Species
Lilium lancifolium
Common Name(s)
tiger lily
Authority
Lilium lancifolium Thunb.
Family
Liliaceae
Flora Category
Vascular - Exotic
Structural Class
Monocotyledonous Herbs
Habitat
Terrestrial. Roadsides and waste places, cemeteries and bush margins.
Features
Robust perennial herb with bulb of 5-10 cm diameter, stems reaching 60-120 cm high. Many dark-green sessile strap-like leaves up to 15 cm long. Upper leaves have bulbils in leaf axils. Large orange trumpet-like flowers with numerous purple-black spots.
Similar Taxa
The large orange trumpet shaped flowers with dark spots give tiger-lily its common name and make it easily identifiable. Long known in New Zealand by the name Lilium tigrinum Ker Gawl.
Flowering
January, February, March, April
Flower Colours
Orange,Violet / Purple
Year Naturalised
1958
Origin
North Africa
Reason for Introduction
Ornamental
Life Cycle and Dispersal
Reproduces vegetatively through bulbils, seeds not seen. Dispersed by people, gravity, water and soil movement.
This page last updated on 30 Jul 2014