We found this plant on our property a few years ago but forget what it is. Can someone please identify it?



Thanks!


*Want to add - it only grows in early spring. The area has a lot of shade and is fairly wet. We have a lot of moss and Mayapple that grow nearby. It grows into our walkpath on the property. We've never noticed it flowering. The leaves have a white dusting/film to them.

Maybe Trout-lily, Erythronium?

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Hiya JRsbugs,

Thank you for the welcome and reply back!

The Trout-lily leaves in the images seem larger and the plants more sparse then the thick patch we have on our property. The leaf size for the ones on our property are about 2.5-3inches in length. Sadly, we have never seen any flowers bloom - perhaps due to a nutrient deficiency? The leaves look really close with the mottled coloring to that of the Trout-Lily.

We did just read that it can take 10 years for these plants to reach maturity to flower and that when they flower they would have a second leaf - which the ones on our property only have one leaf coming from the ground. It also says that they are a dense carpet when immature which makes it seem more likely that you are correct!

Hopefully we will see them flower one day!

Katie

I have Erythronium Pagoda, it took several years to bulk up and flower but even then it wasn't a big plant and I know there was around three tubers. It's been very off and on, in 2010 I had a lovely large group which flowered well. It then disappeared except for a couple of leaves making an appearance, we had a very hard winter in 2010/11 so I'm not sure if that affected it, or nearly killed it. I might see another good display in a few year's time, maybe 2020?!

The leaves do look like young Erythronium, they have a sort of waxy appearance. When they flower it will make a superb show! Mine was in flower in early April.

We have Erythronium americanum growing wild here. It's competing with grasses and is not as dense as in your picture. I wouldn't say it produces a lot of flowers, often it is only leaves, and when it flowers it isn't for long and you could easily miss them. I don't know whether being as dense as yours are might inhibit them from flowering. I would think eventually some would though, even if only on the edges.