link to Plants index
montage of plants

back to plants index


Spear lily in the Temperate House

Spear lily in the Temperate House

 

 

Spear lily

Doryanthes palmeri

This graceful member of the Doryanthaceae is native to the coastal areas of northern New South Wales and Queensland. Another common name is the Queensland mountain lily.

The numerous sword-like leaves, up to 2m long, are arranged in dense rosettes which eventually form large clumps with thickened underground stems and contractile roots which pull the plant closer to the ground during dry weather.

The brilliant red funnel-shaped flowers are produced on a leafy stem some 3m long and the fruit is a woody 3-celled capsule containing several flat seeds.

Although the seed germinates readily, Doryanthes palmeri grows very slowly, taking many years to reach flowering size.

 

Timeline

1948

came to Kew as seed

1952

was the first plant to be put in the old Australian House

1966

it flowered for the first time

1982

second flowering

1993

third flowering

April 2004

most recent flowering

Spear lily

Find out more

You can see the spear lily in the Temperate House

right arrowSearch Kew's electronic Plant Information Centre for scientific information about Doryanthes palmeri

More plants

Up arrowBack up to: plants index