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  Flora Wildflowers /  Asphodel, Common

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Asphodel, Common

Asphodelus aestivus     Fr: Asphodèle


Gallery of 3 photos for Asphodel, Common

This medium to tall perennial grows to over 1 m (ours was 1m50 tall). The roots bear spindle-shaped tubers and are edible, and were formerly used as a glue. The plant is unpalatable to grazing animals. Sometimes grows in large colonies together with A. lutea (below).

Flowers. Jan-June

Flower. White, 20-40 mm, borne on a much-branched inflorescence. The tepals have a pinkish-brown vein in the middle, usually about 15 mm long. Bracts are whitish.

Leaves. Grey-green basal leaves, 30-45 cm long, flat and narrow, very pointed, slightly vee-shaped, 12-30 mm wide.

Habitat. Garrigue, ollive groves, open pine forests, rocky slopes, seashore (our found on the Ile de Porquerolles), waste ground and roadsides.

Pod. 6-8 mm diameter.

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