Turk's Cap Lily Wildflower

These gorgeous wildflowers grow in bright patches with showy, spotted, orange blooms much appreciated by butterflies, moths, and hummingbirds. The plants are tall - about 6 feet - and each has a single stem with many flowers. Little black bulbs grow where leaves meet the stem, and these fall to the ground starting another generation. Turk's Caps are perennial plants preferring rich, moist soil and partial sun. They grow from bulbs that do form bulblets which grow into new lily plants. In our woods the lilies bloom in July nudging into the early part of August. This picture was taken July 18, 2011, in Green Lane, PA. This is our largest wild lily east of the Rocky Mountains with a variable range. They seem to do well when planted in gardens if conditions are right and good support for the tall stems is available (and you don't have foraging deer that eat everything to the ground).