Plant Library

Description:

A lovely lily producing elegant white flowers in summer; unlike other lilies this one has a basal rosette of leaves through winter from which a leafy stem arises in spring; an excellent choice for border plantings, a stunning impact when massed

Ornamental Features

Madonna Lily features bold nodding white trumpet-shaped flowers with gold anthers at the ends of the stems in mid summer. The flowers are excellent for cutting. Its narrow leaves remain green in color throughout the season.

Landscape Attributes

Madonna Lily is an herbaceous perennial with a rigidly upright and towering form. Its medium texture blends into the garden, but can always be balanced by a couple of finer or coarser plants for an effective composition.

This plant will require occasional maintenance and upkeep, and is best cleaned up in early spring before it resumes active growth for the season. Gardeners should be aware of the following characteristic(s) that may warrant special consideration;

• Insects
• Disease

Madonna Lily is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Mass Planting
• General Garden Use

Planting & Growing

Madonna Lily will grow to be about 4 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 12 inches. When grown in masses or used as a bedding plant, individual plants should be spaced approximately 10 inches apart. It tends to be leggy, with a typical clearance of 1 foot from the ground, and should be underplanted with lower-growing perennials. It grows at a fast rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 10 years. As an herbaceous perennial, this plant will usually die back to the crown each winter, and will regrow from the base each spring. Be careful not to disturb the crown in late winter when it may not be readily seen!

This plant does best in full sun to partial shade. It does best in average to evenly moist conditions, but will not tolerate standing water. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. This species is not originally from North America. It can be propagated by multiplication of the underground bulbs.