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Overview
Lilium martagon or Turk's Cap Lily is a stem rooting Lily growing between 1-2 metres in height that produces fragrant, pendant flowers in the pink to purple colour range, though sometimes also seen in shades through to white.
These plants produce multiple flowers per stem, (up to 50), each one facing downwards with sharply reflexed petals and the bronzy/golden stamen protruding noticeably on long filament.
These are very delicately beautiful Lilies but if you have pet cats then its best to avoid them as they are quite toxic, causing feline renal failure.
If you don't keep cats, then these plants make a very pretty addition to any mixed border and go well in most informal garden styles.
They also go well in amongst shrubs, particularly deciduous shrubs.
Soil: Well drained soils are best with plenty of shade, though some direct sun is well tolerated.
They like alkaline soils, so if yours is acid then add some lime and continue to add it yearly for the sake of the Lilies.
Note that they are slow to establish
They do not like being moved so choose your location carefully. They will survive moving but probably not flower for another year. Unusually the best time to plant or move them is when they are in full flower.
Maintenance: Unlike many other Lilies, these are very long lived.
They must have good drainage in winter, especially if you have wet winters as the bulbs will rot while they are dormant if allowed to be too moist over extended periods.
Another approach is to plant then on a slope to encourage natural drainage.
Diseases: Fungal diseases can be a problem so try to keep foliage dry where possible.
Lily Beetles can also be an occasional problem.
Toxicity: Quote from Wikipaedia:
Lilium martagon, like many in the genus, is highly toxic to cats and ingestion often leads to fatal kidney failure.
Households and gardens which are visited by cats are strongly advised against keeping this plant or placing dried flowers where a cat may brush against them and become dusted with pollen which they then consume while cleaning.
Suspected cases require urgent veterinary attention.
Rapid treatment with activated charcoal and/or induced vomiting can reduce the amount of toxin absorbed (this is time-sensitive so in some cases vets may advise doing it at home), and large amounts of fluid by IV can reduce damage to kidneys to increase the chances of survival
Comments: First grown in the UK in the late 16th century.
The common name comes from the style of turban adopted by the Turkish ruler, Sultan Mohammed 1, which was known as a martagon.
Author: Bob Saunders.