Warrnambool | A City for Living

Chocolate Lily

Arthropodium strictum
Chocolate Lily
Image by: Kevin Sparrow

A small delicate native lily that has a distinctive chocolate perfume on a warm day, that grows to 0.2-0.3 metres tall. It is a tufted perennial herb with tubers at the end of its roots, grass-like leaves and deep pink or mauve flowers from October to December. This is a great species for mass plantings, amongst rocks or in cottage gardens and can also be  grown in containers. It will grow well under trees, in well drained soils in grassy areas in full sun and semi-shade. The leaves die down to dormant fleshy rootstock during the dry season, after flowering, and commence regrowth following autumn rains. Indigenous peoples used the nutritious tubers of this plant as food. 

Form
Perennial Herb
Height
0-0.5m
Flowering Time
  • Spring
Plant Origin
Local Native
Maintenance
  • Low
Light
  • Sun
Water Requirement
Low
Tolerates
  • Heavy and Clay soil
  • Sandy Soil
  • Acidic Soils
Biodiversity Benefits
  • Lizard Habitat
Natural Occurence
Vic/NSW/SA/Tas/Qld
Bush Tucker Plant
Yes