''Cardiocrinum giganteum'', the giant Himalayan lily, is the largest species of any of the lily plants, growing up to 3.5 metres high. It is found in the

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Burma Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and ha ...

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/ref> ;Varieties Two varieties are recognized *''C. giganteum'' var. ''giganteum'' - up to 3 metres tall, the outer part of the flower greenish and the inside streaked with purple -

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*''C. giganteum'' var. ''yunnanense'' - 1–2 metres tall, the outer part of the flower white and the inside streaked with purplish red -

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Description

''Cardiocrinum giganteum'' is a bulbous perennial. Flowers are white, fragrant, shaped like a trumpet, and long. Petals have purple streaking and a greenish tinge on the outside. Leaves are medium to dark green, broad-ovate in shape, and long. G''iganteum'' means unusually large or tall. It grows in woodland clearings.

History of cultivation

The plant was first described scientifically in 1824 by Nathaniel Wallich. The species was introduced into commercial production (as ''Lilium giganteum'') in Britain in the 1850s. A bulb grown from seed collected by Major Madden flowered in Edinburgh in July 1852, while those collected by

Thomas Lobb Thomas Lobb (1817–1894) was a British botanist and, along with his older brother, William Lobb, collected plants for the plant nursery Veitch Nurseries, Veitch. Lobb worked in India, the Dutch East Indies and the Philippines. In 1845 he discov ...

were first exhibited in flower in May 1853. Cardiocrinum giganteum.jpg, 1880 illustrationHenry John Elwes: A monograph of the genus ''Lilium''; illustrated by W.H. Fitch. Taylor and Francis, London 1880 Cardiocrinum giganteum yunnanense au Jardin Jungle.jpg, A plant of ''C. giganteum'' var. ''yunnanense'' growing at Jardin Jungle Karlostachys in France Cardiocrinum giganteum fruit Rogów.jpg, Fruits

References

Liliaceae Flora of Asia Plants described in 1824 {{Liliales-stub