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Asphodelaceae
Foxtail Lily
Eremurus robustus
Endurance, towering beauty, desert resilience.
- Family
- Asphodelaceae
- Genus
- Eremurus
- Native to
- Central Asia (Pamir mountains)
- Bloom season
- Late-Spring, Early-Summer
- Type
- Perennial
- Height
- 200–300 cm (6.5–10 ft)
- Sunlight
- Full sun
- Soil
- Sharp drainage, sandy
- Water
- Low
- Hardiness
- 5–9
- Lifespan
- Long-lived perennial
Did you know
- Eremurus means 'desert tail' in Greek—the towering flower spikes can reach 10 feet tall, taller than most basketball players, and bloom in pure spires of color.
- Each spike holds hundreds of small star-shaped flowers that open from the bottom upward over several weeks, creating a slow-traveling bloom wave.
- The roots grow in a remarkable starfish pattern—a single octopus-like rootstock can span three feet across just below the soil surface.
- In their native Central Asian foothills, foxtail lilies grow alongside wild tulips and apricots, blooming briefly before the brutal summer heat sends them dormant.
- Foxtail lilies were one of Gertrude Jekyll's favorite border plants—she planted them in long drifts at Munstead Wood for spectacular early-summer drama.
Color meanings
0
endurance
1
towering beauty
2
desert grace