FNPS Plant Database

Hymenocallis occidentalis

northern spider-lily
  • Photo by: Aaron Goodwin - CC BY-NC 4.0
  • Photo by: NCNHP CC BY-NC 4.0
  • Photo by: Marjorie Clagett. Wildflower.org collection - no copyright.
  • Photo by: Eric Hunt, Wikimedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Nomenclature

Common Name:

northern spider-lily

Synonym(s):

Hymenocallis occidentalis var. occidentalis

Genus species:

Hymenocallis occidentalis

Family:

Amaryllidaceae

Plant Specifics

Form:

flower

Size:

1-2 ft tall. 1-1.5 ft wide.  Forms clumps.

Life Span:

Long-lived perennial

Flower Color:

white

Fruit Color:

Phenology:

In Florida, winter dormant (has bulbs). However, the new leaves appear in midwinter. Flowering begins in early July in northern Florida and extends through September.

Noted For:

Landscaping

Recommended Uses:

Houseplant, water garden, bog garden, stream edge

Considerations:

Bulb is poisonous.

Availability:

Propagation:

Seed, division of clumps.

Light:

Moisture Tolerance:

Always Flooded---------------------------------Extremely Dry

□□□□□□□□□□□□■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■□□□□□□□□□□□□

Usually moist, occasional inundation -to- Not wet but not extremely dry

Salt Water Flooding Tolerance:

Unknown

Salt Spray/Salty Soil Tolerance:

Unknown

Soil or Other Substrate:

Soil pH:

acidic to neutral

Suitable to Grow In:

USDA zones are based on the average annual extreme minimum winter temperature.

Don't know your zone? Click here to search by zip code.

Vouchered In:

Distribution
Vouchered
Not vouchered
Selected
Click a county The county name will appear here.
No county distribution is available for this plant yet.
Starting…
Map coded by Melissa Fernandez-de Cespedes (Paynes Prairie Chapter)

Ecology

Wildlife:

Pollinators

Native Habitats:

Floodplains and nearby forested uplands

Natural Range in Florida:

Comments:

Ethnobotany:

Hymenocallis occidentalis has a long history of cultivation in southern gardens and is grown well beyond its native range.  The Flora of North America references a plant, harvested from the wild near Evergreen, Alabama and planted at the Henry Foundation’s southern garden in Gladwyne, Pennsylvania, which has not only survived but bloomed prolifically for over 40 years.

General Comments:

The natural range of this species includes parts of the eastern panhandle, but overall, it is a southern coastal plain and Mississippi Valley species whose range extends from South Carolina to Texas and up the Mississippi Valley as far north as southern Illinois and Indiana.

Citations:

Flora of North America. (2020). Hymenocallis occidentalis. ( https://floranorthamerica.org/Hymenocallis_occidentalis ). Accessed 2026. Flora of North America Association.


Gardenia, Creating Gardens. (2023). Hymenocallis occidentalis. ( https://www.gardenia.net/plant/hymenocallis-occidentalis ). Accessed 2026.


North Carolina State Extension. (Undated). North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox. ( https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/ ). North Carolina Agricultural & Technical University, Greensboro, NC.


Wunderlin, R. P., B. F. Hansen, A. R. Franck, and F. B. Essig. (1999+). Atlas of Florida Plants. ( https://florida.plantatlas.usf.edu/ ). [S. M. Landry and K. N. Campbell (application development), USF Water Institute.] Institute for Systematic Botany, University of South Florida, Tampa.

Beta testing new plant sheet (there may be errors):
FNPS Plant Print

Request an update