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• Hemerocallidaceae
• Hemerocallis
• Hemerocallis fulva

Hemerocallis fulva — orange day-lily

Facts

Orange day-lily was brought to North America from Europe via Asia in the 17th century. It is a very popular ornamental plant. In Asia the roots have a history of being used medicinally and for food. The tepals (that is, sepals and petals that are similar in color and shape) have a flavor like lettuce and can be a colorful addition to a salad.

Habitat

Anthropogenic (man-made or disturbed habitats), floodplain (river or stream floodplains), forest edges, forests, meadows and fields

Characteristics

• Clonal plantlets

  Axillary bulblets

  there are no bulblets being produced in axils

• Flowers

  Anther attachment

  the anther is attached at its midpoint to the filament

  Anther color

  the anthers show no hint of a pink, reddish or purplish tint

  Anther length

  5–7 mm

  Bulblets replace flowers

  there are no bulblets where the flowers are located

  Carpels fused

  the carpels are fused (the number of carpels equals the number of locules)

  Filament surface

  the filament surface has no hairs or scales on it

  Flower bracts

  there are bracts associated with the flower

  Flower number

  10–20

  Flower orientation

  the flowers point upward or spread or curve outward

  Flower petal color

  • orange
  • yellow

  Flower petal length

  75–85 mm

  Flower shape

  the flower has a funnel-shaped corolla tube

  Flower symmetry

  there are two or more ways to evenly divide the flower (the flower is radially symmetrical)

  Form of style

  • the style is knob-like at the tip, and unbranched
  • the style is lobed at the tip, and unbranched

  Fringed petal edges

  the petals are not fringed

  Hairs on flower stalk

  the flower stalk has no hairs on it

  Inflorescence hair glands

  the axis of the inflorescence has no hairs on it

  Inflorescence type

  • the inflorescence is a monochasial cyme (an axis with a terminal flower, below it a branch with a terminal flower, this branch may itself have a branch and so on)
  • the inflorescence is a scorpioid cyme (a curled cyme that uncurls as the flowers sequentially bloom)

  Length of flower stalk

  3–6 mm

  Marks on petals

  the petals have spots or streaks on them

  Nectar spur

  the flower has no nectar spurs

  Number of carpels

  3

  Number of pistils

  1

  Number of sepals and/or petals

  there are six petals, sepals or tepals in the flower

  Number of styles

  1

  Ovary position

  the ovary is above the point of petal and/or sepal attachment

  Petal and sepal arrangement

  the flower includes two cycles of petal- or sepal-like structures

  Petal appearance

  the petals are thin and delicate, and pigmented (colored other than green or brown)

  Petal base

  the petal narrows gradually or does not narrow at the base

  Petal fusion

  the perianth parts are fused to form a tube, cup, or bell shape

  Petal hairs on inner/upper surface

  there are no hairs on the inner/upper petal surface

  Petal nectaries

  there are nectaries at the petal bases

  Sepal appearance

  the sepals resemble petals in color and texture

  Sepal length

  70–80 mm

  Sepal orientation

  the sepals are slightly curved outwards from the plant

  Sepals fused only to sepals

  the sepals are fused to each other (often along with the petals in monocots), at least near their bases

  Spathe

  the plant does not have a spathe

  Spathe form

  NA

  Spathe length

  0 mm

  Stamen length

  50–72 mm

  Stamen number

  6

  Stamen position relative to petals

  NA

  Stamen types

  the stamens within a cycle are distinctly of two types

  Stamens fused

  the stamens are not fused to one another

  Stamens fused outwards

  the stamens are fused to the petals or tepals at or near their bases

  Style length

  90–100 mm

  Style petal-like

  the style is not broad and flattened like a petal

  Tepals

  the petals and sepals are similar in size and color

• Fruits or seeds

  Berry color

  NA

  Capsule ridges

  there are no ribs or wings on the capsule

  Fruit beak length

  0 mm

  Fruit compartments

  • NA
  • there are three locules in the fruit

  Fruit cross-section

  the fruit is round in cross-section

  Fruit length

  20–25 mm

  Fruit stalk orientation

  the fruits point upward or spread or curve outward

  Fruit type (general)

  the fruit is fleshy

  Fruit type (specific)

  the fruit is a capsule (splits along two or more seams, apical teeth or pores when dry, to release two or more seeds)

  Fruit width

  12–15 mm

  Other markings on berry

  NA

• Glands or sap

  Sap

  the sap is clear and watery

• Growth form

  Lifespan

  the plant lives more than two years

  Root septa

  the roots do not have transverse septa

  Underground organs

  • the plant has a rhizome (a horizontal underground stem with roots growing from it)
  • there are only slender roots on the plant

• Leaves

  Hairs on underside of leaf blade

  the underside of the leaf is not hairy, or has very few hairs

  Hairs on upper side of leaf blade

  the upper side of the leaf is not hairy, or has very few hairs

  Leaf arrangement

  basal: the leaves are growing only at the base of the plant

  Leaf blade basal lobes

  the leaf blades do not have basal lobes

  Leaf blade base

  the leaf has no stalk

  Leaf blade base shape

  the base of the leaf blade is cuneate (wedge-shaped, tapers to the base with relatively straight, converging edges), or narrow

  Leaf blade bloom

  the underside of the leaf blade has no noticeable waxy or powdery bloom

  Leaf blade cross-section

  • the leaf blade is U- or V-shaped
  • the leaf blade is more or less flat in cross-section

  Leaf blade faces

  both surfaces of the leaf blade are exposed

  Leaf blade form

  Fully-formed (i.e., expanded), +/- green leaf blades are found somewhere on the plant

  Leaf blade length

  700–1000 mm

  Leaf blade orientation

  the upper surface of the leaf blade faces the stem of the plant

  Leaf blade shape

  the leaf blade is linear (very narrow with more or less parallel sides)

  Leaf blade surface colors

  the upper side of the leaf blade is relatively uniform in color

  Leaf blade tip

  the tip of the leaf blade is acuminate (tapers to a long, thin point)

  Leaf blade veins

  the lateral veins are parallel or slightly arched in the direction of the tip

  Leaf blade width

  8–50 mm

  Leaf stalk length

  0 mm

  Leaf type

  the leaves are simple (i.e., lobed or unlobed but not separated into leaflets

  Leaflet number

  0

  Stipule twining

  NA

  Stipules

  there are no stipules on this plant

• Place

  Habitat

  terrestrial

  New England state

  • Connecticut
  • Maine
  • Massachusetts
  • New Hampshire
  • Rhode Island
  • Vermont

  Specific habitat

  • edges of forests
  • forests
  • man-made or disturbed habitats
  • meadows or fields
  • river or stream floodplains

• Scent

  Plant odor

  the leaves have no particular smell

• Stem, shoot, branch

  Flowering stem growth form

  the flowering stem is held upright

  Flowering stem interior

  the flowering stem is hollow

  Flowering stem leaves

  there are no true leaves on the flowering stem

  Stem hairs

  the stem is nearly or completely hairless

Wetland status

Occurs only in non-wetlands. (Wetland indicator code: UPL)

New England distribution and conservation status

From the dichotomous key of Flora Novae Angliae