Herb: Desert Lily


Latin name: Hesperocallis undulata


Family: Agavaceae (Century-plant Family)



Edible parts of Desert Lily:

Bulb - raw or cooked. The bulbs can be baked or boiled. Quite large, the bulb is up to 5cm in diameter and is found up to 50cm below soil level.

Description of the plant:



Plant:
Bulb


Height:
30 cm
(11 3/4 inch)

Flowering:
February
to March

Scent:
Scented
Bulb

Habitat of the herb:

Dry sandy flats and gentle slopes below 750 metres in deserts and creosote bush scrub.

Propagation of Desert Lily:

Seed - sow in late winter or as soon as ripe in a deep pot in a very free draining compost in a greenhouse. Sow the seed thinly so that it does not have to be pricked out, and grow the young seedlings on without disturbance for their first 2 years - give them very little water during their dormant period, merely making sure that the compost does not dry out completely. Divide the young bulbs up into individual deep pots when they have completed their second growing season and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least another year before planting them out during their dormant period.

Cultivation of the herb:

Dry sandy flats and gentle slopes below 750 metres in deserts and creosote bush scrub.

Medicinal use of Desert Lily:

None known

Known hazards of Hesperocallis undulata:

None known

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future.