foxtail lily - online puzzles

Eremurus robustus, the foxtail lily or giant desert candle is a species of flowering plant native to the Tien Shan and Pamir Mountains in central Asia that is often used as an ornamental plant.

E. robustus has a stem 6–10 ft (1.8–3.0 m) high, with leaves as long as 48 in (120 cm) and 4 in (10 cm) in width, the widest in its genus. The leaves can vary from a bright green to a bluish- green in color. Inflorescence grows to 4 ft (1.2 m) in length and is covered with many deep to pale pink flowers, 4 cm (1.6 in) across. At the base of the flower is a brown blotch with a green keel. The lower flowers have long pedicels, with shorter ones higher up. The flowers, as many as 700 to 800 of them, bloom in June. By the time of flowering, the leaves will usually have already shrivelled.

The Latin specific epithet robustus means “sturdy, growing strongly”.

The plant was introduced from Central Asia in 1874 and is popular in gardens.