FNPS Plant Database

Lilium catesbaei

pine lily
  • Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS
  • Photo by: John Bradford, Martin County Chapter FNPS
  • Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS
  • Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS
  • Photo by: Shirley Denton, Suncoast Chapter FNPS

Nomenclature

Common Name:

pine lily

Synonym(s):

Genus species:

Lilium catesbaei

Family:

Liliaceae

Plant Specifics

Form:

flower

Size:

1-2 ft tall by .5 ft wide

Life Span:

Long-lived perennial

Flower Color:

red

Fruit Color:

Phenology:

winter dormant

Noted For:

Showy Flowers

Landscaping

Recommended Uses:

Retain if present. Could be grown as a small specimen plant in a wildflower garden.

Considerations:

Rarely grown as difficult to find seeds or bulbs and seedlings are subject to fungal diseases.

Availability:

Native Nurseries, Seed

Propagation:

Division of bulbs. Seed.

Light:

Full Sun, Part Sun

Moisture Tolerance:

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

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Somewhat moist, no flooding -to- Not wet but not extremely dry

Salt Water Flooding Tolerance:

Unknown

Salt Spray/Salty Soil Tolerance:

Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray

Soil or Other Substrate:

Sand

Soil pH:

Acidic

Suitable to Grow In:

8A,8B,9A,9B,10A,10B

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

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Vouchered In:

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

Ecology

Wildlife:

Butterflies

Attracts butterflies including swallowtails. Reported possible pollinators include spicebush swallowwtail, cloudless sulfur ( Phoebis sennae ), Palamedes, eastern black swallowtail, and Florida dust skipper and green lynx spider (Coastal Plain Plants Wiki). 

Native Habitats:

Mesic flatwoods, wet prairie, wet flatwoods, open seepage areas such as cutthroat seeps.

Natural Range in Florida:

Comments:

Ethnobotany:

General Comments:

In the natural environment, this species benefits from periodic fire. Very difficult to see except when in bloom.
FNPS Plant Print

Citations:

Huegel, Craig N. (2012). Native Wildflowers and Other Ground Covers for Florida Landscapes. University Press of Florida, Gainesville.


Rogers, George. (2011). Catesby's Lily. Treasure Coast Natives. ( https://treasurecoastnatives.wordpress.com/category/catesbys-lily/ ). Accessed 2026.


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.

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