tiger lily

not listed

NNA - Not applicable

SNA - Not applicable

not listed

Tiger lily is an erect perennial rising from a white, egg-shaped bulb.

The stem is leafy, purplish, and densely covered with long, tangled, white hairs, especially near the top.

The leaves are alternate, untoothed, and linear to narrowly lance-shaped. They are attached to the stem without a leaf stalk. They are held horizontally and droop at the tips. The margins have short, rounded, nipple-like bumps. The tips are densely covered with long, tangled, white hairs. The lower leaves are 4″ to 6″ long and have pointed tips. The upper leaves have rounded tips and rounded bases that partly surround the stem but do not fuse at the base. There are 1 to 3 small dark purple bulblets in the axils of the upper leaves. The bulblets can propagate the plant.

The inflorescence is a terminal, branched, elongated, cluster of 3 to 6 flowers. The flowers hang downward at the end of stout, widely spreading flower stems.

The large flowers are up to 4″ wide, Turk’s-cap shaped, and are not fragrant. They consist of 6 tepals, 3 inner tepals (petals) that are similar in appearance but slightly wider than the 3 outer tepals (sepals). The tepals spread outward and bend backward to their base. They are uniformly orange to reddish-orange with purple-brown spots except near the tips. The stamens project well beyond the tepals and curve widely outward.

The fruit is a 3-celled seed capsule. The seeds are infertile. The plant reproduces from bulb scales and bulblets.

3′ to 6′

Orange to reddish-orange with purple-brown spots near the throat

Tiger lily is easily identified by its truly lance-shaped, alternate, widely sessile leaves and purple-black bulbils in the upper leaf axils.

Michigan lily (Lilium michiganense) has a hairless stem. The leaves are whorled except near the top, where they are single, in pairs, or in partial whorls. The inflorescence is an umbel. The flowers are 2½″ to 3″ wide, reddish-orange with a yellowish-orange throat and purple or maroon spots near the throat.

Orange daylily (Hemerocallis fulva) is shorter, 2′ to 4′ at maturity. It has a basal rosette of grass-like leaves and no leaves on the flowering stem. The flowers are funnel-shaped, tannish-orange with a yellow throat and a red stripe. They do not have spots. They are semi-erect or horizontal—they do not hang downward. They last only one day.

Wood lily (Lilium philadelphicum var. andinum) is much shorter, 1′ to 3′ at maturity. The stem is hairless. The leaves are scattered, more or less alternate, except the uppermost, which are in a whorl. The inflorescence is an umbel. The flowers are 2½″ wide, widely bell shaped and erect—they do not hang downward. The tepals are spoon-shaped, clawed, erect, and flaring, and bend backward slightly toward their tips. The tips come to a blunt point. They do not touch near the base. They are bright orange or reddish-orange with a yellow throat and purple spots near the throat.

Moist. Roadsides, railroad banks, near dwellings, yards. Partial sun.

July to August

Sources

2, 3, 4, 5, 22, 29, 30.

Most sources show tiger lily to be rare in Minnesota, confined to just four counties in the state (dark green on the map). iNaturalist has observations throughout the state (light green on the map). The photos that accompany many of those observations clearly show the plant in a garden or other plantation—not outside of cultivation. GBIF also shows tiger lily throughout the state (also light green on the map). The counties in light green are believed to represent either misidentified Michigan lily plants or cultivated tiger lily plants.

Native to China, Japan, and Korea. Introduced, cultivated, and escaped cultivation. Naturalized in eastern North America.

Uncommon in Minnesota

Tiger lily is widely planted as an ornamental and sometimes escapes cultivation.

The common name tiger lily is often applied to a number of other species of lily. However, that name properly applies only to this one.