|
|
Lilies
Nature Bulletin No. 231-A May 21, 1966
Forest Preserve District of Cook County
Seymour Simon, President
Roland F. Eisenbeis, Supt. of Conservation
LILIES
There is a great group of plants, numbering more than 2500 species,
called the Liliaceae or Lily Group, all of which are technically known
as "monocotyledons" because only a single leaf appears when their
seed first sprouts. Many of them grow from underground bulbs. They
have flowers with 3 sepals and 3 petals which are often colored and
shaped alike, appearing as 6 equal segments. Many are highly
ornamental; some are woody climbing vines; a few are trees; some are
vegetables; some are medicinal; and a few are very poisonous.
The word "lily" has been misapplied to many showy beautiful flowers,
such as the Calla Lilies and Water Lilies, which are not lilies at all nor
members of this group. The "lily of the field" frequently mentioned in
the Bible may have been the colored Poppy Anemone, or it may have
been the Hyacinth, or the Iris, or the Madonna Lily -- a white-flower
species from southern Europe and Asia -- smaller than the Easter Lily
which originally came from China and Japan.
Included in the lily group are the "true" or typical lilies, the onions,
the trilliums, the lilies-of-the-valley, the smilaxes, the yuccas and
some other families. The Smilax Family includes the Carrion Flowers
and the Green Briars. The Yucca Family includes such distinctive
plants as the Spanish Bayonet, the Desert Candle and the grotesque
Joshua Tree. Tulips, native to Asia and the Mediterranean countries,
are members of the group; so are the Hyacinths introduced from Asia
Minor; so are the Aloes; and so is that prince of vegetables -- the
Asparagus.
Several wildflowers, native and common in the Chicago region,
belong to this group. One is the Bellwort, a graceful woodland plant
with a drooping yellow flower on a stem which appears to grow
through the leaves. In the moist woods we have the Yellow and the
White Trout Lilies -- also called Adder's Tongues or Dogtooth Violets
for no good reason at all. These have bulbs which grow deeper into the
ground each year, and bloom in early spring not long after the
hepaticas and spring beauties, The Wild Hyacinth, the poisonous
Death Camass, three kinds of Solomon's Seal, two of False Solomon's
Seal, the Wild onion, the wild garlic and the wild leek -- are all
members of the lily group.
Of about 20 species of trilliums, we have four here. The Red Trillium
or Wake-robin has spotted leaves, a brownish-purple flower, a fetid
odor, and blooms not long after the trout lilies. In northern Cook
County, the Large Flowering Trillium is common. It has big showy
waxy--white petals which turn pinkish as they grow older. The
Nodding Trillium and the Painted Trillium have become rare.
The typical lilies are distinguished by the fact that each has a scaly
bulb and showy flowers, most of them bell-shaped, with 6 equal
stamens and a long pistil. In the Pacific coast, southwest and mountain
regions there are several species of beautiful native lilies. The Canada
Lily or Yellow Meadow Lily is a common native plant north and east
of the Chicago region. Along our roadsides and elsewhere, thoroughly
naturalized and growing in dense spreading communities, we
commonly find two plants introduced from Europe or Asia, popularly
called the Orange Day Lily and the Yellow Day Lily; and also the
Asiatic Tiger Lily. We have only three native species of typical lilies:
the Turk's Cap Lily, with reddish-orange petals curving back toward
the stem, found in most remnants of the original prairies; the red bell-
shaped Western Meadow Lily -- quite rare now; and the Wood Lily
which has one or more orange-scarlet flowers opening upward and
spotted with dark purple on the inside.
Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
To return to the Nature Bulletins Click Here! |
|
Update: June 2012
|
|
