Specialty Gardening: my favorite pot...., 1 by debi_z

debi_z wrote:
hi jeanni,
welcome to the club. :-) i started planting lilies into containers last year and started asking this same question. :-) some depends on if you want to leave them in there for a few years, or if you plan on replanting them out into the fall. i found, you can put more into a pot if you are going to plant them out. the other thing i wanted to do, was plant them in containers, so i could bring them inside, without cutting them and also so i could place them about different areas of the garden, that might need a bit of color, while they were in bloom. i would then move them off to a part shade or shade area after bloom, to gather energy into the bulb.

depth is important. you need a minimum of 2-3" below the bulb, place the bulb and then a minimum of 4-6" above the bulb. the more above the better, especially if your lilies are tall. i used a combination of potting soil and play sand (i purchased at home depot or lowe's). i also used some of that water absorbent gel crystals. i found they worked well. they didn't interfere with the good drainage you needed for the bulbs, but they allowed the pots to stay moist in the heat of the summer, without being out there constantly watering them. 3 bulbs in this size container was perfect, except for bringing them indoors. i brought my tom pounce inside and i was soooooo very gorgeous with the blooms bursting open, but the smell, although wonderful outdoors, was very overpowering indoors, so out they went again. this year, i'll be putting 1 into a gallon pot for indoors. ;-)
i also put 10 asiatic 'tinos' into a large terra cotta pot and 20 mixed asiatics 'lollipop', 'cote d'azure' and '?' into a very large faux stone pot. i would guesstimate this pots sides were 18" wide and tall. these bulbs were very close in both. but that is the look i wanted and it came out well.
this spring, we will find out how they all overwintered in my garage. my first container of asiatic lollipop' i left outdoors and last spring i had only small bubils sprouting. so i nursed them along, and hopefully they will be growing stalks this spring and summer.
i put the large pots onto some metal coasters for ease in moving about the driveway, but found they worked well keeping the stalks growing straight, by rotating the containers, rather than all leaning towards the sun.
i will be interessted in hearing how your lily container gardening goes too. please let me know.
good luck and i'm sure you will enjoy the beauty.
debi z and little franklin my pekingese gardening buddy and fellow lily lover.
picture of oriental 'tom pounce' 3 bulbs in 2 gallon container