The urge to garden is strongest in the spring when dormant trees and shrubs awaken from their winter’s rest. If you were among the foresighted last fall, you now would be preparing to reap the reward of having planted a variety of bulbs.
Lilies are increasing in popularity very rapidly, and many gardeners are wondering what can be done in the spring if they failed to plant lilies last fall. While that season of the year is probably best, we now know that lilies may also be planted successfully in the spring.
In fact, some gardeners have transplanted blooming lily plants with good success. In the past, spring planting was not recommended because many gardeners reported failures. When one sees the average lily bulb offered for sale in the spring, one realizes why such poor results are obtained.
When a lily bulb is out of the ground, it is not in a state of complete dormancy. The scales are constantly losing moisture, and the stored-up food is being consumed by respiration. Lily bulbs do not have their flowers formed in the bulb as do tulips and daffodils. The number and quality of flowers that will be produced by a lily plant depend to a great extent on the amount of food stored in the bulb.
The most important item for success with spring planting of garden lilies is the obtaining of firm bulbs that have been properly stored over winter or dug up in late winter or very early spring. Experiments have shown that lily bulbs placed in very slightly moist peat in containers lined with polyethylene can be stored for many months at 32°F.
It is possible to dig up and replant lily bulbs in very early spring before the stem has emerged from the soil. Such bulbs have actually been in nature’s cold storage all winter and have retained good root systems.
If lily bulbs were generally made available for spring planting, their popularity would be greatly increased.
Contributed by S Emsweller
