Data provided by the participants of the Consortium of California Herbaria

View additional distribution information on the Jepson eflora

Humboldt's Lily (Lilium humboldtii ssp. humboldtii) is one of two recognized subspecies of Lilium humboldtii. This subspecies is a rare native perennial herb that grows primarily in the Cascade and Sierra Nevada foothills and mountains. Due to its limited distribution, it is included on CNPS list 4.2. It tends to grow at elevations from 600 to 4,000 feet. It grows up to 8 feet tall, with flowers that are large and showy, golden-orange with dark red or maroon splotches and orange to brown stamens. The plant flowers in June, with flowers growing in a pyramidal flower cluster. 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 oblance-shaped. It is summer-deciduous, dying back after flowering in mid- to late summer, and it should be allowed to go dry at that time. In winter it will do well with minimal supplemental water unless it is an especially dry winter.

Plant type

Perennial herb, Geophyte

Size

6 - 8 ft Tall
1 ft Wide

Form

Upright Columnar

Growth rate

Moderate

Dormancy

Summer Deciduous

Calscape icon
Color

Brown, Orange, Purple, Red, Yellow

Flowering season

Spring, Summer

Sun

Full Sun, Partial Shade

Water

Low, Moderate, Very Low

Summer irrigation

Max 1x / month once established

Cold tolerance

Tolerates cold to 0° F

Soil drainage

Medium, Slow

Soil description

Tolerates clay but prefers well drained loam.
Soil PH: 5.0 - 7.0

Maintenance

Can be cut back to the ground in late summer after it has gone completely dormant

Propagation

For propagating by seed: Sow outdoors in summer for germination the following spring, or 3-6 mos. warm then 2-3 mos. cold stratification. Seeds may also give good germination by spring if sown outdoors in early fall. For forcing slightly green or fresh seeds: 6-8 wks. warm (70°F) stratification or until the majority of seeds have formed bulblets; then 4-6 wks. cold (about 35°FJ stratification; sow, and at 55 to 60°F leaves should be produced in 4-6 wks. (De Graaff 1951).

Sunset Zones

1, 2, 7*, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24

Site type

Moist canyons, protected places on slopes or flats, often alongside streams

Plant communities

Chaparral, Yellow Pine Forest

Hummingbirds
Caterpillars
Butterflies

Butterflies and moths supported

0 confirmed and 2 likely

Confirmed Likely

Reaper Dart

Euxoa messoria

Virginian Tiger Moth

Spilosoma virginica