Relatives of the Lily making excellent ornamental plants for the woodland garden with attractive spring flowers and equally attractive foliage the remainder of the year.
All species prefer a woodland environment.
* photo taken on May 8 2010 @ McCrillis Gardens, Bethesda, MD
Disporopsis arisanensis
A rhizomatous, spreading, colony-forming perennial reaching up to 16 x 10 ( rarely over 8 ) inches, that is native to Taiwan. It is an excellent elegant, woodland groundcover in the Mid Atlantic and Deep South. The rhizomes eventually become thick and very large.
The alternate, elliptical to rounded, evergreen leaves, up to 4 x 2.5 inches, are glossy green.
In zone 7, it becomes deciduous during cold winters.
The hanging, fragrant, white ( purplish inside ), bell-shaped flowers, up to inch in length, are borne in groups of or , during late spring to early summer.
The fruits are deep blue.
Hardy zones 6 to 8 in light to medium shade on moist, fertile, acidic soil.
Disporopsis aspera
A rhizomatous, spreading perennial reaching up to 32 inches x 1.5 feet, native to China. It is an excellent, dense, luxuriant, woodland groundcover in the Mid Atlantic and Deep South.
The alternate, elliptical, leathery, evergreen leaves, up to 6 x 2.5 inches, are glossy deep green. In zone 7, it becomes deciduous during cold winters.
The fragrant, white, bell-shaped flowers, up to 0.8 inches in length, are borne along the arching stems during late spring.
The persistent fruits are purplish.
Hardy zones 7 to 8 in light to medium shade on moist, fertile, acidic, well drained soil.
* photo taken on May 8 2010 @ U.S. National Arboretum, D.C.
* photos taken on May 21 2011 @ Brookside Gardens "Party with the Peonies" tour in Fulton, MD
Disporopsis fusco-picta
A rhizomatous, spreading perennial reaching up to 3 x 1.5 feet, native to China.
It is an excellent, dense, luxuriant, woodland groundcover in the Mid Atlantic and Deep South.
The alternate, elliptical, evergreen leaves, up to 6 x 2.5 inches, are glossy deep green.
In zone 7, it becomes deciduous during cold winters.
The purplish, bell-shaped flowers, up to 0.8 inches in length, are borne along the arching stems during late spring to early summer.
The persistent fruits are deep blue.
Hardy zones 6 to 8 ( 4 & 5 with thick winter mulch or snow cover ) in light to medium shade on moist, fertile, acidic, well drained soil.
* photos taken on May 27 2017 @ Meadowlark Botanical Gardens, Vienna, VA
Disporopsis pernyi ( Evergreen Solomon's Seal )
A very rare Chinese native, it grows to 32 inches tall and is spreading ( width of 2.5 feet in 7 years ) with a rhizomatous, long-lived rootstock. In the wild it is found in mountain woodlands in Guizhou, Guangxi and Yunnan Provinces. Its stems are arching. The ovate leaves are up to 6 x 2.5 inches in size. The evergreen foliage is glossy deep green.
Its drooping, fragrant, white flowers, up to 0.8 inches in length, are borne from the leaf axils during late spring into early summer.
They are followed by deep blue berries.
It is hardy from zones 5 to 8 and prefers partial to full shade and moist rich acidic soil. It is not bothered by pests and diseases and thrives in much of eastern North America.
* photos taken @ U.S. National Arboretum, D.C. on Feb 2009
* photo taken on May 8 2010 @ U.S. National Arboretum, D.C.
* photo taken on July 4 2010 in Washington, D.C.
* photos taken on October 17 2010 @ U.S. National Arboretum, D.C.
* photos taken on Aug 25 2011 @ Scott Arboretum, Swarthmore College, PA
* photos taken on May 27 2017 @ Meadowlark Botanical Gardens, Vienna, VA
* photo taken on Sep 9 2014 in Elkridge, MD
'Zebra Stripes'
* photos taken on May 27 2017 @ Meadowlark Botanical Gardens, Vienna, VA
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