In 1809 Jefferson wrote to Judge William Fleming, a lifelong friend in Richmond, and and thanked him for sending the foliage of the "Alleghany Martagon . . . A plant of so much beauty & fragrance will be a valuable addition to our flower gardens. Should you find your roots of it I shall be very thankful to participate of them, & and will carefully return you a new stock should my part succeed & yours fail." Jefferson also ordered this tall and stately native lily with its reddish-orange flowers from Bernard McMahon in 1812.
Adapted from Thomas Jefferson's Flower Garden at Monticello by Edwin M. Betts and Hazlehurst Bolton Perkins; revised and enlarged by Peter J. Hatch.
Typical Blooming Dates: July-August
Blossom Color(s): Yellow-Orange to Orange-Red
Location at Monticello: East and West Lawn Oval Beds
Visit Monticello’s Online Shop to check for seeds or plants of Turk's Cap Lily.
In Bloom at Monticello is made possible by support from The Richard D. and Carolyn W. Jacques Foundation.
