Erythronium
I knew nothing about Erythronium until I saw a recent Gardeners World episode where they did a segment on them. They come in so many shapes and sizes that they absolutely fascinated me. It seems they are difficult to propagate for sale, so finding them cane be quite difficult and quite expensive, but they will spread on their own if planted in a favorable spot.
- Erythronium (fawn lily, trout lily, dog’s-tooth violet, adder’s tongue) is a genus of 20–30 species of hardy spring-flowering perennial plants with long, tooth-like bulbs. Slender stems carry pendent flowers with recurved tepals in shades of cream, yellow, pink and mauve. Species are native to forests and meadows in temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere.[1]
The bulb is edible as a root vegetable, cooked or dried, and can be ground into flour. The leaves can also be cooked as a leaf vegetable. In Japan, Erythronium japonicum is called katakuri, and the bulb is processed to produce starch, which is used for food and other purposes.
They are also widely grown as ornamental plants, with numerous hybrids and cultivars having been selected for garden use. Popular cultivars include Erythronium ‘Pagoda’, E. ‘Sundisc’, E. ‘Joanna’, E. ‘Kondo’, E. ‘Citronella’, E. californicum ‘White Beauty’, and E. ‘Rosalind’. Propagation is best by seed in autumn or by division of bulbs, depending on species. Some species propagate vegetatively. The plant is also great as a ground cover, as it will spread over several years.
- — Wikipedia
- Erythronium at Wikipedia
- Erythronium at the Pacific Bulb Society
- Erythronium at the Missouri Botanical Garden
More Erythronium books, art, plants and seed at Amazon.com
Previously in the Interesting Plant series:
- Sempervivum
- Primula auricula
- Feathery Cassia (Senna auricula)
- Red Stick Dogwood (Cornus alba ‘Sibirica’)
- Japanese Maple (Acer palmatum)
- Kousa Dogwood (Cornus kousa)
- Giant Chalk Dudleya (Dudleya brittonii)
- Sunrose (Helianthemum nummularium)
- Australian/New Zealand Tea Tree (Leptospermum scoparium)
- Brugmansia Sanguinea
- Calico Monkeyflower (Mimulus pictus)
- Colocasia Esculenta
- Acer palmatum ‘Sango-kaku’ (Coral Bark Japanese Maple)
- Linderniaceae (formerly Torenia) Kuaui Deep Blue
- Passiflora (Passion flower)
- Firewheel Tree (Stenocarpus sinuatus)
- Anemone
- Allium Cowanii
- Symphyotrichum oblongifolius (Purple Aster)
- Hemerocallis ‘Derrick Cane’ (Daylily)
- Agastache ‘Aztec Rose’
- Rudbeckia hirta Moreno
- Kalanchoe Tomentosa
- Albuca namaquensis
- Hosta ‘Remember Me’
- Dahlia ‘Clair de Lune’
- Lovely silver-tinged fern on campus of Oberlin College, Ohio
- Tricolor Beech (Fagus sylvatica Purpurea Tricolor)
- Climbing Hydrangea (Hydrangea anomala petiolaris)
- Eremurus ‘Lemon Meringue’
- Lupine “Sunrise” (Lupinus hartwegii)
- Chinese Fringe Flower (Loropetalum chinense)
- Streptocarpus ‘Harlequin Blue’
- Nigella damascena (love-in-a-mist, ragged lady)
- Epiphyllum (Orchid Cactus)
- Sempervivum ‘Westerlin’
- Gladiolus ‘Kings Lynn’
- Hosta sieboldiana ‘Dorothy Benedict’
- Begonia “Escargot”
- Asparagus Pea (Psophocarpus tetragonolobus)
- Rosa banksiae (Lady Banks’ Rose)
- Primula ‘Victoriana Silver Laced Black’
- Oxalis versicolor
- Poached Egg Plant (Limnanthes douglasii)
- Parisian Carrots
- Fritillaria imperialis Rubra Maxima
- Clematis “Fascination”
- Swiss Chard “Bright Lights”
- Georgia Rattlesnake Melon
- Dianthus Barbathus “Green Ball” or “Green Trick”
- Coleus “Religious Radish”
- Black Forest Calla Lily
- Black Bamboo
Interesting Plant is a series from A Gardener’s Notebook blog and podcast that highlights the most interesting plants I find in my Internet and real-world travels — Douglas