If ever there was the perfect use of the word “diminutive” I think it would be for describing Trout Lily (Erythronium americanum). A lily that grows to be just six inches tall. A bit too big for a doll house but still mighty small for a lily.
It’s flower which dips shyly has no petals but six radiant yellow tepals surrounding six stamens with an ovary in the center with three stimata. Bees are the flower’s pollinators. And contents of the seed capsules will, I’m hoping, increase the population of the Trout Lilies.
Today I’ve come upon emerging Twinleaf (Jeffersonia diphylla), Wood Poppy (Stylophorum diphyllum), Virginia Bluebells (Mertensia virginica) and Mayapple (Podophyllum peltatum) but still no Trout Lily. I’m looking forward to being able to share these plants with you once they are up and gleefully blooming. Stay tuned!
2 responses to “Trout Lily”
I had a lot of these on my property in CT and saw them on my hikes. Have not seen them in the wild down here so very glad to hear they are here. There was a ban in CT on harvesting the plants from the wild. One of my fond memories, along with trillium, pippsisewa, striped wintergreen, Dutchman’s britches, and ladyslippers. Obviously, I don’t remember all the proper names. It seems like another lifetime.
Hi Nancy!
It sounds as if you had a marvelous place in Connecticut to see many cool native plants! I’ve never seen Trout Lily (Erythronium americanum) up here at my place (except for hte ones I’ve planted) though I have seen it at other locations in central Virginia. That ban in CT is certainly a good idea, along with people being cautioned to be certain that all native plants and bulbs purchased for home gardens are nursery-propagated, not wild collected. We only have so many of these precious things!
I’ll bet you are seeing MANY wonderful things emerging from the soil there at your place! YAY SPRING!
Thanks bunches for reading my posts.
Bren