Lilies: I am soooo excited!, 1 by Leftwood

Leftwood wrote:
Well, you've probably already figured out it's not a martagon, which is not native to the Americas, and more importantly (and unmistakably) , notice the way the inflorescence is arranged compared to that of a martagon, which has a spike of flowers with short peduncles (flower stems). Our wild eastern species tend to have (but not always) an umbel type arrangement, where all the flower stems originate from the same point, and the turkscap types have very long flower stems, as does your discovery.

It is must be Lilium michiganense, as according to the books I have (that include Fasset's Spring Flora of Wisconsin (updated 4th edition), L. superbum doesn't grow wild in Wisconsin. Really, the only difference seems to be size, that I have been able to ascertain, with superbum growing much larger. (8-10ft is not unusual in a garden setting.) I don't think I could tell them apart with certainty otherwise. The foliage seems rather robust compared to the michiganense specimens I have seen in the wild, though.

I do remember the excitement I had (and still have) when I found my first wild Liliums michiganense and philadelphicum. Lilterally awesome! I am glad someone else shares my zeal. Michiganense (and philadelphicum) is fairly diverse in color and shape. This is one of mine, grown from Prairie Moon nursery seed. Of course, in a garden setting it readily adapts, and grows to more "beauty" than in the wild.