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St. Bernard's Lily

Anthericum liliago (an-THER-ih-kum lil-EE-ah-go)

Family: Asparagaceae Non-native Herbaceous (1-3 ft)

St. Bernard's Lily is an herbaceous perennial in the asparagus family (Asparagaceae) native to Europe and Turkey. It is a vigorous plant typically found growing wild in dry pastures, stony places and open wood. It grows well in average, medium, well-drained soil in full afternoon sun, although it tolerates light, sun-dappled shade. It prefers rich, constantly moist soils. It can be grown from seed or by division of the root stock, but division should be attempted only every 3 to 4 years. You should plant the tuberous roots 2 inches deep and 12 inches apart in the fall or early spring to flower in early summer. it is slow to get started but forms large clumps with time and may self-seed in the garden. The showy white trumpet-shaped flowers have yellow anthers and appear on 2-foot stems in clusters in spring to early summer. The foliage grows in clumps with grass-like leaves. Use in borders, rock gardens or along walkways and walls for edging. Diseases, Insect Pests, and Other Plant Problems: No significant problems.

Source: NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox ↗ NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox, 41 attributes.

How it fits the guild

Guild layer 4 - Herbaceous (1-3 ft)
See companions & conflicts ↓

Companions & Conflicts

Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.

No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.

Also noted by NC State

Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.

Fills a similar niche Allium Alstroemeria Petunia x hybrida

Full plant profile

Growing Conditions
Plant type
Bulb
Life cycle
Perennial
USDA zones
4a, 4b, 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b
Light
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
Soil drainage
Good Drainage | Moist
Available space
Less than 12 inches
NC region
Coastal; Mountains; Piedmont
Mature size
Height: 1 ft. 6 in. - 2 ft. 0 in. | Width: 1 ft. 0 in. - 1 ft. 6 in.
Growth rate
Slow
Maintenance
Low
Canopy layer
4 - Herbaceous (1-3 ft)
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Clumping; Erect
Texture
Medium
Leaf color
Green
Leaf shape
Linear
Leaf size
> 6 inches long
Hairs present
No
Leaf detail
Grass-like leaves are narrowly linear and can range from 4 to 15 inches long.
Flower color
White
Flower value
Good Cut; Showy
Flower form
Raceme; Spike
Flower shape
Star; Trumpet
Flower size
1-3 inches
Flower detail
The trumpet-shaped flowers bloom in clusters on a 2-foot stem and are 1.5 inches across. They are white with yellow anthers and bloom May to June.
Bloom time
Spring; Summer
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Non-native
Origin
Southern Sweden to Southern Europe and Turkey
Attracts
Bees
Landscape Use
Landscape location
Rock Wall; Walkways
Landscape theme
Rock Garden
Design feature
Border
Garden tags
#bulb #white flowers #full sun tolerant #summer bulbs #summer flowers #flowers early summer #non-toxic for cats #non-toxic for dogs #clumping #rock garden #edging #border
Problems & Resistance
Propagation
Division; Seed

Planted at Hunnicutt

Nobody’s planted this one yet.