Lilium martagon

Lilium martagon L. (S and C-Eur.) – A very rare, locally naturalized escape from cultivation. Usually found in woodlands, clearings or in old parks, on calcareous soils. The scattered naturalized populations are almost exclusively located in Wallonia. Formerly known from Strée (Huy). The most important population however is located in Ouffet (Bois de Himbe), near an old castle. There, Lilium martagon is naturalized in abundance since many decades. Saintenoy-Simon & Duvigneaud 1999) provide an overview of the Belgian locations of Lilium martagon. The oldest populations date back to ca. 1860. In recent years (2017) a new population was discovered in Tintigny (nature reserve Plate Dessous les Monts) and since 2009 L. martagon is also known from a single locality in Flanders (Oorbeek, Tienen).
Based on the hairless, usually purplish stems and pinkish-purple flowers, Belgian populations are ascribable to var. martagon (Matthews 1986).

Selected literature:


Champluvier D. (1995) Omphalodes verna. In: Notes brèves sur certains centuries distribuées dans le fascicule 25. Soc. Ech. Pl. Vasc. Eur. Bass. Médit., Bull. 25: 64.

Gomurgen A.N. & Altinozlu H. (2004) The karyotype analysis of Lilium martagon L. (Liliaceae) with B chromosome. Hacettepe J. Biol. Chem. 33: 1-5.

Matthews V.A. (1986) Lilium. In: Walters S.M. & al. (eds.), The European Garden Flora, vol. 1. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge: 193-206.

Persson H.A., Lundquist K. & Nybom H. (1998) RAPD analysis of genetic variation within and among populations of Turk's-cap lily (Lilium martagon L.). Hereditas 128(3): 213-220. [available online at: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1601-5223.1998.00213.x]

Priszter S. (1967) Revision der Formen von Lilium martagon L. Acta Bot. Acad. Sci. Hung. 13: 175-200.

Saintenoy-Simon J. & Duvigneaud J. (1999) Excursion à Bois Laiterie, Annevoie-Rouillon et Houx. Adoxa 23: 13-19.

Scratchpads developed and conceived by (alphabetical): Ed Baker, Katherine Bouton Alice Heaton Dimitris Koureas, Laurence Livermore, Dave Roberts, Simon Rycroft, Ben Scott, Vince Smith