Yellow trout lily
Erythronium americanum · Liliaceae
Small, nodding, yellow lilies with swept-back petals in early spring, above a pair of leaves mottled brown and green like the back of a trout.
- Size
- 6 in tall, 4 in wide
- Zones
- 3 to 8
- Light
- Part shade to shade
- Flowers
- Mid April to early May
- Pets
- No toxicity recorded
- Job in a bed
- Bulb layer
A bed built around yellow trout lily
The planner designed this bed around yellow trout lily when this page was made: a 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) English border in zone 6, part shade. It chose the other plants from the 513 that suit those conditions, and says below why yellow trout lily stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Blue star creeper × 19, blue
- 2 Lungwort × 5, pink
- 3 Turtlehead 'Hot Lips' × 3, pink
- 4 Korean feather reed grass × 1, pink
- 5 Blue-stemmed goldenrod × 3, yellow
- 6 Palm sedge × 3, green leaves
- 7 Yellow trout lily × 12, yellow
- 8 Giant snowdrop × 5, white
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 6 in it stands ahead of Korean feather reed grass (4 ft) 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.
- In company. With lungwort in mid April: 2 kinds at once.
- 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: 5 of the 6 groups (83%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. Pink is the colour seen most, on 3 of the 7 kinds grown for their flowers. Blue star creeper is planted in five places along the bed, which gives it rhythm.
The planner's own design check: 11 Excellent, 6 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 yellow trout lily goes in a border
At 6 in it belongs at the front of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is ground-hugging (up to 6 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.
It forms large colonies of mottled leaves, of which only the older, two-leaved plants flower. Be patient: it takes years to settle and then lasts for ever.
- Native woodland gardens
- Carpeting under deciduous trees
- With other spring ephemerals
What to plant with yellow trout lily
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Virginia bluebells: blue against yellow, opposite each other on the colour wheel, in flower together for four weeks; tall enough (20 in) to stand behind it; happy in the same moist soil.
- Christmas fern: its dark green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; tall enough (20 in) to stand behind it.
- Wild ginger: 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.
Questions about yellow trout lily
Does yellow trout lily need sun or shade?
Yellow trout lily grows in part shade (2 to 4 hours of sun, mostly in the morning) and shade (less than 2 hours of direct sun, or bright dappled light).
It wants soil that stays evenly moist, rich in organic matter, and a good soak in dry spells.
What zones does yellow trout lily grow in?
USDA zones 3 to 8. It is hardy to zone 3, which means it survives winter nights down to about −30 °F (−34 °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 yellow trout lily 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 3 | Late April to mid May |
|---|---|
| Zone 4 | Mid April to early May |
| Zone 5 | Mid April to early May |
| Zone 6 | Early April to late April |
| Zone 7 | Late March to mid 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 yellow trout lily be planted?
4 in (10 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is about its full width, so each plant keeps its own outline.
It grows 6 in (15 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many yellow trout lily 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 yellow trout lily 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.
Do deer eat yellow trout lily?
They may. NC State does not list it as resistant to deer or rabbits. Where they visit, protect it, or plant it among ones they avoid.
What can I plant to hide yellow trout lily'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, in flower mid July to mid August.
- Lady's mantle: 18 in tall and 24 in wide, in flower late May to early July.
- Siberian bugloss 'Jack Frost': 16 in tall and 18 in wide, in flower late April to late May.
What does yellow trout lily look like in winter?
Yellow trout lily 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.
Is yellow trout lily good for bees and butterflies?
Yellow trout lily is visited by pollinators, bees, specialist bees and butterflies.
It is native to the United States and Canada.
More Erythronium
- Fawn lily 'White Beauty' Erythronium californicum 'White Beauty'
- Trout lily 'Pagoda' Erythronium 'Pagoda'
In these guides
- Pet-safe plants for shade
- Native plants for shade
- Garden plants native to Canada
- Plants for butterflies
- Plants for bees
Zone guides: Zone 3 · Zone 4 · Zone 5 · Zone 6 · Zone 7 · Zone 8
Every fact on record
- Type
- Bulb
- Size
- 6 in (15 cm) tall, 4 in (10 cm) wide
- Plant
- 4 in (10 cm) apart
- Height class
- Ground-hugging (up to 6 in)
- Place in the bed
- Front
- Flowers
- Mid April to early May; hanging bells; yellow
- Leaves
- Medium texture, summer-dormant; variegated
- Shape
- Mounding, spreading
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 3 to 8
- Light
- Part shade, shade
- Soil
- Rich, evenly moist
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- Light, in spring
- Family
- Liliaceae
- Comes from
- Eastern Canada to North Central & Eastern U.S.A
- Attracts
- Pollinators, bees, specialist bees, butterflies
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.