What are the cultivated species of lilies? A detailed introduction to common varieties

1. Lilium lancifolium, also called tiger lily. Its bulb is nearly flat-spherical, about 3.5 cm high, 4-8 cm in diameter, and weighs more than 250 g. The scales are broadly ovate, 2.5-3 cm long and 1.4-2.5 cm wide, white and slightly tinged with yellow. It is high in starch and slightly bitter. The aerial stem is 0.8-1.5 m tall, with purple stripes and white woolly hairs. The leaves are scattered, short-oblong-lanceolate or lanceolate, nearly hairless on both sides, with white hairs at the tip, papillate along the margin, with 5-7 veins, and bulbils in the upper leaf axils. The flowers are orange-red, opening downward, with the tepals recurved outward, bearing dark purple spots, and can set fruit and produce seeds. It is produced in China's Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Anhui, Jiangxi, Hunan, Hubei, Guangxi, Sichuan, Qinghai, Xizang, Gansu, Shaanxi, Shanxi, Henan, Shandong, Hebei and Jilin provinces and autonomous regions. It is cultivated in various places. 2. Lilium davidii has a flat-spherical or broadly ovate bulb, 2-4 cm high and 2-4.5 cm in diameter; the scales are broadly ovate to ovate-lanceolate, 2-3.5 cm long and 1-1.5 cm wide, white. The stem is 50-100 cm tall, sometimes purple-tinged, densely covered with small papillae. The leaves are numerous, scattered, denser in the middle, linear, with a very pointed tip, recurved margins and obvious small papillae; the midrib is distinct, often sunken above and raised beneath, and there is white woolly hair in the leaf axils. The flowers are solitary or 2-8 in a raceme, orange-yellow, drooping, with purple-black spots; the inner tepals are wider than the outer ones and recurved outward. The capsule is oblong. The flowering period is July-August, and the fruiting period is September. The chromosome number is 2n=24. It is produced in China's Sichuan, Yunnan, Shaanxi, Gansu, Henan, Shanxi and Hubei. It grows in moist places under forest on mountain slopes and grassland or at forest edges, at an altitude of 850-3200 m. The bulb contains starch, is of excellent quality, gives high yields under cultivation, and can be eaten. 3. Lilium brownii (white-flowered lily) has a spherical bulb, 2-2.4 cm in transverse diameter; the scales are lanceolate, white, turning yellowish white or slightly pink when exposed to the sun. The taste is mild and not bitter. The aerial stem is about 100 cm tall, and the leaves are scattered and oblanceolate. The flowers are milky white and fragrant, and can set fruit and produce seeds. It is distributed in China's Hunan, Hubei, Zhejiang, Henan, Hebei and Shaanxi provinces at an altitude of 300-390 m. It was introduced to Europe in 1704, and in 1681 it was introduced to Japan and cultivated as a vegetable for food. The Longya lily cultivated in Jiangxi, Hunan and other places is an excellent cultivated variety of this species. 4. Lilium concolor (shandan) has an ovoid bulb, 2-3.5 cm high and 2-3.5 cm in diameter; the scales are ovate or ovate-lanceolate, white, and very slightly bitter. When the bulb has grown to a suitable size, it splits. The aerial stem is pale purple-black, densely covered with white down, and about 60 cm tall. There are no bulbils in the leaf axils. The flowers are relatively small, opening upward, and can set fruit and produce seeds. It is distributed in China's Henan, Hebei, Shandong, Shanxi, Shaanxi and Jilin. It grows wild on mountain slopes, in grass, by roadsides and under shrubs, at an altitude of 350-2000 m. The bulb contains starch and can be eaten or used for brewing wine; it can also be used as medicine, with effects of nourishing, strengthening and relieving cough. The flowers contain aromatic oil and can be used as a fragrance. 5. Lilium auratum (mountain lily) has a flat-spherical bulb, 6-7 cm in diameter, up to more than 12 cm at maximum, yellow-green, turning peach-red under sunlight. The scale tips have small peach-red dots. The part of the lower end buried in the soil can produce small bulbs. The leaves are alternate, narrowly lanceolate to long ovate, with no bulbils in the leaf axils. The raceme bears 4-5 flowers or up to more than 20; the flowers are large, 23-30 cm in diameter and about 15 cm long; white, with large reddish-brown spots. The center of the flower spots has radial yellow longitudinal stripes; it is strongly fragrant, and the flowering period is summer and autumn. The chromosome number is 2n=24. It is native to Japan and is also distributed in central China. 6. Lilium leichtlinii var. maximowiczii (shandanhua, small tiger lily) has a nearly round bulb, 4-6 cm in diameter, white. The stem is about 50-200 cm tall, with purple spots and small papillae. The leaves are scattered, lanceolate, with small papillae along the margin, and there are no bulbils in the upper leaf axils. The flowers are 2-8 in a raceme, rarely solitary. The flowers are red, with purple spots, opening downward. The flowering period is July-August. It is distributed in China's Shaanxi, North China and Northeast China. It grows in sandy ground at the bottom of valleys, at an altitude of about 1290 m. 7. Lilium pumilum (fine-leaved lily) has an ovate or conical bulb, 2.5-4.5 cm high and 2-3 cm in diameter. The stem is 15-60 cm tall, with small papillae, sometimes with purple stripes. The leaves are basal and in the middle of the stem, variable in shape. The flowers are solitary or several in a raceme, and the tepals are red and recurved. The flowering period is July-August, and the fruiting period is September-October. It is produced in China's Hebei, Henan, Shanxi, Shaanxi, Ningxia, Shandong, Qinghai, Gansu, Inner Mongolia, Heilongjiang, Liaoning and Jilin. It grows on mountain slopes, in grassland or at forest edges. The altitude is 400-2600 m. The bulb contains starch and is used for food; it can also be used as medicine. The flowers are beautiful and can be cultivated for ornament; they also contain volatile oil that can be extracted for fragrance use. 8. Lilium callosum has a small, flat-spherical bulb, 2 cm high and 1.5-2.5 cm in diameter; the aerial stem is slender and 40-100 cm tall. The leaves are scattered, linear or linear-lanceolate. The flowers are 1-4, but cultivated varieties may have as many as 15; they are small, about 4 cm in diameter, orange-red or orange-yellow, with indistinct spots on the stem, a thickened slightly convex tip at the end, recurved in the upper part, and narrowly tubular in the lower part; the flowering period is August. A common variety is the yellow-flowered Lilium callosum, from orange-yellow to ginger-yellow. It is native to China and is also distributed in Japan. This species has the latest flowering period and can be cultivated for cut flowers and for retarding cultivation; it likes sunlight and moist clayey soil. 9. Lilium formosanum has a nearly spherical bulb, 3-4 cm in diameter, yellow. The aerial stem is 30-180 cm tall, purple-brown. The leaves are scattered, woolly-lanceolate. The flowers are 1 to many, horizontally spreading; narrowly funnel-shaped; 12-13 cm in diameter; white, with a pale reddish-brown outer tinge; native to Taiwan, China, growing on sunny grassy slopes below an altitude of 3500 m, and is an important ornamental cultivated species. The seeds of this species germinate easily, and the germination rate can be as high as 95%-99%. 10. Lilium henryi has a flat-spherical bulb, up to 17 cm in diameter. The aerial stem is 150-200 cm tall, green with brown spots. The leaves are dimorphic: the upper leaves are ovate, densely arranged, sessile; the lower leaves are broadly lanceolate, with short petioles. The flowers are 6-12, up to 20; the flower diameter is 6-6.5 cm, and the length is 7 cm; orange-yellow, with dark brown fine dots; the tepals are recurved, green in the center of the base, the nectary is hairless, and there are streaked protrusions on both sides; the flowering period is July. The chromosome number is 2n=24. This species is native to China's Hubei, Guizhou and other provinces. 11. Lilium longiflorum (Easter lily) has a spherical or flat-spherical bulb, yellowish white, with the scales tightly clasped. The aerial stem is 40-100 cm tall, green, smooth and spotless. The leaves are numerous, scattered, narrowly lanceolate. The flowers are solitary or 2-3 on short pedicels; horizontally spreading or slightly drooping; waxy white, with a green tinge at the base, the tube 10-15 cm long and 10-12 cm in diameter; strongly fragrant; the flowering period is May-June. The chromosome number is 2n=24. It is native to Taiwan, China and the southern islands of Japan. 12. Lilium regale (royal lily, king fragrant lily, Emei lily) has an ovoid to elliptical bulb, purple-red, 5-12 cm in diameter; the aerial stem is 100-180 cm tall, green with purple spots. The leaves are densely arranged, slender, soft and drooping, lanceolate, dark green. The flowers are 2-9, usually 4-5, horizontally borne, trumpet-shaped, 12-13 cm in diameter and 12-15 cm long, white, with a pink-purple tinge on the outside of the yellow base on the inner side, fragrant, and the flowering period is June-July. The chromosome number is 2n=24. It is native to China's Sichuan, Yunnan and other provinces, and is distributed in rock crevices in valleys at an altitude of 760-2200 m. 13. Lilium speciosum (wangzhuolong) has a nearly flat-spherical bulb, about 2 cm high and 5 cm in diameter; the scales are broadly lanceolate, white. The stem is 60-120 cm tall, and the leaves are scattered and lanceolate. The flowers are 1-5, with recurved tepals bearing pearl-red spots, and the flowering period is July-August. The chromosome number is 2n=24. It is produced in China's central and southern provinces. The bulb can be used as medicine and can also be eaten. The flowers are extremely beautiful, and it is a famous ornamental plant.