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Planting, Growing, and Caring for Lilies
With stunning star-shaped flowers, lilies add elegance and fragrance to any garden. Enjoy their colorful blooms from spring through the first frost by blending early-blooming, mid-season, and late-blooming lilies into your garden. Learn more about choosing, planting, and growing lilies.
About Lilies
Everyone loves lilies! Grown from bulbs, lilies are perennials that require minimal care if planted correctly. Most lilies do well in containers and look spectacular in a vase.
True lilies belong to the genus Lilium and grow from plump, scaly bulbs. Several popular lily species exist, including Orientals, Asiatics, Orienpets, and Species types.
We say 鈥渢rue鈥 lilies because there are also plants, such as daylilies, peace lilies, and canna lilies, which have the term 鈥渓ily鈥 in their common name, but they鈥檙e not actually lilies at all. They do not grow from bulbs but are in a different plant genus. Water lilies aren鈥檛 lilies at all, and neither are lily-of-the-valley.
With 8,000 or so varieties, lilies parade an endless range of colors, shapes, heights, and bewitching scents. Lilies have six plain or strikingly marked tepals (鈥減etals鈥) and are often trumpet-shaped, sitting atop a tall, erect stem with narrow, long, lance-shaped leaves. They come in many beautiful colors, including pink, gold, red, orange, and white.
Most lilies also take readily to containers at home in formal and naturalistic settings. Plus, they make excellent cut flowers!
To create a sequence of Lily blooms in your garden, remember that Asiatics generally flower first, followed by Orienpets and then Oriental varieties.
- Asiatic lilies (Lilium sp. - 鈥淎siatic hybrids鈥) are the earliest to bloom (usually in May or June), right after peonies. They are also the easiest to grow, as long as they are planted in well-draining soil, not waterlogged. They are the shortest type of lily (about 2 to 3 feet tall) and come in many colors, from pastel to tropical. Hybrids come in pure white, pinks, vivid yellows, oranges, and reds; heights are from one to six feet. Intense breeding has erased much of the Asiatics鈥 fragrance, but despite their lack of perfume, they are a favorite with floral arrangers.
- Oriental lilies (Lilium sp. - 鈥淥riental hybrids鈥) have that famously intoxicating fragrance. They are tall and stately (4 feet), and tend to grow more slowly. Oriental hybrids bloom in mid- to late summer, just when Asiatic lilies are beginning to fade. Orientals are always a striking choice, producing masses of huge white, pink, red, or bi-color blooms. They make wonderful cut flowers that fill even the largest rooms with spicy scents.
- Easter lilies (Lilium longifolium) are most commonly grown indoors as a holiday plant. As their name suggests, they are typically forced into bloom around Easter, in March or April. Outdoors, they are better suited for warmer regions of North America, where they can be planted in the garden after blooming has finished. These are generally hardy to Zone 5 (and to Zone 4 if given 1 to 2 feet of mulch in autumn for winter protection). Learn more about Easter Lilies.
- Trumpet lilies (Lilium sp. - 鈥淭rumpet hybrids鈥) are similar to oriental lilies, producing many blooms with a nice scent. Their flowers tend to be smaller and more closed (like a trumpet) than those of the other lilies.
There are other lilies out there, of course, such as tiger lilies (Lilium henryi) and Turk鈥檚 cap lilies (Lilium superbum), as well as hybrids like 鈥Orienpet鈥 (Oriental + Trumpet) and 鈥LA鈥 lilies (Easter + Asiatic). Browse through your favorite online gardening retailer鈥檚 catalog to find what you like best!
Planting
Lilies need lots of sun. For dependable blooms, lilies should get 6 to 8 hours of direct sunlight daily (aka 鈥渇ull sun鈥). If it鈥檚 too shady, the stems will attempt to lean toward the sun or get spindly and fall over.
Also, a well-drained site is critical. Water trapped beneath the scales may rot the bulb. How can you tell if your site drains well? After a good rain, find a spot that is the first to dry out. Enrich the soil with leaf mold, compost, or well-rotted manure to encourage good drainage. Learn more about soil amendments and preparing soil for planting.
Most popular varieties prefer acidic to neutral soil, but some are lime-tolerant or prefer alkaline soils (e.g., Madonna lilies).
When to Plant Lilies
Lilies are commonly planted in the fall but can be planted in the spring in areas with harsh winters.
- In the fall, plant at least four weeks before your first fall frost date. Bulbs planted in the autumn will have well-established roots in the spring. The bulbs benefit from a winter chill to produce big blooms.
- In the spring, plant them as soon as the threat of frost has passed.
- Container-grown lily plants can be planted anytime during the early summer.
- Buy the bulbs close to planting time. Because lily bulbs don鈥檛 go dormant, they will deteriorate over time, so don鈥檛 plan to buy bulbs in the fall and wait until spring to plant them.
How to Plant Lilies
- Loosen the soil to a depth of 12 to 15 inches.
- Plant lilies three times as deep as the bulbs are high. The deep planting encourages the developing stem to send out roots to help stabilize the plant and perhaps eliminate the need for staking. Also, deep planting keeps lily bulbs cool when temperatures soar.
- Set the bulb in the hole pointy side up.
- Fill the hole with soil and tamp gently (Got critters? Bury the bulbs in wire cages to protect them from getting eaten).
- Space bulbs at a distance equal to three times the bulb鈥檚 diameter (usually about 8 to 18 inches apart, depending on the variety).
- If space allows, plant lilies in groups of three to five for visual appeal; crowding leads to poor circulation and gray molding.
- Water thoroughly at the time of planting.
Growing
How to Care for Lilies
- During active growth, water the flowers freely, especially if rainfall is less than 1 inch per week.
- Keep lilies mulched so that their roots are cool. The mulch should feel moist but not wet. Read more about mulching.
- Apply a high-potassium liquid fertilizer every 2 weeks from planting until 6 weeks after flowering.
- Apply a thin layer of compost each spring, followed by a 2-inch layer of mulch.
- Stake tall lilies.
- Lilies do not bloom more than once per season, but you can remove the faded flowers so that the plants don鈥檛 waste energy making seeds.
- After the lily blooms, you can also remove just the stem itself. However, do NOT remove leaves until they have died down and turned brown in the fall. It鈥檚 very important not to cut back the leaves until the end of their season because they help provide nourishment to the bulb for next season鈥檚 blooms.
- Cut down the dead stalks in the late fall or early spring.
- Before winter, add 4 to 6 inches of mulch, simply to delay the ground freeze and allow the roots to keep growing. Leave the mulch until spring, once the last hard frost has passed. See your local frost dates. See your local frost dates.
- If your region doesn鈥檛 have snow cover, keep the soil moist in winter.
- When lily shoots grow through the mulch in the spring, start to remove it gradually.
- Divide plants every 3 to 4 years as new growth begins in the spring. Just lift the plants and divide the clumps. Replant the new bulbs, adding some compost.
Types
There are many types of lilies that bloom at different times. With careful planning, you can enjoy lilies all summer long by planting bulbs from different varieties.
Asiatic lilies are the earliest to bloom and the easiest to grow. With their upward-facing flowers, they bloom early to midsummer. Hardy in Zones 4 to 9, Asiatic lilies come in pure white, pink, vivid yellow, orange, and red. Intense breeding has erased much of the Asiatics鈥 fragrance, but despite their lack of perfume, they are a favorite with floral arrangers.
- 鈥楶atricia鈥檚 Pride鈥: white flowers brushed with deep purple; about 32 inches tall; blooms in early to midsummer
- 鈥楪ran Paradiso鈥: large (4- to 5-inch) red flowers; 3 to 4 feet tall; hardy in Zones 3 to 8; blooms in early to midsummer
Trumpet lilies bloom mid-summer. Tall with trumpet-shaped flowers, they are hardy in Zones 5 to 9. Trumpet lilies grow many blooms (12 to 15 per stalk!) and have a wonderfully heady, sweet fragrance.
- 鈥楢濒产耻尘鈥, aka regal lily: white flowers; up to 6 feet tall; blooms in midsummer
- 鈥榊ellow Planet鈥: extra-large, buttery yellow flowers; 4 feet tall; blooms in mid- to late summer
Oriental hybrids end the season, blooming in mid- to late summer, just when Asiatic lilies are beginning to fade. From tiny 2-footers to towering 8-foot-tall giants, Orientals are always a striking choice (the shorter ones are great for patio beds or container gardens). Adored for their intoxicating fragrance that intensifies after dark, Oriental lilies produce masses of huge white, pink, red, or bi-color blooms. They make wonderful cut flowers that will fill even the largest of rooms with their spicy scents.
- 鈥楤lack Beauty鈥: dark red, 5-inch, funnel-shape flowers; 5 to 6 feet tall; blooms in mid- to late summer
- 鈥楥asa Blanca鈥: white flowers; 3 to 4 feet tall; blooms in mid- to late summer
- 鈥楽迟补谤驳补锄别谤鈥: large, deep pink, white-edge flowers; 2 to 3 feet tall; blooms in mid- to late summer
Native lilies provide a range of options; here are a few:
- Turk鈥檚 cap lily: densely spotted orange flowers; 4 to 7 feet tall; blooms in midsummer
- Canada lily: yellow to orange-red flowers; 3 to 8 feet tall; blooms in late spring to midsummer
- Wood lily: North America鈥檚 most wide-ranging lily; orange, pink-to-red flowers; 1 to 3 feet tall; blooms in July and August
Catherine Boeckmann
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A.C. Whose lilies appeared to swap their color around may have been related to the "lily" plant that is "Daylily". Daylily plants tend to be cross pollinated in nearby locations.
Please forgive me if this is idiotic, but I know VERY little about gardening, plants, pollination (except for the bees part, I know all about the bees! :)....
When we bought our house two years ago, the previous owner had planted ALL red lilies on the left, and ALL yellow lilies on the right. It was rather irritating... each year I kept thinking OK, time to dig these up and move them somewhere else...
This year, year three of living here there are now THREE white lilies mixed in with both the red and the yellow.
How on Earth did that happen?! They are in the same bed and grew in very close to another plant (bulb splitting off underground?).
Explain?!
Often new plants are grown from what is called a sport and mutations happen. A gene from the original parent plant becomes dominant again. Sometimes temperature extremes (a very cold or very warm spring) can change the shades of color.
My oriental/asiatic lillies from last year grew great and then developed big seed pods on each stem before ANY bloomed. What happened??
Lilies will only develop true seed pods after they have flowered, so if the lilies haven鈥檛 flowered yet, the pods must be something else. If they are growing out of the stem directly, they are probably bulbils (for more information, see our response below).
My daughter has lillies. Some have a bud but others have a black pod (they have no flowers). Are these seed pods and if so, what do we do with the seeds?
Lilies will only develop true seed pods after they have flowered, so if the lilies haven’t flowered yet, the black pods must be something else. If they are growing out of the stem directly, they are probably bulbils (for more information, see our response a few comments below this one).
How does a Tiger Lily absorb water?
Lilies absorb water through their roots and you need to be especially careful that they have well-draining soil and never sit in saturated soil. If your soil doesn’t drain well (and this is a problem with clay soil), add sand.
Can you tell me what is the purple bud that appear on the stem where the leaf intersects? Is it a lily seed? My lily is about 3' tall and very healthy and not blooming yet. I have other lilies that are blooming and they don't have these purple buds along the stem.
