KAVB. I suspect Chelle's lily is either a genetic dwarf of var. platyphyllum or a hybrid involving it. I have treated both Chelle's and Sue's lilies as species for now.

As for drainage, it is helpful to look at the species native habitat. In Japan L. auratum grows in wooded hillside margins and more commonly in lava rubble and volcanic ash (fine sand). Hence another common name for it is mountain lily.

Since the lilies were sold as short lilies I would leave them where they are. The presence of surrounding plants may help alleviate drainage problems. Unfortunately the one and only L. auratum I have tried didn't even make it a year in my clay soil. But it did grow to about 5.5 feet before disintegrating.

I forgot to address the drainage issue:

Mine grow in clay based soils, but I would not classify them as slow draining. Water never EVER just sits at the surface, either in the spring or after heavy rain. On the east side of my house, one plant's soil is invaded with maple roots that effectively suck up moisture. The other is on a gentle slope on the north side of the house.

In a warmer climate then me, your cold and wet period will be longer than mine because my soils are frozen in winter longer and deeper. Not a plus for plants that need good drainage in the winter. My guess, though, is that your plants will be fine. Unless you have a place with better drainage to move them to, I'd say leave them alone. Improving the soil just where the lilies are (and not the rest of the garden) will not help. Clay soil that is settled and uncultivated for more than 2 months holds less water than the same soil freshly dug. So any cultivating in the soil should be very light and at the surface only.

My Gold Band is just a Dutch lily oriental.