Toad lily: plantsing, care & the most beautiful varieties

Toad lilies are particularly well planted under trees and attract all eyes with their unusual flowers. We present the toad lily and its requirements for location, fertilisation and overwintering.

Toad lily (Tricyrtis) is a delicate and graceful flowering plant for woodland gardens. The eye-catching, colourfully spotted flower is reminiscent of an orchid in structure. However, the toad lily is much less demanding and easier to care for. We present the toad lily as well as its most beautiful varieties and give tips on planting and care of Tricyrtis.

Toad lily: origin and characteristics

The toad lily belongs to the lily family (Liliaceae). Rarely it is also called tiger lily – but this is actually the species Lilium lancifolium. The plant originates from Asia Minor to East Asia and is found wild between the Himalayas to Korea and on the islands of Japan and Taiwan. More than 20 species of Tricyrtis are known, of which only a few have been taken into culture.

The perennial and hardy toad lily can reach a growth height of 20 to 80 cm, depending on the species and variety. Unlike many other lily plants, toad lily does not form bulbs but creeping rhizomes for survival. On thin, in the upper part of the branched stems sit alternate, ovate to elliptical shaped, dark green leaves with clear veining.

From late summer between August and October begins the flowering season of the toad lily. The strikingly spotted, filigree flowers consist of six mostly white to yellow petals and six stamens. In the center are also the three pistils, which have grown together to form an ovary and outwardly form three stigmas split like serpent’s tongues. More rarely, bell-like flowers are formed from fused petals that resemble foxgloves (Digitalis) in shape, as in Tricyrtis macrantha. The numerous spots on the petals also gave the toad lily its name, as they resemble the spotted skin of some toad species. The flowers of the garden orchid sit, depending on the species, terminal or in the leaf axils to several together in a cluster to panicle. Bees and butterflies like to visit the flowers that appear late in the year. After pollination, capsule fruits develop, inside which numerous, small, roundish seeds mature.

The most beautiful species and varieties

For home gardens, the wild forms of the tall toad lily (Tricyrtis macropoda), the yellow-flowered broad-leaved toad lily (Tricyrtis latifolia) and Tricyrtis macrantha, and several varieties of Taiwanese toad lily (Tricyrtis formosana) and Japanese toad lily (Tricyrtis hirta), also called bristly toad lily, are available. However, many of the better known Tricyrtis cultivars are hybrids of Japanese and Taiwanese toad lily. We present the most beautiful varieties for planting in your own garden.

• ‘Alba’: Tricyrtis hirta cultivar with pure white flowers each with a yellow spot at the base and growth height up to 50 cm. This rare colouration among toad lilies charms with its numerous flowers between August and October.
• ‘Blue Wonder’: Tricyrtis with an unusual flower colour in white with large spots of brilliant blue-violet, while the stamens and ovary have red speckles. ‘Blue Wonder’ blooms as early as August and can grow 50-60 cm tall.

• ‘Dark Beauty’: Toad lily with up to 70 cm growth height and white, dark purple-red speckled flowers. The flowering period of the vigorous and stoloniferous variety is between September and October.
• ‘Miyazaki’: The creamy white flowers of Tricyrtis hirta ‘Miyazaki’ is covered with numerous purple-pink speckles and reaches a height of about 50 cm.

• ‘Pink Freckles’: Toad lily with pale pink to pink flowers and darker mottling. Tricyrtis ‘Pink Freckles’ reaches a height of growth up to 30 cm and blooms between August and October.
• ‘Raspberry Mousse’: Particularly showy variety with wine-red petals and pale red stamens and pistils. The entire flower of the plant, which grows to a height of 60 cm, is finely mottled pink to whitish and appears between September and October.

• ‘Sinonome’: Tricyrtis hybrid with tall, vigorous plants to 60 cm and late flowering from September. The white petals show striking purple spots.
• ‘Taiwan Adbane’: Dainty cultivar that grows up to 40 cm with soft purple speckled petals and yellow to pink stamens and pistils with strawberry red speckles.

• ‘Tojen’: In this tall cultivar to 80 cm, only the pistils are speckled in the centre, the petals show a solid colour of pale pink to white with an ornamental yellow spot at the base. The flowering period is between September and October.
• ‘Variegata’: Toad lily with rather narrow, paniculate leaves and pink speckled flowers. The eye-catching variety can reach a height of growth up to 60 cm and blooms from August.

Planting toad lily: location and procedure

The optimal location for toad lilies is in cool partial shade in humus-rich, moist and slightly acidic soil. It is therefore ideal for planting beneath tall woody plants, in beds on the north side of the house and as an eye-catcher at the edge of the forest. Waterlogged or calcareous substrates and full sun, on the other hand, are not tolerated by the toad lily. Toad lilies should be planted in the spring, as they need some time to become established in one location before the next winter arrives. To obtain a sufficiently dense stand, toad lilies are planted in small groups. This is calculated from five to eight plants per square meter. The thick rhizomes with shoot buds are placed in the soil as deep as they previously sat in the pot, otherwise rot may occur at the base of the shoot. A planting distance of 30 to 40 cm from other perennials should be maintained, and up to 60 cm is necessary for particularly vigorous and stoloniferous varieties.

Toad lilies can be cultivated in a pot or in a bed. The planter should hold at least 5 to 10 litres of soil volume and have good water drainage. The lowest 5 cm of the pot can be filled with a drainage layer of expanded clay, pebbles and sand to prevent waterlogging. A well-drained, humus-rich substrate such as our Plantura Organic Flower Compost is best suited for planting toad lily in a container. The pre-fertilised, peat-free substrate provides your toad lilies with all the nutrients they need for a few weeks and retains sufficient moisture thanks to its high compost content. It can be additionally mixed with some acidic soil or mature compost to achieve the optimal pH for the Tricyrtis.

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Good planting partners for toad lilies are other forest edge inhabitants, such as ferns or grasses, Japanese forest grass (Hakonechloa macra) or plaintain lilies (Hosta), fairy wings (Epimedium), Solomon’s seal (Polygonatum), stork’s bill (Geranium), and dead nettle (Lamium).

Caring for toad lily

Toad lilies are quite low-maintenance and undemanding in suitable locations. The dead stems from the previous year are removed only in the spring just before the new shoots. Fertilising is also done at this time to provide the garden orchid with sufficient nutrients for healthy growth and abundant blooming in late summer and fall. A slow-release fertiliser, such as our Plantura Flower Food, releases the nutrients it contains slowly and gently over several weeks for the plant and the environment. The animal-free fertiliser granules are spread around the perennials and ideally lightly worked into the surface. After that should be watered. In summer, a smaller amount of top dressing is applied, which is usually sufficient until the end of the season.

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At budbreak in the spring, slug predation can be a problem. A slug fence, plant collar or, if the threat is severe, slug pellets will remedy the situation. Toad lily has a high water requirement – the soil should never dry out completely. Regular watering is one of the most important care measures on hot summer days. A mulch layer of grass clippings, bark or leaves reduces evaporation and keeps the soil moist longer. Because nitrogen is fixed by soil organisms as the mulch breaks down, there may be an increased need for fertiliser.

Tip: The fact that a toad lily does not bloom is usually due to a too shady location or too lean soil.

Are toad lilies hardy?

The toad lily is hardy to below -20 °C, which is why it hardly ever needs frost protection in our latitudes. A layer of foliage or mulch over the dormant bulbs is usually enough to keep the toad lily wintering well. However, toad lilies in the tub is better to winter frost-free, if there is a risk that the roots will freeze through with the soil. If the plants have already sprouted in the spring, they can suffer damage from late frost. In addition to a protected layer, a short-term covering with fleece or jute also creates sufficient protection from particularly cold nights.

Are toad lilies poisonous?

Like most lily plants, toad lilies are poisonous and not suitable for consumption. All parts of the plant are toxic and can because symptoms of poisoning such as nausea, headache, vomiting and drowsiness. Pets avoid the toad lily and usually do not even eat it.

A relative of the toad lily is the snake’s head fritillary flower (Fritillaria meleagris). Read with us what location prefers the unusual bulbous plant, how best to plant and care for it.