Common Name:

General Information

Lilium rubellum is a herbaceous perennial bulbiferous plant producing a leafy stem around 30 - 80cm tall[].
The plant iss harvested from the wild for local use as a food. The plant is often grown as an ornamental, valued especially for its fragrant flowers.

Known Hazards

None known

Botanical References

,

Range

E. Asia - central Japan.

Habitat

Low mountains, occasionally on alpine slopes[], among dwarf shrubs and grass; at elevations from 750 - 1,800 metres[].

Properties

Edibility Rating
Habit	Bulb
Height	0.60 m
Pollinators	Bees
Self-fertile	No
Cultivation Status	Wild

Cultivation Details

Lilium rubellum is a moderately cold-hardy plant, able to tolerate temperatures down to around -20°c when fully dormant[].
Prefers an open free-draining humus-rich loamy soil with its roots in the shade and its head in the sun[]. This bulb is very difficult to establish in Britain because it requires plenty of summer moisture with cold, dry conditions in the winter[]. It has, however, survived for 50 years in the wild garden at Wisley, where it grows in a moist very acid sandy soil[].
Stem rooting, the bulbs should be planted 12cm deep in a well-drained sandy loam with added leaf mold[]. 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[].
A very ornamental plant[]. The flowers diffuse a rich sweet scent[].
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[].

Edible Uses

Bulb - cooked[, ]. Rich in starch, it can be used as a vegetable in similar ways to potatoes (Solanum tuberosum). The ovoid-globose bulb is 25 - 30mm in diameter, it is made up of many imbricate, fleshy leaf scales, without a tunic[].

Medicinal

None known

Other Uses

None known

Propagation

Seed - delayed hypogeal germination[]. Best sown as soon as ripe in a cold frame, it should germinate in spring[]. Stored seed will require a warm/cold/warm cycle of stratification, each period being about 2 months long[]. Grow on in cool shady conditions. Great care should be taken in pricking out the young seedlings, many people 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[].
Division with care in the autumn once the leaves have died down. Replant immediately[].
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[].