Did you know? Lily bulbs have low water requirements.

Field in early July, before flowering.

Lily bulbs, by their very nature store water within the overlapping scales for times of drought.  Do not water your bulbs until the soil is dry one or two inches below the surface.  

Water deeply and infrequently for the best growth, just as you would for deep rooted trees and shrubs.  If you have an automatic lawn watering system that "mists" the grass every day or two, the lilies will eventually receive too much water, so locate them just outside of the spray zone.  The same holds true for flower bed sprinklers and drip irrigation.  Most perennials and annuals like more moisture than what the bulbs require, so be mindful of how your water is distributed.  Choose a spot for lilies where the sprinklers or emitters do not saturate the soil. 

In the photo, do you see how dry our field rows were in early July last year?  This section of the farm has a nice clay loam that drains well, but it is slippery when wet and builds up under your shoes.  Always check for soil moisture before you drag over the hose to give lilies a drink.   

Expensive electronic "water monitors" are not necessary.  Just your bare finger will do as a monitor; if damp soil clings, then the ground is still moist enough.  If your glove-less finger comes out clean two inches below the surface, then it is time to water.  Be sure to provide enough water so that the soil is evenly moist down to the level of the basal roots (at the bottom of the bulb) or to about 8 to 10 inches deep.   

Watering pots is a bit different; set your containers into a bucket or mortar box (used for mixing cement) to reclaim the water for the next pot if you only have a few to water.  If your containers are not on a deck, but rather sitting on a sheet of plastic topped by bark mulch (to keep down weeds), then excess water can drain, and will be retained by the mulch to keep the pots cooler during hot weather.  The only downfall is that you will give mollusks perfect conditions to multiply, so don't forget the slug bait around the pots, or a couple of resident ducks to root out slugs and provide eggs and entertainment.


Will you be short on water this year?

If you are in a dry climate, have a garden with very sandy soil, or live where water restrictions are imposed, you can still grow lilies.  A two to three inch mulch of bark, ground leaves or other insulating material will help to save money and even out the moisture content of your soil.  You need to include the depth of the mulch when determining how deep to plant your lily bulbs - 5 to 6 inches total of soil and mulch over the top of the lily bulb is about the maximum for most varieties.  However, you can plant a little deeper in sandy soil.  So, if there is 4 inches of soil over the top of the bulb, then 2 inches of mulch or ground up leaves would equal 6 inches total.  With fluffy mulch, you can add more because it will tend to mat down over time.  The idea is to give the stem roots enough space to grow underground, without making it too difficult for the sprout to emerge in spring.  The extra mulch will also encourage beneficial earthworms in your garden as well.  You can always add more mulch if necessary.

If the bulbs receive too much water during times of plenty or with saturated soil, the lower leaves will turn yellow and drop off, even before bloom.  If that happens, pull away mulch that may be keeping the soil surface too wet, and allow the excess moisture to escape.  A nicely mulched garden is beautiful, tying the landscape together visually, but only an inch of finely ground bark is needed during wetter years to cover the soil and help keep weed seeds from germinating.

Tips for conserving moisture in the Lily Garden.

Don't over water, always check the soil moisture first in your lily garden.  Snap off the spent flowers as they fade, so that stems do not expend energy producing seed, and thus require more water.  Top dress with well-rotted manure or compost in midsummer to provide nutrients to the stem roots and increase the amount of moisture-retaining mulch.  When the leaves have begun to turn from green to yellow in the fall, cut the stem back to ground level and only water enough to keep the soil slightly moist while the lily bulbs are going into semi-dormancy.


Previous related posts: 
Lily Bulbs not buried deep enough?  What to look for...
How to increase "Red Wigglers" in your garden.
Controlling Slugs and Snails in your Lily Garden

 

Lily Bulbs for Sensitive Noses

'Tessala' - Beautiful & Oh, so warmly scented.

In the lily world, the gardening trend over the last 25+ years has been to favor fragrance, and for those fortunate gardeners without allergies, the heavier the scent the better.  

However, for those of us who are chemical sensitive—me included—an overload of fragrance in personal care products, cleaners, stores, banks, etc. can be too much throughout the year, even before the garden comes into bloom.

During holidays, and especially before Valentine's Day, I avoid getting anywhere near the smiling demonstrators with the perfume bottle.  Even having my hair done in a salon can be torture during selected times of the year, especially if I'm not able to snag the first appointment of the day, before the perms and tints begin.

'Ormea' OT (Orienpet)

Don't get me wrong though, I love the whiff of a spicy-scented Oriental lily in full bloom, but it must be outside in the garden, not in an enclosed space such as a car or small room.  

Spring flower shows with potted Daffodils or Hyacinths, Daphne and other flower shrubs in the display gardens are pretty, but a little too overwhelming for my senses as well.

So if you are like me, there are ways to enjoy all the later-blooming lilies in your garden, and not limit yourself only to early Asiatics.



 

 
During flower shows we place large bouquets of lilies along the perimeter of our booth, with tiny fans to gently dissipate the fragrance into the open isles, plus we generally choose open space, rather than a wall location, so there is naturally increased air circulation. 


Years ago, when we used to exhibit lilies in competition, our old blue station wagon had no air conditioning, but the back window could be rolled down.  On the freeway, there wasn't a problem, because with the front vents open, air would remove fragrance out the back window.  However, waiting at a traffic light was another matter, so as the car slowed and filled up with fragrance, the front windows were quickly rolled down.  

There are differing types and degrees of lily fragrance.

'Antequera', plus an unidentified white Asiatic.

Unscented Asiatics
(Including some Lilium species)

Burdened with no fragrance at all, these lilies are the workhorses of the early lily garden, sporting the widest range of colors.  No fear of a headache or stuffy nose here, just remember to pick off the pollen before bringing them indoors to avoid spilling pollen on tablecloths or clothing.  

People will still tend to give them the "sniff test", so picking pollen will also prevent guests leaving with orange noses.  (On the other hand, leaving the pollen on could hold entertainment value for you, wink wink!)  Lily pollen is large and "sticky" so is rarely a problem with allergies because it is not generally breathed into the lungs. 

'Indian Summerset'

Lightly Scented Asiatics
(Lilium longiflorum x Asiatic, also called LA Hybrids)

The inclusion of the familiar, white trumpet Easter Lily found in the stores during Lent is highly scented.  Plant breeders originally crossed them with brightly colored Asiatic lilies to introduce pastel colored "Easter Lilies".  Many of the early crosses did have a trumpet shape, but they would not force in time for Easter in the greenhouses, plus the public generally preferred the traditional white.  Later generations of crosses were producing flowers that looked like Asiatic lilies, but forced more quickly and had larger flowers with a slight fragrance.  These traits opened a whole new market, and savings in the greenhouse, for the cut flower producers. 

Upon first opening, these Asiatic hybrids of two different divisions of lilies appear to be unscented, but after the blooms have matured a light fragrance can be detected in a vase indoors or when viewed up close on a windless day in the garden.  Gardeners with more sensitive noses can happily grow them outdoors, or potted on a patio, but they probably should avoid using LA Hybrids as cut flowers indoors.

'Golden Splendor' Strain

Trumpet Lilies 
(Including the traditional Easter Lily and the Chinese species Lilium regale)

These lilies generally grow tall and have large, funnel shaped flowers that are difficult to include in floral arrangements unless you are creating something really massive, such as for a lobby.   The fragrance can best be described as what I remember as "Grandma's Perfume", heady, strong and heavily floral - no undertones of spice or wood.  When our Trumpets bloom in the propagation field, I stay upwind until the blooms are removed - after the label and inventory map are checked for accuracy.  In the garden, a nice triangle of three stems can be located so fragrance naturally blows away from any open windows or doors, not into them.   If you want the heaviest scent of all the lilies, choose these and place next to a door, but if you are sensitive to fragrance, placing them downwind will be much safer.

 

L. auratum platyphyllum

Lilium auratum viginale - unspotted varient of 'Yami Yuri'

Oriental Lilies

Purebred Oriental lilies are derived mostly from Lilium auratum playphyllum.  The best known is the "Golden Ray Lily', called Yami Yuri in Japan, and is a beautiful species of pure white with lemon yellow bands down the center of each petal, usually with a varying number of speckles.  Flower are large and the bulbs need better drained soil than most hybrid Orientals.   The scent can become a bit heady as the fragrance oils age, so it might not be a good choice for bringing indoors.





The unspotted version, L. auratum virginale, along with Lilium nobelissium gave us pure white lilies.  Over the years, other wild lilies, such as Lilium rubellum, were added to create modern hybrids of pink and red. (See our Lilium Knowledge Base for more information on some of these rarer species.)

The scent of Hybrid Oriental lilies, like the famous 'Casablanca', 'Star Gazer',  'Rio Negro' and 'Miss Lucy' are reminiscent of the fragrance of old fashioned carnations and are a nice surprise in the garden.  A stem of Orientals lilies can easily be "picked out" among a group of other fragrant flowers.

'Rio Negro' - Purbred Oriental

Many people who are sensitive to the heavy scent of Trumpet lilies are able to enjoy these spicier lilies in the garden, and perhaps even enjoy a single blossom indoors for a few days before the fragrance becomes too intense.

'Miss Lucy' - Purebred Oriental

Did you know—fragrance oils are mostly on the petal tips?

When checking the scent of a lily blossom, there's no need to bury your nose inside the bloom and risk dusting your face with orange pollen. Wait until the flowers have been open a day or two, to give the fragrance oils time to mature, and just sniff the petal tips for the best effect. Lilies are pollinated by bees that are attracted to the sweet fragrance, so nature placed the scent on the outer portion of the petals so it can be snatched away in a breeze.

 

Closeup of 'Bonbini' - OT Hybrid

Orienpet Lilies
(OT or Oriental-Trumpet Hybrids)

Sporting the best of both divisions of lilies, OT Hybrids tend to more resemble an Oriental in looks and growth habit, but the fragrance varies from light to heavy with no spicy overtones.

'Eudoxia' - OT Hybrid

Colors are more diverse than the purebred Orientals, bringing gold and melon tones from the inclusion of Lilium henryi and orange Trumpet lilies.  Gardeners in warmer climates like the OT hybrids because they are more heat tolerant than purebred Orientals and thus can take sunnier areas.

'Scarlet Delight' - OT

Lilies that have the variety 'Black Beauty' in its breeding background, such as 'Schereherazade', 'Scarlet Delight' or 'LeVern Freimann' tend to only have a bit of light fragrance, which is not overpowering in the garden.  Clones, such as 'Candy Club', 'Zambesi', 'Conca d'Or', 'Amarossi' and 'Eudoxia' have more fragrance.

If you are not sure which ones will work for you, place an order in spring for several different types, and plant them in containers.  That way, you can move the lilies around like furniture as they begin to bloom, and find where the various types of fragrances works best in your garden.  When you discover a pleasing arrangement, slip them out of their pots and plant into a permanent spot in October. 

Other Interspecific Crosses, plus Lilium species

A few wild lilies, such as Lilium pumilum and Lilium lankongense are very strongly scented, and hybrids with these in their background do tend to pack a wallop in the garden.  When we grew lilies in a field with less water, Lilium pumilum had to have the flowers removed before anyone would weed it -  when kneeling, the flowers were always at nose level and the weeder's entire face would end up covered in pollen.  We switched from blocks of L. pumilum to a long single row for comfort.

'Lankon' (shown on right) is a cross between both L. Lankongese and L. longiflorum, and the resulting perfume is "different" than either parent, but still makes its presence known in the garden.  I tend to group 'Lankon' with the Trumpet lilies for garden use.  They grow 4 to 5 feet tall on sturdy stems, so they can go towards the middle of a bed, out of range of my nose, but still close enough to enjoy their bell-shaped pendant flowers.

'Prince Promise'

OA (Oriental-Asiatic crosses) tend of have either very light fragrance or no fragrance at all.  They vary greatly and while one person may decide a particular variety is unscented, another might detect a slight fragrance.  These are best planted in pots so you can decide for yourself.  Most tend to resemble Asiatic lilies and are not as often found, but they do tend to bloom a bit later than mainstream Asiatics.


LO (L. longiforum-Oriental Hybrid crosses) tend towards large, perfumed flowers that are very heat resistant with no spicy overtone.  Use them as a background plant if your nose is sensitive because the larger flowers show up very well from a distance.




Final Advice:

• For those with super-sensitive noses, only grow the unscented Asiatics near outdoor living areas or to bring indoors as a cut flower. 
• Position the highly fragrant lilies away from open windows or doors, using the more brightly colored or larger flowered varieties to enjoy from a distance.  
• Do you have windows that are generally not opened, but have a wonderful view of the garden?  Place scented lilies in full view to enjoy from the house interior.  
• Grow lilies in pots and move them around like furniture, closer to outdoor living areas during cooler windy weather, or further away during hot, muggy days with little airflow.  
• Experiment with different varieties in pots; the spicy Orientals or lightly scented 'Black Beauty' hybrids and LA (Scented Asiatics) may not be a fragrance issue for you outdoors. 
• If your garden has a predictable wind pattern, try to locate the strongly scented ones as "downwind" as possible and into the neighbor's garden.

Help... Winter Lily Pollen Stains!

'Zambesi' - Fresh white flowers & pollen just beginning to "open".

Note from Dianna: 

Kathy, a gardener who loves her lilies in the greater Seattle area, sent us an email in November asking for help with pollen stains on her wool sweater.  A day later, when asked if she could write a short story and document the pollen removal with photos, she reported that even after a a single day of exposing the fabric to sunshine, the stain had already shrunk too much to make dramatic photos. 

Good work, Kathy!

(All photographs by B&D Lilies.)

Kathy's "Winter" Lily Pollen Report

"Here I am in the kitchen cooking away with a beautiful vase of lilies on the counter. They smell so wonderful. Now, I've heard pollen does not come out of fabric and I should be cutting off the anthers where the pollen dust sits. Problem is, I've also been told the fragrance is emitted from the anther. True, False, I don't know. For this story it's true because that's the reason I had not cut the anthers off.

Back to dancing around the kitchen because I'm cooking a great dinner for a special person. As I dip and turn I realize I'm close to brushing up against the lily, I panic and try to dodge it, but my arm sweeps by the anthers getting covered across the whole upper arm. I immediately take the wool sweater off and flush it with water with nothing happening. Adding dish soap and rubbing between my hands only makes it spread. I stop. Ring it, pat it, and PANIC!

I run to the computer to hunt for any information on the web. Everyone recommended the sun on a sunny day. They also had fabric like cotton and linen. I have wool, it's winter and I live in the Pacific Northwest, which means no sun.

Taking a chance. I put the sweater in a single pane window that had morning light, not sun light. Next afternoon when I had time to get back to the sweater the spot looked a little diminished. As it set in the window over the next month little by little the spot has disappeared.

Lessons:

1. The sun works on materials of cotton, linen, wool and probably many others
2. Natural Light over a longer period of time works too.
3. The fragrance comes from the anther, pistil and even the petals.
4. Don't touch the area that was brushed by the anthers. Let it dry and brush it off in a day or two with a soft brush. Tape also works if you don't have a brush."

Further Notes from Dianna

'Corcovado' OT - anthers "closed", Style moist.

• When a lily flower first opens, the anthers are moist and tightly closed.  As the day progresses, they unfurl, exposing the pollen grains.

• Petal tips have the greatest concentration of fragrance oils, so sniff the edges of a fully opened flower for the best scent.  The center of the lily, where the reproductive parts are located, can be removed without any loss of perceived fragrance. 

• The "Style", which ends in a three part "knob" and drips sweet-tasting stigmatic fluid, also exhibits light scent, and in the case of a large purebred Oriental lily, can sometimes plentifully run down the bottom petal.  This sticky protrusion helps to hold the pollen from other varieties tightly to the Style, as hummingbirds, bees and other insects brush against it. This is how new hybrids are created from the resulting seed—produced later in the summer between compatible plants, if the growing season is favorable.

Can you see the pollen grains? (Hint: Look at the texture.)

• Pollen is generally sticky, even when "dry", which is the reason why you should never try to brush pollen off with your hand; the natural oils present on your skin will smear and "set" the pollen into fabric, or simply beautify your skin with a lovely orange-yellow cast.  

• If pollen is on your skin, such as an arm, flicking a soft cloth or brush on the grains can generally remove it.  In the field, we've used the end of a clean tractor towel to knock the pollen off jeans, not nearly as effective as a brush, but good for emergencies.

• It is a simple thing to gently pull off the dangling anthers with your fingers before they fully open, or use a tissue to remove open ones and keep your fingers from turning yellow.  With a dry artist brush, you can sweep off any dropped pollen grains on the petals to tidy the flower, but only if the petals and pollen are dry.  Lily pollen grains are generally too sticky and large to blow around upon the wind, so generally do not affect those with sensitivities to spring and summer pollen, and for those of us with fragrance allergies, unscented lilies are generally preferred for indoor use. 

'Little Yellow Kiss'

'Miss Lucy'

'Polka Dot' - a Spring 2014 Introduction.

• Don't want to go to the bother of picking off pollen to bring the stems indoors for vases?  Choose one of the pollen-free varieties, such as 'Little Yellow Kiss' (Asiatic) or one of the fluffy and fragrant Double Orientals for your home.  The anthers are either not completely formed—hidden completely inside the petals—like 'Miss Lucy' or do not naturally produce a significant amount of pollen beyond a few grains.

What's happening underground this winter?

Lily bulb regenerating in October.

Lily bulbs are in a constant state of growth; even during the winter months new basal plate roots are expanding, bulblets (offshoots) are growing larger, but most important, the center of your lily bulb is continuing to regenerate for its next flowering period.  

Sometimes it is easy to see the transformation because more of the bulb is spent to grow a stem with some cultivars.  The bulb shown is a perfect example - notice the two different colors of scales?  The outside purple-brown scales were part of the "original" bulb; you can see that during flowering, most of the nice fat bulb planted the previous fall or in early spring had shrunk to only a few outside scales, consuming the center in order to grow a stem.  The backside of this bulb (not shown) was where the stem had emerged for flowering in July.  The new bulb began forming when the flowers were finished, emerging from the basal plate, (bottom) along with a couple of new bulblets that will be exact duplicates of the original.  


Of the three prime necessities for a sustainable lily garden—well drained soil, sunlight and fertilizer—some folks begin to become a little forgetful when it comes time to help the lilies prepare for next year's flowers. 

If your soil was prepared well before planting to be soft and fluffy—even if an application of fertilizer is missed a couple of times—lilies will extract what food they can from their surrounding soil to flower the next year.  If no fertilizer or annual top dressing of compost is provided, lily bulbs will tend to become smaller each year and finally disappear completely. 

Spreading POOpeas around the stems.

Feed your lilies for bigger and better flowers each year.

We recommend two feedings a year—once when the sprouts are just emerging in spring and the stem roots are beginning to grow—then again when the flowers are beginning to open and the stored food within the lily bulb is depleted.  You can either use a commercial formula or mix your own elements for an organic approach.  Remember that lilies like balanced feeding, too much nitrogen will grow lovely green leaves, but at the expense of good flowers.  A "blooming" formula (e.g. 0-20-0) encourages flowers, but nitrogen and potash are still needed to grow new bulb scales. 

Lilies are heavy feeders, but they only need fertilizer spread during the times of rapid growth or roots can be damaged.  Slow release fertilizer (worked into the top 2 inches of soil) generally only works when soil temperatures reach a certain degree, and usually after the stems are already tall, missing the first milestone.  Time release is better in containers than open garden, because potting soil stays warmer during active growth, but because the volume of soil used is constricted and pots are watered more frequently, it is harder to judge the amount of fertilizer needed.

What if you've forgotten?

• If you've missed spreading fertilizer during flowering in an established lily garden, do put an inch or two of compost or well-aged manure where the stems were produced this summer, even if your soil is completely frozen when you remember. 
• For newly planted September to December bulbs, mixing fertilizer at the bottom of the planting hole is generally wasted over winter.  It is the roots produced in spring between the top of the lily bulb and the soil surface (stem roots) that are expecting the food at the proper times, not below the bulb.  Organic material spread on the soil surface takes a year or more to completely break down, and so is a better choice during planting time in October and November.
• Since everything the lily needs to bloom is already present in the bulb and is depleted during the process of making a stem and flowers, fertilizer you apply during the spring and summer is for the next season's bloom.  If your soil is on the poor side naturally, not fertilizing will compromise next season's flowers—so it is important to always be thinking ahead.  Missing a few meals will not hurt, but for long term health, a regular fertilization program of twice a year is preferred.

Guidelines for Winter Protection of Lily Bulbs

Cold Winters - Midwest & Northeast
Although moderate climates only require enough mulch to reduce winter weed germination, colder climates need a bit more attention. In colder areas of Wisconsin, Minnesota and other Northern Tier States, gardens can experience very cold temperatures with frost levels greater than 5 feet and without enough snow cover to prevent the loss of rose bushes, trees, shrubs and other “above ground” plants. Protecting lily bulbs under such trying conditions is easy if the ground is properly mulched.  In the severe winter climates you MUST place an insulating layer of straw, ground leaves or other material over all Trumpet, Oriental, OT Hybrids or species where gardens are subject to deep freezes (generally colder than -10o F.), this is especially true if a good snow cover is lacking or not expected. Asiatics do not usually need extra protection, but all other lily bulbs in the Midwest, Northeast or Mountain states should be covered for protection.

In early Spring, remove the mulch in layers as the ground thaws and warms, to evaporate rainfall (or snow melt) as quickly as possible.

Too much sudden moisture can cause your bulbs and sprouts to rot. If lilies are planted at the top of a ridge or small hill, frost will not settle on the plants, so those areas may get by with less mulch  Avoid soggy, wet areas as well as low spots where frost will be heavier in winter.  A good layer of mulch may consist of 8 to 12 inches of straw or hay, tree boughs or other fluffy material. Avoid compacted, whole leaves or wet grass clippings because these have the potential to hold too much moisture around your underground bulbs and the sprouts will rot in spring if you do not remove the mulch fast enough. Shredded leaves are better because they allow air movement and are easier to remove in spring.


Wet Winters - Southern & Coastal States
In mild climates, be very CAREFUL about mulching newly planted bulbs if you were affected by an unusual amount of rainfall last winter or spring, that resulted in your garden becoming overly saturated.  Lily Bulbs by their very nature are designed to store water for times of drought; plant on a slope or in a slightly raised bed to avoid flooding—they do not swim well and will suffocate if the soil stays constantly soggy over winter.  Moisture replenished from rainfall on a daily basis is OK just as long as it is draining away quickly and not sitting stagnant.  During cold and wet springs, a thick mulch over lily bulbs may cause the sprouts to decompose while still underground or as they begin to emerge. (See Fungus: Stump Rot (Phytophthora) on our website under “Problem solving - Animals to Weeds”.) In moderate/mild Southern and Coastal areas, use only enough mulch (one or two inches) to suppress winter weed germination, especially if this winter is expected to be wetter than normal.

During very moist winters, if the soil surface is not allowed to dry between rainfalls and the garden remains saturated, you will risk losing even established bulbs. 

Use a porous mulch (e.g. straw or large nuggets of bark) will allow your soil to breathe and dry faster. Go easy on compost; only an inch or two on top of the soil is recommended per year.  Your goal is not deep freeze protection as in the Midwest or Northern states, but rather a tidier garden.

Gardeners in maritime areas of the Pacific Northwest, that are subject to large amounts of heavy rainfall over winter and into June, need to be especially careful about using bark, shredded leaves or other decorative materials in winter.  Add a new layer to your garden in spring after wet snow and/or heavy rainfall has diminished and just before the new weed seeds begin to germinate, which will keep the garden looking good all next summer.  It is important to allow the soil surface to dry properly between storms. For good looks, freshen your mulched garden in June, after the wet and cold weather has settled and the days have become drier.



NEW - Alaska & Gardens at High Elevation
(Not printed in the Planting Guide.) Planting in the garden is preferable (See Midwest & Northeast Instructions above), but customers in the far north sometimes pot up lily bulbs for winter and keep them in a colder area until spring.  These instructions are important should the soil suddenly freeze too hard and deep before our bulbs can be harvested and mailed in mid October.  Strategies include placing lily bulbs planted in pots with moist—not saturated soil—in the crawl space under their house or wrapping them in pink fiberglass insulation in an attached, cold garage or protected shed over winter.  A heavy cover of insulating snow also helps to moderate the temperature so that the soil surrounding the pots slowly freezes around them.  Quick freezes or freeze-thaw conditions all winter will leave lily bulbs looking like a frozen, thawed onion—limp and not viable.

Do not store pots in a greenhouse or root cellar that stays warm over winter OR is allowed to experience quick freeze-thaw conditions.

Lily bulbs need 8 to 10 weeks of cold, preferable below 35 degrees F. to reset themselves for bloom the next summer.  If they do not have enough cold treatment, they will either emerge weak and spindly or simply grow leaves and not bloom.  Should pots be stored in an greenhouse that stays constantly over 40 degrees day and night, the bulbs will also not bloom well either.  Modern hybrids are derived from wild lilies in temperature climates, where the soil slowly freezes deep over a period of time or the soil regularly only freezes a few inches below the surface each winter.  If stored in an unheated greenhouse, where the temperatures drop below freezing at night, but warm up to above freezing on sunny days, the freeze-thaw will compromise the integrity of your lily bulbs and they will most likely rot before spring.

Your goal is to allow soil surrounding the lily bulbs to slowly freeze.  We do the same in our winter coolers.  Wet peat surrounding the bulbs is frozen solid, which in turn slightly freezes the lilies in place and mimics a natural winter.  They stay in this dormant frozen state with proper hydration and the cooler air temperature is just a degree above freezing, until the cases are removed and prepared for shipping across the USA in April.  This is not something you cannot do at home, because the lilies need to be in a large block of soil/bulbs (about 45-50 pounds) to be protected and the air temperature is dropped only a few degrees each week.  Home freezers are designed to freeze solidly to zero or below within a few hours, which would turn the lily bulb to mush upon thaw.

Planted in a well-drained garden, soil freezes at a slower rate and acts as a buffer.  If you are lucky to have a good snow cover as well, your sleeping bulbs are quite happy.  If in those odd years of either no snowfall or snow that comes and goes over winter,  a thick mulch (foot or so deep) of shredded leaves, cut evergreen branches, bark or other insulating material is in order.  Avoid whole, large leaves (like Bigleaf Maple) because they will tend to mat down and become slimy.  Remove the layers as the snow melts to allow soil to slowly warm and wake up your lilies.

Also see:  Hardiness for bulb types and a brief Planting Guide for bulb depth on this Blog.

Planting Lily Bulbs on their side... for Water Control?

Has anyone ever suggested to you that lily bulbs should be planted on their sides to "keep them from filling up with water" over winter in heavy clay soil?  Does it work?


Physiology of a Lily Bulb

When lily bulbs are dug, and where the old flowering stem was located, you can see a neat and tidy "hole".  Lily bulbs are composed of overlapping "scales" attached at the basal plate (bottom of bulb).  Water washes through the lily bulb to the roots, which is sort of like a kitchen bowl with a crack in the bottom—it holds water for a period of time, but eventually the water completely leaks away. 

Lily Bulbs do not swim well.

• Your goal is to have water move freely and quickly from the soil immediately surrounding the bulbs, so they will not be subject to rotting over winter and early spring. 

• Sluggish drainage—caused by tightly packed clay soil—creates saturated soil for an extended period of time, which results in a depletion of oxygen and danger of loss over winter/spring.  

• Frequent heavy rainfall with fast draining soil provides oxygen to the plant tissues, which is not a problem in sandy loam because the water drains quickly away from the bulb itself.  

• Planting lilies on their sides into clay-based soil still doesn't do anything to improve the drainage, you will still have over-saturated soil. 

• Digging a larger-than normal hole in clay soil, then refilling it with commercial potting soil doesn't work either—the hole acts as a slump and quickly fills with water. 

The solution for clay-based soil is a slightly raised wide mound or berm, where the bulb is above natural ground level.  The lily roots may penetrate further below and into the natural clay, but the bulb itself stays drier.
 

What is going on underground?

There's more going on under the soil surface than most people ever suspect.  While being tractor-planted, many bulbs will either land upside down in the soft soil, or sideways.  Lilies have "contractile roots" on the bottom of the bulb, which helps to anchor the lily from upheaval by wind.  They will frequently turn themselves right side up as the new roots grow deeper into the soil, but some may take another year to become fully upright. 

In the photo below, the roots on the left are contractile basal plate roots.  Do you see how thick they are?  The ones growing above the bulb are stem roots, which being just under the soil surface, take up nutrients, the reason why fertilizer is spread on top of the soil, not mixed into the bottom of the planting hole.  Basel plate roots can persist from year to year, stem roots are grown new each year with the new stem.  By the way, there is no need to wash transplanted bulbs before planting, this photo was just to clearly show the two kinds of roots.  Tiny bulblets—offshoots of the original—will nest within the tangle of roots, if that variety is so inclined and make new, full-sized bulbs for you within a few years.

Not all lily bulbs produce stem bulblets.  Some, like this Orienpet, just keep getting bigger until they divide into two.

The next photo shows an Asiatic lily that was laying on its side when planted (in spring), and the sprout traveled underground for over a foot before turning up to make a stem above ground.  The rock on the right is there to prop it up and show how the now-browned stem emerged from the soil. Had it been planted upright to begin with, the plant would not have expended as much energy underground, and would probably have had a taller stem with more flowers that year. 

Digging this one was a chore, the stem just kept going off into its neighbors.

The Bottom Line

Correct any poor draining soil and put the bulb, so the roots are downward, with no need to put them on their sides.  Even if you make a mistake and accidentally plant them upside down, the stems will still find their way to the sunshine.


Related Blog Postings: 
Semi-automated Planting of Lily Bulbs
Clay Soil and Lily Bulbs
Bulbs planting upside down?  No Worries.
When Mother Nature is Generous with Rainfall