This Tiger Lily still has an older scientific name being used by many of Lilium tigrinum and it is native to northeast Asia. It is an easy-to-grow and robust lily that is resistant to any lily diseases. It has unbranched stems that can be green or dark purple with white hairs bearing alternate lance-shaped 3 to 7 inch long leaves that are smooth with conspicuous parallel veins. Its unscented orange, spotted flowers are drooping and about 4 to 5 inches wide and do not have a green star-like throat as the similar Turk's-Cap Lily of the eastern US and southeast Canada. The Tiger Lily also bears purplish-black bulblets in the axils of its upper leaves that can emit roots while they are still on the plant. It is somewhat commonly used in gardens and it can escape locally from cultivation. Its flowers bloom for several days and are good cut flowers that can last to about 2 weeks in a vase of water.
An amazing trumpet lily that is widespread in southwestern China and northern Myanmar (where it was first described). Since it grows in a large geographical area, morphological variations are normal. The flower is usually white with a sulfur yellow center, but in rare cases the entire flower has a yellow color. The outer part of the flower is greenish with varying amounts of pink or purple. The flowers can be over 20 cm long. The smell is strong and pleasant, but prolonged exposure can cause headaches (especially indoors). This species produces bulbils in the leaf axils and the first flowers are possible 2 or 3 years after their planting.
In cultivation, this lily requires excellent drainage, and it is necessary to protect the bulbs from excessive moisture during the winter. In favorable conditions, it can reach a height of over 2.5 meters! It is a late riser, not usually appearing above ground until mid-May, or even June, but then grows very rapidly to flower in late July or August (depending on your climate).
This species is native to Ontario to Nova Scotia down to northern Georgia & Alabama and west to Indiana in moist meadows or woodland edges. Its flowers are nodding (hanging downward), are red to orange to yellow with dark red or purple spots in the flower throat, blooming in or near June. The flowers are not fragrant. The lance-like leaves whorl around the stems. It bears seeds in late summer that can be sowed in the ground to sprout the next year or the bulb can be divided when the plant is dormant. I've only seen it once and that was at the Mount Cuba Center in northern Delaware that specializes in native plants of the Piedmont Region.
This lily is widespread in Slovenia, and also in parts of Croatia, Austria and Italy where it grows in various habitats with very good drainage. Its flowers vary in colour, but are usually orange and red while yellow predominates in the southern part of the range, which sometimes causes confusion with L. bosniacum (and other lilies from carniolicum group). The flowers are speckled on the bottom with varying amounts of "black" dots and have a pungent smell.
It is still a rare species in cultivation. Bulbs require excellent drainage! A neutral or pH+ soil mixture with lots of gravel is preferred. Seeds are delayed epigeal in germination, which means you should sow it in late summer/early fall and they will usually emerge next spring. First flowers after 5 or 6 years, so you must be patient.
