Henry's spiderlily

Description

Hymenocallis occidentalis is a plant species native to the southern United States. It is known along the Gulf Coast from South Carolina to Texas, and in the Mississippi Valley as far north as southern Illinois and Indiana.It is also cultivated as an ornamental elsewhere because of its showy, sweet-smelling flowers. Common names include woodland spider-lily, hammock spider-lily or northern spider-lily.Many of the other U.S. species of the genus grow in wetlands and along streambanks, but H. occidentalis can often be found in mesic forests.Some of the Mexican species (e. g. H. clivorum and H. pimana) can similarly be found some distance from waterways.Hymenocallis occidentalis is a bulb-forming perennial herb bearing an umbel of 3-9 showy flowers, each white with a green center, opening one at a time. Leaves are lanceolate, up to 60 cm long and 6 cm wide at their widest points.