Lilium martagon

A striking and exceptionally beautiful species, found in Italy from the north down to Campania region. It is mainly found in light woodland, tall-grass meadows and grasslands at altitudes of between 800 and 2,500 metres. Having been subject to indiscriminate collection in the past for ornamental purposes, it is now strictly protected in the regions where it occurs.

The plant has a characteristic inflorescence called raceme, consisting of numerous pendulous flowers with six glossy, fleshy tepals of a light pink-purple colour with darker patches, which open progressively until they curve backwards by the end of the flowering period. The leaves, broadly lanceolate and sessile, are arranged in characteristic whorls.

Mountain communities used the bulbs to prepare poultices for treating skin symptoms of childhood illnesses such as chickenpox and measles. It is said to have been a plant sacred to Mars, the god of war, which is why soldiers in the 15th and 16th centuries carried dried bulbs onto the battlefield as amulets. It is often cultivated as an ornamental plant.