Lilium humboldtii
Encyclopedia
Lilium humboldtii is a species of lily endemic to California
named after naturalist and explorer Alexander von Humboldt
. It is native to the South High Cascade Range
, High Sierra Nevada, south Outer South Coast Range
s, and the Santa Monica Mountains
and others in Southern California
, growing at elevations from 600 metres (1,968.5 ft) to 1200 metres (3,937 ft).
s. The plant flowers in June, with flowers growing in a pyramidal inflorescence. The flowers are on stout stems, which are sometimes brown-purple. The subrhizomatous bulb is large, with yellowish-white scales, and grows very deep in the soil. The leaves grow in whorls, and are undulate, shiny, and oblanceolate. It is summer-deciduous
, dying back after flowering in mid- to late summer.
There are two subspecies
:
Both are on the California Native Plant Society
Inventory of Rare and Endangered Plants and described as "fairly endangered in California".
Albert Kellogg
, unaware that the plant had already been named by Roezl and Leichtlin, gave it the name Lilium bloomerianum. For some time afterward, the name was still applied to the southern California Lilium humboldtii subsp. ocellatum.
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
named after naturalist and explorer Alexander von Humboldt
Alexander von Humboldt
Friedrich Wilhelm Heinrich Alexander Freiherr von Humboldt was a German naturalist and explorer, and the younger brother of the Prussian minister, philosopher and linguist Wilhelm von Humboldt...
. It is native to the South High Cascade Range
Cascade Range
The Cascade Range is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as the North Cascades, and the notable volcanoes known as the High Cascades...
, High Sierra Nevada, south Outer South Coast Range
Pacific Coast Ranges
The Pacific Coast Ranges and the Pacific Mountain System are the series of mountain ranges that stretch along the West Coast of North America from Alaska south to Northern and Central Mexico...
s, and the Santa Monica Mountains
Santa Monica Mountains
The Santa Monica Mountains are a Transverse Range in Southern California, along the coast of the Pacific Ocean in the United States.-Geography:...
and others in Southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
, growing at elevations from 600 metres (1,968.5 ft) to 1200 metres (3,937 ft).
Description
Lilium humboldtii grows up to 6 feet (1.8 m) tall, with flowers that are maroon-spotted, golden-orange with dark red splotches, with orange to brown stamenStamen
The stamen is the pollen producing reproductive organ of a flower...
s. The plant flowers in June, with flowers growing in a pyramidal inflorescence. The flowers are on stout stems, which are sometimes brown-purple. The subrhizomatous bulb is large, with yellowish-white scales, and grows very deep in the soil. The leaves grow in whorls, and are undulate, shiny, and oblanceolate. It is summer-deciduous
Estivation
Aestivation is a state of animal dormancy, characterized by inactivity and a lowered metabolic rate, that is entered in response to high temperatures and arid conditions...
, dying back after flowering in mid- to late summer.
There are two subspecies
Subspecies
Subspecies in biological classification, is either a taxonomic rank subordinate to species, ora taxonomic unit in that rank . A subspecies cannot be recognized in isolation: a species will either be recognized as having no subspecies at all or two or more, never just one...
:
- Lilium humboldtii subsp. humboldtii (syn. Lilium puberulum)
- Lilium humboldtii subsp. ocellatum
Both are on the California Native Plant Society
California Native Plant Society
The California Native Plant Society is a California not-for-profit organization that seeks to increase understanding of California's native flora and to preserve that flora. Its "paramount purpose is to preserve wild plants".-History:...
Inventory of Rare and Endangered Plants and described as "fairly endangered in California".
Albert Kellogg
Albert Kellogg
Dr. Albert Kellogg , was an American physician, northern California botanist, and one of seven founders in 1853 of the California Academy of Sciences.-California Academy of Sciences:...
, unaware that the plant had already been named by Roezl and Leichtlin, gave it the name Lilium bloomerianum. For some time afterward, the name was still applied to the southern California Lilium humboldtii subsp. ocellatum.