Erythronium
Erythronium, the fawn lily, trout lily, dog's-tooth violet or adder's tongue, is a genus of Eurasian and North American plants in the lily family, most closely related to tulips. The name Erythronium derives from Ancient Greek "red" in Greek, referring to the red flowers of E. dens-canis. Of all the established species, most live in North America; only six species are found in Europe and Asia.
Taxonomy
It was published by Carl Linnaeus in 1753 with Erythronium dens-canis as the type species.Species
Erythronium includes about 20–30 species of hardy spring-flowering perennial plants with long, tooth-like bulbs. Slender stems carry pendent flowers with recurved tepals in shades of cream, yellow, pink and mauve. Species are native to forests and meadows in temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere.Formerly included
Two species names were coined using the name Erythronium but have since been reclassified to other taxa.- Erythronium carolinianum, now called Uvularia perfoliata
- Erythronium hyacinthoides, now called ''Drimia indica''
Cultivation and uses
Erythroniums are woodland plants and require rich soil, full of organic matter. Soil should be evenly moist and slightly acidic. They prefer shade or filtered sunlight.
The following cultivars, of mixed ancestry, have won the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit:
- 'Apple Blossom'
- 'Janice'
- 'Joanna'
- 'Pagoda'
- 'Sundisc'
- 'Wildside Seedling'