(uu-vue-lair' ee-ah gran-di-floor' ah)

Common name: Merrybells, Large-flowered Bellwort

Family: Liliaceae (Uvulariaceae), Lily

Height x width: 18-24" x 12-18"

Growth rate: moderate

Foliage: alternate, perfoliate (leaf base completely surrounds stem), 3-5" long, oblong to lanceolate, downy on lower leaf surface

Flowers: yellow, campanulate (bell-shaped), pendulous, usually solitary at the ends of branches, to 1½" long with a slight twist to the petals; spring followed by a 3-angled capsule

Hardiness: zones 4-9

Soil: moist, organic and fertile prefered, pH 6-7.5

Light: part to full shade

Pests and Problems: none serious

Landscape habit, uses: natural or woodland garden, shaded border

Other interest: native to North America; named after the uvula--the lobe hanging into the throat from the soft palate-- which the flowers were thought to resemble; according to the doctrine of the scriptures since they resembled this throat appendage, they were thought and so used for throat ailments; genus names from the Latin uvula meaning soft palate, refering to above resemblance.

Other culture: easy

Propagation: spring division

Related Species:

The following are all about 12-18" tall and less commonly found in commerce.

caroliniana--Mountain Bellwort, shiny sessile leaves and stems in clumps, zone 5 cold hardy

floridana--Florida Bellwort, small leaf-like bract on the flower stalk, sessile (unstalked) leaves

perfoliata--Perfoliate Bellwort, perfoliate leaves as grandiflora only smaller overall

pudica:caroliniana

sessilifolia--Sessile Bellwort, sessile leaves

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