Download Mobile App: Android Download Mobile App: Android

Gymea Lily

Giant tussock-like, rosette plant. Grows up to 2.5 m high with a flower stalk up to 5 m high!

Its genus name Doryanthes (meaning spear and flower), and its species name excelsa (meaning high), both refer to its tall flower stem.

Leaves

Long, sword-shaped and forming a clump. Each individual leaf is 1 – 2.5 m long and about 10 cm wide. Shorter leaves up to 30 cm long are found along the flower stem.

Flowers

Located at the top of a single flower stem which grows from the centre of the tussock of leaves. The stem is 2 – 5 m high upon which the flowers form a cluster up to 70 cm in diameter. The individual flowers are bright red (or rarely white), trumpet-shaped and 10 – 16 cm long.

Fruits/Seeds

A red-brown, woody seed pod, which is 7 – 10 cm long, contains flat, brown seeds which are 1.5 – 2.5 cm long.

Field Guide

Improve your identification skills. Download your Gymea Lily field guide here!

  • Species Category: Plants
  • Species origin: Native
  • Conservation status: Common
  • Did You Know?
    • Indigenous Australians used to roast the stems and roots; they made the roots into a type of cake that was eaten cold
    • When grown from seed, the flowering stems take 5 – 20 years to develop

  • What to Observe

    • First fully open single flower

    • Full flowering (record all days)

    • End of flowering (when 95% of the flowers have faded)

    • Open seed pods containing seeds (record all days)

  • When and Where

    When To Look

    • From spring through summer
    • Flower stem emerges from the tussock of leaves during winter
    • Flowers appear in spring and summer
    • Seed pods appear after flowers
    • Seed pods split open in January or February

    Where To Look

    • East coast of NSW, from Newcastle to Wollongong, and in a few isolated regions on the North Coast
    • Adaptable to a range of climates and is now found in Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide
    • In open forest and woodland
    • Look in urban areas, particularly in parks, gardens and along roadsides

  • What Else?

    Similar Species

    Waratah (Telopea speciosissima) has shorter leaves (8 – 28 cm long), usually with serrated edges, that don’t grow in a clump or tussock from the ground. The flower stem is also much shorter, and the flower cluster much smaller (only 7 – 10 cm diameter).
  • Trails: Australian National Botanic Gardens ACT, Brisbane Botanic Gardens Mount Coot-tha QLD, Kings Park & Botanic Garden WA, Macquarie University NSW, Marramarra NP NSW, Royal Botanic Gardens Sydney NSW, University of Sydney NSW
  • Species Region: Australia