The leaves, which originate from the base of the stem, are gutter-shaped and glaucous (covered by a waxy coating), about 20–22 millimetres (0.79–0.87 in) wide and 50–70 centimetres (20–28 in) long.

It is commonly found in meadows and heathland of central Spain, southwest France, and along the southern Alps to the western Balkans up to an altitude of 2,000 metres (6,600 ft).

[citation needed] White asphodel is also known by the name of branched lily or king's spear.

[2] White asphodel roots were used as food staple in ancient Greece: According to Pliny the Elder, one plant could produce up to 80 tubers.

The custom of planting graves in Greece with asphodel described in 1887 Macmillan's Magazine may have been to provide nourishment to the dead.