''Lilium parryi'', common name lemon lily, is a rare species of

lily ''Lilium'' () is a genus of herbaceous flowering plants growing from bulbs, all with large prominent flowers. They are the true lilies. Lilies are a group of flowering plants which are important in culture and literature in much of the world. M ...

. ''Lilium parryi'' is native to the southwestern United States and northwestern

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

where it grows in moist areas in mountain habitats. In

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

it is currently known from the

San Bernardino San Bernardino (; Spanish for "Saint Bernardino") is a city and county seat of San Bernardino County, California, United States. Located in the Inland Empire region of Southern California, the city had a population of 222,101 in the 2020 cen ...

and San Gabriel Mountains and a few remaining spots near

Palomar Mountain Palomar Mountain ( ; es, Monte Palomar ) is a mountain ridge in the Peninsular Ranges in northern San Diego County. It is famous as the location of the Palomar Observatory and Hale Telescope, and known for the Palomar Mountain State Park. His ...

to the south.California Native Plant Society Rare Plant Profile
/ref> It is the only true lily native to

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

, where a few populations can be found in the

Huachuca ''Echinopsis pachanoi'' (syn. ''Trichocereus pachanoi'')—known as San Pedro cactus—is a fast-growing columnar cactus native to the Andes Mountains at in altitude. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, Chile, Ecuador and Peru, and ...

, Chiricahua, and

Santa Rita Mountains The Santa Rita Mountains ( O'odham: To:wa Kuswo Doʼag), located about 65 km (40 mi) southeast of Tucson, Arizona, extend 42 km (26 mi) from north to south, then trending southeast. They merge again southeastwards into the Pat ...

.Arizona Game & Fish Department
/ref> In

, it has been found in mountains in the states of Sonora and

Baja California Baja California (; 'Lower California'), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Baja California ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Baja California), is a state in Mexico. It is the northernmost and westernmost of the 32 federal entities of Mex ...

.Kew World Checklist of Selected Plant Families
/ref> ''Lilium parryi'' is a perennial herb growing erect to about 2 meters in height from a scaly, elongated bulb up to long. The leaves are generally linear in shape, up to long, and usually arranged in whorls around the stem. The

inflorescence An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphology (biology), Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of sperma ...

is a raceme bearing up to 31 large, showy, bright lemon yellow flowers. The trumpet-shaped, fragrant flowers have six curling

tepal A tepal is one of the outer parts of a flower (collectively the perianth). The term is used when these parts cannot easily be classified as either sepals or petals. This may be because the parts of the perianth are undifferentiated (i.e. of very ...

s up to long, sometimes with a few reddish spots. There are six stamens tipped with large anthers up to long. The pistil may be long. The flowers are

pollinated Pollination is the transfer of pollen from an anther of a plant to the stigma of a plant, later enabling fertilisation and the production of seeds, most often by an animal or by wind. Pollinating agents can be animals such as insects, birds, a ...

by hawkmoths, especially ''

Hyles lineata ''Hyles lineata'', also known as the white-lined sphinx, is a moth of the family Sphingidae. They are sometimes known as the hummingbird moth because of their bird-like size (2-3 inch wingspan) and flight patterns. As caterpillars, they have a ...

'' and '' Sphinx perelegans''.Center for Plant Conservation
/ref> Threats to this species include

grazing In agriculture, grazing is a method of animal husbandry whereby domestic livestock are allowed outdoors to roam around and consume wild vegetations in order to convert the otherwise indigestible (by human gut) cellulose within grass and other ...

, recreation, natural flooding and human alterations in water regimes, and horticultural collecting of the bulbs and flowers. ''Lilium parryi'' was named for

Charles Christopher Parry Parry circa 1875 Charles Christopher Parry (August 28, 1823 – February 20, 1890) was a British-American botanist and mountaineer. Biography Parry was born in Gloucestershire, England, but moved to the United States with his parents in 1832, s ...

(28 August 1823 – 20 February 1890), a British-American botanist and mountaineer. Idyllwild, California, hosts the Lemon Lily Festival, which celebrates this species.Lemon Lily Festival

References

External links

Calflora Database: ''Lilium parryi'' (lemon lily)Jepson Manual Treatment of ''Lilium parryi''USDA Plants Profile for ''Lilium parryi'' (lemon lily)UC Photos gallery: ''Lilium parryi''
{{Taxonbar, from=Q631330 parryi Flora of Arizona Flora of California Flora of Baja California Flora of Sonora Natural history of the Peninsular Ranges Natural history of the Transverse Ranges Flora without expected TNC conservation status