Trout lily 'Pagoda'
Erythronium 'Pagoda' ·
Several nodding, sulphur-yellow flowers with swept-back petals on each stem, above broad, glossy, faintly mottled leaves. The most vigorous and reliable trout lily.
- Size
- 12 in tall, 6 in wide
- Zones
- 4 to 8
- Light
- Part sun to part shade
- Flowers
- Mid April to early May
- Pets
- No toxicity recorded
- Job in a bed
- Bulb layer
A bed built around trout lily 'Pagoda'
The planner designed this bed around trout lily 'Pagoda' when this page was made: a 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) English border in zone 6, part sun. It chose the other plants from the 708 that suit those conditions, and says below why trout lily 'Pagoda' stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Bloody cranesbill 'Max Frei' × 7, pink
- 2 Creeping mahonia × 8, yellow
- 3 Foxglove beardtongue × 3, white
- 4 Brown-eyed Susan × 3, yellow
- 5 Deutzia 'Chardonnay Pearls' × 1, white
- 6 Coral bells 'Berry Smoothie' × 5, red leaves
- 7 Trout lily 'Pagoda' × 12, yellow
Why this plant
- Nothing here is unique to it. Its leaf, flower shape and colour are all on the plan already. Its case rests on where it stands and when it performs.
Why here
- In the middle. At 12 in it stands ahead of coral bells 'Berry Smoothie' (18 in) without hiding it.
- 12 plants in 2 handfuls. In the gaps between other plants, which fill the space when the bulb is not in growth.
Why now
- In flower for four weeks. From mid April to early May.
- Part of the bed's peak. With creeping mahonia and deutzia 'Chardonnay Pearls' in early May: 3 kinds at once. No week has more.
- Leaves gone by midsummer. They die back and leave bare ground. A perennial that comes up late stands beside it, and grows over the gap.
Planned as an English border: 6 of the 6 groups (100%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. Hot colours (yellow) with pink as the cool note, and white to calm things between them. The bed is balanced: the left half carries 51% of the visual weight and the right half 49%.
The planner's own design check: 13 Excellent, 4 Good. It flags one thing to watch: Nothing on this plan is highly poisonous or an aggressive spreader.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where trout lily 'Pagoda' goes in a border
At 12 in it belongs at the front of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is low (6 to 12 in).
Its job: bulb layer. Small bulbs planted in handfuls of five or seven in the gaps between other plants, for colour before the perennials wake up.
Much easier and more showy than the wild trout lilies. It flowers before the hostas unfurl and is hidden by them as it dies back.
- Spring flowers for part shade
- Woodland gardens
- Among hostas and ferns
What to plant with trout lily 'Pagoda'
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Hosta: its green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; grows up in time to hide its dying leaves; bold leaves against its medium ones.
- Lenten rose: purple against yellow, opposite each other on the colour wheel, if you choose those colours, in flower together for four weeks; bold leaves against its medium ones.
- Siberian bugloss 'Jack Frost': blue against yellow, opposite each other on the colour wheel, in flower together for three weeks; grows up in time to hide its dying leaves; bold leaves against its medium ones.
Questions about trout lily 'Pagoda'
Does trout lily 'Pagoda' need sun or shade?
Trout lily 'Pagoda' grows in part sun (4 to 6 hours of sun, including some afternoon sun) and part shade (2 to 4 hours of sun, mostly in the morning).
It wants soil that stays evenly moist, rich in organic matter, and a good soak in dry spells.
What zones does trout lily 'Pagoda' grow in?
USDA zones 4 to 8. It is hardy to zone 4, which means it survives winter nights down to about −20 °F (−29 °C).
Above zone 8 it struggles: the zones measure winter cold, but a plant's top zone usually means the summers are too hot or the winters too mild for it to rest.
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does trout lily 'Pagoda' flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers mid April to early May. As a spring flower it moves about a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer, later where it is colder.
| Zone 4 | Late April to mid May |
|---|---|
| Zone 5 | Mid April to early May |
| Zone 6 | Mid April to early May |
| Zone 7 | Early April to late April |
| Zone 8 | Late March to mid April |
Worked out from Hopkins' bioclimatic law: spring arrives about four days later for each degree of latitude north, and one zone is roughly two degrees. A warm spring or a cold one moves any garden two weeks either way.
How far apart should trout lily 'Pagoda' be planted?
4 in (10 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 6 in (15 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 12 in (30 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many trout lily 'Pagoda' plants do I need?
At 4 in apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 107 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 31 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 343 to fill a 4 × 8 ft bed on its own
In a mixed border, plant it as handfuls of five or seven, in the gaps between other plants.
In the bed above, the planner used 12 in two groups.
Is trout lily 'Pagoda' poisonous to dogs and cats?
No toxicity is recorded for dogs, cats, horses or people, according to NC State Extension.
"Not toxic" is not "edible": a pet that eats a lot of any plant can be sick.
What can I plant to hide trout lily 'Pagoda''s leaves after it flowers?
A bulb's leaves have to be left to yellow for about six weeks after flowering, to feed next year's flowers. Plant it among perennials that come up late and spread wide, and they grow over the leaves as they fade:
- Hosta: 18 in tall and 2½ ft wide, a recorded partner, in flower mid July to mid August.
- Siberian bugloss 'Jack Frost': 16 in tall and 18 in wide, a recorded partner, in flower late April to late May.
- Lady's mantle: 18 in tall and 24 in wide, in flower late May to early July.
What does trout lily 'Pagoda' look like in winter?
Trout lily 'Pagoda' is underground: it dies back after flowering and waits as a bulb until spring. Mark where it is, so a fork does not find it first.
More Erythronium
- Fawn lily 'White Beauty' Erythronium californicum 'White Beauty'
- Yellow trout lily Erythronium americanum
In these guides
Every fact on record
- Type
- Bulb
- Size
- 12 in (30 cm) tall, 6 in (15 cm) wide
- Plant
- 4 in (10 cm) apart
- Height class
- Low (6 to 12 in)
- Place in the bed
- Front
- Flowers
- Mid April to early May; hanging bells; yellow
- Leaves
- Medium texture, summer-dormant; green
- Shape
- Upright, clumping
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 4 to 8
- Light
- Part sun, part shade
- Soil
- Rich, evenly moist
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- Light, in spring
Checked against NC State Extension. Flowering times are for zone 5: later in colder zones, earlier in warmer ones. Toxicity and spread information is a general gardening guide, not veterinary or medical advice, and invasive status varies by region. If a person or pet eats a plant, contact poison control or a vet. Check your local invasive species list before planting anything with a spread warning.