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Useful Temperate Plants

Lilium davidii

Duch. ex Elwes

Liliaceae

+ Synonyms

Lilium biondii Baroni

Lilium cavaleriei H.Lév. & Vaniot

Lilium chinense Baroni

Lilium sutchuenense Franch.

Lilium thayerae E.H.Wilson

Lilium willmottiae E.H.Wilson

Common Name:

No Image.

General Information

Lilium davidii is a herbaceous perennial bulbiferous plant producing a leafy stem around 100cm tall
The plant is harvested from the wild for local use as a food. One of the larger lily bulbs, the plant is sometimes cultivated as a food crop in China and is also often grown as an ornamental plant.

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

200
Title
The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
Publication
 
Author
Huxley. A.
Publisher
MacMillan Press
Year
1992
ISBN
0-333-47494-5
Description
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
,
266
Title
Flora of China
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/china/
Publisher
Missouri Botanical Garden Press; St. Louis.
Year
1994
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent, comprehensive resource in 25 volumes. In addition to the botanical information the flora also gives basic information on habitat and some uses. An on-line version is also available.

Range

E. Asia - northeast India, southern China (Gansu, Guizhou, Henan, Hubei, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Sichuan Yunnan)

Habitat

Moist places in forests, forest margins and grassy slopes; at elevations from 800 - 3,200 metres[
266
Title
Flora of China
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/china/
Publisher
Missouri Botanical Garden Press; St. Louis.
Year
1994
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent, comprehensive resource in 25 volumes. In addition to the botanical information the flora also gives basic information on habitat and some uses. An on-line version is also available.
].

Properties

Edibility Rating *  *  *
HabitBulb
Height1.00 m
PollinatorsBees
Self-fertileNo
Cultivation StatusCultivated, Ornamental, Wild

Cultivation Details

Lilium davidii is a very cold-hardy plant, able to tolerate temperatures down to around -25°c when fully dormant[
200
Title
The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
Publication
 
Author
Huxley. A.
Publisher
MacMillan Press
Year
1992
ISBN
0-333-47494-5
Description
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
].
Prefers an open free-draining humus-rich loamy soil with its roots in the shade and its head in the sun[
200
Title
The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
Publication
 
Author
Huxley. A.
Publisher
MacMillan Press
Year
1992
ISBN
0-333-47494-5
Description
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
]. An easily grown plant, it tolerates some lime in the soil[
143
Title
Lilies - Their Culture and Management.
Publication
 
Author
Woodcock. and Coutts.
Publisher
Country Life
Year
1935
ISBN
-
Description
A classic, but dated. Deals with the genus Lilium.
,
163
Title
Lilies and Related Plants.
Publication
 
Author
RHS Lily Group.
Publisher
 
Year
 
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of interesting snippets about plants in the family Liliaceae (in the old, broad sense)
,
200
Title
The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
Publication
 
Author
Huxley. A.
Publisher
MacMillan Press
Year
1992
ISBN
0-333-47494-5
Description
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
].
Stem rooting, the bulbs should be planted 15 - 20cm deep[
143
Title
Lilies - Their Culture and Management.
Publication
 
Author
Woodcock. and Coutts.
Publisher
Country Life
Year
1935
ISBN
-
Description
A classic, but dated. Deals with the genus Lilium.
]. Early to mid autumn is the best time to plant out the bulbs in cool temperate areas, in warmer areas they can be planted out as late as late autumn[
143
Title
Lilies - Their Culture and Management.
Publication
 
Author
Woodcock. and Coutts.
Publisher
Country Life
Year
1935
ISBN
-
Description
A classic, but dated. Deals with the genus Lilium.
].
This species is occasionally cultivated for its edible bulb in China[
143
Title
Lilies - Their Culture and Management.
Publication
 
Author
Woodcock. and Coutts.
Publisher
Country Life
Year
1935
ISBN
-
Description
A classic, but dated. Deals with the genus Lilium.
]. The plant is widely cultivated for its root according to another report[
266
Title
Flora of China
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/china/
Publisher
Missouri Botanical Garden Press; St. Louis.
Year
1994
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent, comprehensive resource in 25 volumes. In addition to the botanical information the flora also gives basic information on habitat and some uses. An on-line version is also available.
].
The plant should be protected against rabbits and slugs in early spring. If the shoot tip is eaten out the bulb will not grow in that year and will lose vigour[
200
Title
The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
Publication
 
Author
Huxley. A.
Publisher
MacMillan Press
Year
1992
ISBN
0-333-47494-5
Description
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
].

Edible Uses

Bulb - cooked[
105
Title
Tanaka's Cyclopedia of Edible Plants of the World.
Publication
 
Author
Tanaka. T. & Nakao S.
Publisher
Keigaku Publishing; Tokyo
Year
1976
ISBN
-
Description
The most comprehensive list of edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.
,
143
Title
Lilies - Their Culture and Management.
Publication
 
Author
Woodcock. and Coutts.
Publisher
Country Life
Year
1935
ISBN
-
Description
A classic, but dated. Deals with the genus Lilium.
]. One of the larger lily bulbs, it ranges from 20 - 45mm in diameter[
266
Title
Flora of China
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/china/
Publisher
Missouri Botanical Garden Press; St. Louis.
Year
1994
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent, comprehensive resource in 25 volumes. In addition to the botanical information the flora also gives basic information on habitat and some uses. An on-line version is also available.
]. Rich in starch, it can be used as a vegetable in similar ways to potatoes (Solanum tuberosum). The bulb is made up of many imbricate, fleshy leaf scales, without a tunic[
266
Title
Flora of China
Publication
 
Author
 
Website
http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/china/
Publisher
Missouri Botanical Garden Press; St. Louis.
Year
1994
ISBN
 
Description
An excellent, comprehensive resource in 25 volumes. In addition to the botanical information the flora also gives basic information on habitat and some uses. An on-line version is also available.
].

Medicinal

None known

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed - immediate epigeal germination[
130
Title
The Plantsman. Vol. 4. 1982 - 1983.
Publication
 
Author
?
Publisher
Royal Horticultural Society
Year
1982
ISBN
-
Description
Excerpts from the periodical giving cultivation details and other notes on some of the useful plants, including Distylium racemosum and some perennial members of the family Berberidaceae.
]. Sow thinly in pots from late winter to early spring in a cold frame. Should germinate in 2 - 4 weeks[
163
Title
Lilies and Related Plants.
Publication
 
Author
RHS Lily Group.
Publisher
 
Year
 
ISBN
 
Description
Lots of interesting snippets about plants in the family Liliaceae (in the old, broad sense)
]. Great care should be taken in pricking out the young seedlings, many people prefer to leave them in the seed pot until they die down at the end of their second years growth. This necessitates sowing the seed thinly and using a reasonably fertile sowing medium. The plants will also require regular feeding when in growth. Divide the young bulbs when they are dormant, putting 2 - 3 in each pot, and grow them on for at least another year before planting them out into their permanent positions when the plants are dormant[
K
Title
Plants for a Future
Author
Ken Fern
Description
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.
].
Division with care in the autumn once the leaves have died down. Replant immediately[
200
Title
The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
Publication
 
Author
Huxley. A.
Publisher
MacMillan Press
Year
1992
ISBN
0-333-47494-5
Description
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
].
Bulb scales can be removed from the bulbs in early autumn. If they are kept in a warm dark place in a bag of moist peat, they will produce bulblets. These bulblets can be potted up and grown on in the greenhouse until they are large enough to plant out[
200
Title
The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992.
Publication
 
Author
Huxley. A.
Publisher
MacMillan Press
Year
1992
ISBN
0-333-47494-5
Description
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
].
The formation of bulbils on the stem can be induced by either removing the stem at flowering time and layering it just below the soil surface, or by removing all the flowers before they open.
Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2024-12-22. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Lilium+davidii>

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