Species

Hemerocallis fulva

Etymology

Hemerocallis: From the Greek hemeros 'day' and kallos 'beauty'
fulva: tawny yellow

Common Name(s)

daylily, orange day lily

Authority

Hemerocallis fulva (L.) L.

Family

Hemerocallidaceae

Brief Description

Flowers yellow, red or orange, with single or double rows of petals (tepals); each flower remains open for a single day. Plant deciduous (summer-green); roots tuberous. Reported to be of hybrid origin. See https://www.oardc.ohio-state.edu/weedguide/singlerecord.asp?id=180

Flora Category

Vascular - Exotic

Structural Class

Monocotyledonous Herbs

Synonyms

Common name = 'orange day lily' in Flora of NZ Vol.3 Hemerocallis is sometimes placed in F. Xanthorrhoeaceae)

Features

Large clump-forming, rhizome spreading. Leaves 40-70-(90x 1-3 cm, linear, equitant, later drooping, margins smooth. Inflorescence corymbose, to 15-flowered; scape stiff, bracteate, usually branched. Flowers 8-10 cm long, to 9 cm diam., widely funnel-shaped (often doubled), dull orange-red or yellow or red, strongly veined, not scented; pedicels short; bract scarious, < pedicel; perianth-tube very short; lobes recurved, inner broader with undulate margins. Ovary and ovules aborted. (Healy and Edgar 1980) "A 3-sectioned capsule is produced. Since this species is a hybrid, most plants do not produce seeds, but if produced, seeds are rarely viable". https://www.oardc.ohio-state.edu/weedguide/singlerecord.asp?id=180

Flowering

December, January.

Flower Colours

Orange,Red / Pink,Yellow

Year Naturalised

1958

Origin

Origin uncertain, cultivated for several centuries in Northern Hemisphere.

Reason for Introduction

Ornamental

Life Cycle and Dispersal

No seed produced. Spread by rhizomes.



This page last updated on 13 Jan 2016