The Wild Garden: Hansen's Northwest Native Plant Database

Hansen's Northwest Native Plant Database

Lilium pardalinum ssp. wigginsii (Wiggins' Lily)

Kingdom	:	Plantae – Plants
Subkingdom	:	Tracheobionta – Vascular plants
Superdivision	:	Spermatophyta – Seed plants
Division	:	Magnoliophyta – Flowering plants
Class	:	Liliopsida – Monocotyledons
Subclass	:	Liliidae
Order	:	Liliales
Family	:	Liliaceae – Lily family
Genus	:	Lilium L. – lily
Species	:	Lilium pardalinum Kellogg – leopard lily
Subspecies	:	Lilium pardalinum Kellogg ssp. wigginsii (Beane & Vollmer) M.W. Skinner – Wiggins' lily

Photo credit: Native Orchids

True to Lilium pardalinum heritage, this subspecies grows usually between 30 to 48 inches tall, from single to several stems with nodding bell-shaped flowers numbering between 2 and 35 per plant. Leaves on large plants are in 3 or 4 whorls along the stem and are from 2 to 5 inches long. In smaller plants the leaves are scattered. The yellow-orange or orange flowers are uniformly colored and have magenta to brown spots. The pollen is pale yellow to pale orange.

Look for this native perennial especially in the Siskiyous in drainage ditches, along the edges of streams, in bogs, fens and other places where there is sufficient moisture. It likes to have some sun but will grow in shade as well.

Though it is uncommon, you may find colonies in the Klamath Mountains, along the boundary between Del Norte and Siskiyou counties in California and through Josephine County in Oregon to Mount Ashland in Jackson County.

The solid coloration of the flowers is the most distinctive trait of this plant. However interaction with other lilies, particularly other subspecies of pardalinum often yields inconsistently formed flowers when the genetic qualities are disturbed.

The USDA PLANTS database under Wetland Indicator Status has this announcement:

NOTE: On June 1, 2012, the 2012 National Wetland Plant List superseded the information below (see Federal Register, May 9, 2012, 77(90): 27210-27214[https://federalregister.gov/a/2012-11176]). For updated wetland information about this species, see the latest wetland list.

Photo credit: Mrs. W.D. Bransford

For a short comparison of northwest native lilies, click here.

Thanks to the following resources:

Wikipedia, the online free encyclopedia, www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lilium_parvum

Flora of North America, www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=242102264

Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, The University of Texas at Austin, www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=LIPAW2