Lilies almost define gardening
for me and why I bother with it. Mainly I like the infinite shades of green
that my garden provides and I'd rather have a shapely and elegant foliage plant
than one that flowers but is fussy with it.
Lilies are the exception that
proves (as in tests) the rule. I like big plants, big leaves and big flowers,
I like show-offs that can carry it off. If someone shouts "Look at me, look
at me" I expect them to be worth looking at at.
Lilies are all of that and
more - they are botanical show-offs par excellence. They force you to look
- and if you aren't looking, they get your attention by their fragrance until
you turn to see (although they aren't all fragrant).
Huge showy flowers with big wobbly
anthers and an erect stigma in autotrophic sexual role reversal, they are the
flowers that you will show off to your friends more than any others (and get
the most compliments for) and be the ones you just have to go and see more often
than any others in your garden - I like lilies!
Even lily buds are impressive,
more impressive than many opened flowers. If you've only ever bought these from
the florist or supermarket, then grow your own and not only will you have the
perfumed beauty on your doorstep or patio, but you'll be more pleased than with
anything you've ever grown.
Lilies
are best grown in many places in containers. They can be grown in the ground
in borders, but they need to be molly coddled a bit - less likely to happen
in the border than in a container. If you supply a position where the roots
are in moist shade and the top growth is in the sun then they'll do well, but
realistically such positions are rare - if you do have such a thing however
- promise me you'll grow lilies in it.
Containers can either be single
variety and removed from main display when the flowers are over, or they can
be under planted with bedding plants to provide lasting interest in more permanent
planting positions. I have lilies in permanent large containers either side
of the front door, they are under planted in the summer with Surfinia Petunias
and Lobelia and/or above with annual Morning Glory. In either case, they have
hanging baskets above them that trail downwards to meet the lilies as they grow
upwards. The end result is that the lily foliage can be left to grow on and
all so importantly supply the bulbs with the nutrients to provide next years
flowers.
If grown in containers, lilies
can left in place from season to season. They start to bud and grow in mid to
late spring and flower from mid summer onwards. The taller varieties should
be supported with canes or similar as the flowers are so large and heavy they
will bend the stems over, especially when heavy with rainwater - so support
them before any buds have appeared.
When the flowers are over, snap
them off just behind where they are trying to make seeds so the energy doesn't
go to where you don't want it. The leaves should then be left to fill the bulbs
with nutrients to power next years flowers.
Lilies
to buy
|
 Size
matters - buy the biggest
bulbs you can afford. The biggest bulbs will produce the biggest flowers
and the most flowers. If you look after the plants after flowering and
feed them ready for next year, they will build themselves up all the
better to produce more and bigger flowers next year too.
I grow lilies in containers
rather than in the border as I don't have the required moist position
with heads in the sun and roots in the shade, any lilies I have planted
in the soil just get smaller every year until they eventually stop coming
up all together.
Permanent containers
are a good place to have some lily bulbs, I have two very large pots
(about 2 foot cubes) either side of the front door, one has a Phormium
in and the other is constantly re-planted with seasonal plants. One
of the containers has several by now large and majestic white lilies
that live there permanently.
As the containers are
so large they allow me to add other smaller bedding plants to go with
the seasons. pansies in the autumn to spring and Lobelia and Petunias
in the summer. One even has Morning Glory planted in them as a summer
annuals to grow up and around the door after the Clematis and scented
rose have done their thing in late spring / early summer.
I also grow lilies
in large mobile containers (black 10L plant pots with reed matting
tacked onto them with a heavy duty staple gun). These are permanently
in containers, but the containers are shifted around. As they start
to bud and flower I move them to a place of maximum prominence. As the
flowers die and the foliage needs growing on to fill the bulb with goodies
for next year, I put them somewhere less obvious - this can even be
in a gap in a border if you have no-where else, just remember to water
and feed them until the foliage starts to die down.
|
Lily Care
Plant - In containers,
or borders with moist soil that has plenty of organic matter. The ideal
position is with the top growth in full sun and the roots in shade. Semi-shade
is usually tolerated well as long as there is at least a few hours of each
day in the sun, deep shade is not tolerated.
Depth - at a depth
of 2 -3 times height of the bulb, leave a space between bulbs of about 3
times the bulb diameter, the same applies in the soil or in containers.
Cultivation - after
flowering, remove seed heads so not to waste resources, water once with
double strength liquid fertiliser, plenty of it to reach the bulbs and roots.
Leave leaves to die down
naturally - don't cut the leaves or otherwise damage them in any way, this
is when the bulb is built up again for next years flowers, any interference
will stop this and give smaller, weaker or blind flowering. Leave at least
6 weeks for the leaves to do their job, if possible don't touch them at
all until they are completely brown and shrivelled and can be pulled up
with little resistance. If the whole of the leaves and stem are brown and
dead but won't be pulled up easily, then cut off at 2-3" above soil level
with secateurs.
Support is often necessary
for varieties that grow above about 2 feet - if yours are this tall
and the buds still small, then support them sooner rather than later, the
tall large flowered varieties can become very top heavy, especially after
rain which weighs the flowers down.
Lilies will often develop
larger and larger bulbs each year if they are looked after which will
reward you by producing more and more impressive displays.
Pests -
Aphids
are a common pest which are relatively easily dealt with by a systemic insecticide.
Lily beetle (aka
red or scarlet
lily beetle) can be a major problem, but the vigilant gardener can often
deal with these fairly simply by picking them off and squashing them underfoot,
they are more prevalent in the South of the country but have been
heading north for some time now so no-one is really safe from them.
They appear from about
March-April onwards through to the autumn and are very obvious as bright
shiny scarlet beetles 6-8mm in length (quite handsome really).
Both the
adults and the reddish/brown grubs feed on lily leaves leaving holes in
their wake. Heavy infestations are best dealt with by a systemic insecticide
"smart-bomb" spray, you could also spray follow finding some
like I have in the picture here as there are likely to be some that you
have missed and/or some larvae around. The beetles tend to stay on the
underside of leaves, so I look for them by getting down low and looking
upwards through the plant, their colour makes it easy to find them
fortunately! If you're organic, then you may feel more noble, but
probably won't
have such impressive lilies - my line is drawn on the lily-side of the contest.
More on
the red lily beetle
Lily the pink
Q.
I bought four
Asiatic lilies and transplanted them in the spring. They bloomed fine
but then when summer started the petals fell off. Will the flowers bloom
again this summer?
A.
Lilies only flower once a year, you need to look after them still though
so that the leaves can fill the bulb with energy for next years flowers.
