Asphodeline lutea - Yellow Asphodel - (Liliaceae)

Asphodels are often seen in vast numbers in the Mediterranean region, where they grow in fields and on abandoned farmland. They are ignored by grazing animals, because they find them unpalatable.

Yellow Asphodel

Picture by kind permission of Anne Horsfall

Yellow Asphodel grows up to 1.2m in height and has narrow, bluish-green leaves and a somewhat uneven-looking raceme of bright yellow flowers. The plant thrives on grassy slopes and in fields and abandoned farmland, blooming from March to May. This attractive asphodel is more common in the eastern Mediterranean.

A close-up picture of the flowers of Asphodeline lutea

Once the flowers have died back the orange-brown berries which are the fruits of the plant become obvious.

The fruits of Yellow Asphodel

The orange-brown fruits appear when the flowers die back.

The specimen shown on this page was photographed in Crete.