Arthropodium milleflorum
Pale Vanilla Lily
Taxonomy and growth
- Family
- Asphodelaceae
- Genus
- Arthropodium
- Life cycle
- perennial
- Height
- 0.3 m
- Flower type
- hermaphrodite
Uses
Edible uses
Root - cooked[1]. Rather watery with a slightly sweet or bitter flavour[3]. Plants produce about 4 - 5 tubers up to 3cm long[3].
- Plant part
- Root
Environment
- Range
- Australia - New South Wales, Tasmania, Victoria.
- Habitat
- Found in a variety of habitats from the coast to alpine areas. Eucalyptus forests, woodlands and sub-alpine meadows, favouring moist grassy sheltered slopes[3].
- Light
- full sun
- Shade tolerance
- no shade
- Water
- moderate
- Hardiness
- Zone 8+
- Soil textures
- sandy, loamy
- Soil pH
- acid, neutral, alkaline
- Drainage
- well drained
- Tolerates Nutritionally Poor Soil
- No
- Drought
- intolerant
Propagation
Seed - sow late winter in a cold greenhouse. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on for at least their first winter in a greenhouse. Plant out in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Division in spring.
Cultivation
Prefers a well-drained sandy peaty loam in a warm, sheltered sunny position[4]. Succeeds in areas where temperatures seldom fall much below freezing so long as it is given a sunny sheltered position and a well-drained soil[4]. Plants are hardy to at least -7°c in Australian gardens[2], though this cannot be translated directly to British gardens due to our cooler summers and colder longer and wetter winters. The plant has a strong scent of vanilla, this is especially noticeable on warm days[2].
References
Cribb. A. B. and J. W. Wild Food in Australia. Fontana 1976-00-00 ISBN 0-00-634436-4
Wrigley. J. W. and Fagg. M. Australian Native Plants. Collins. (Australia) 1988-00-00 ISBN 0-7322-0021-0
Low. T. Wild Food Plants of Australia. Angus and Robertson. 1989-00-00 ISBN 0-207-14383-8
Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992-00-00 ISBN 0-333-47494-5