Whats up with this babies?

I've not tried this before, but on a whim, I decided to grow out some bulbils (bulbets?not sure) from a tiger lily. Planted a few, and two sprouted, and each grew one tiny leaf and then......nothing. One lone leaf now for, oh, about 5-6 months. I planted these in the late summer, but brought them inside instead of letting them overwinter naturally.

Did I goof? Did they need a dormant cold spell? Or are they just really, really slow growing? They are in a south facing window, so get excellent light. Average potting soil, with no supplemental feeding. Is this their normal pace? Really love Tigers, common as they are, and would love to have these survive...any advice appreciated.

Bulbils can grow like that the first year. But the next they will grow big. Just wait and see. If you are having these plants inside, they need to stay some months in a refrigerator before the spring or they will not sproute. Here in Norway we have no problem to let bubils stay in the ground during the winter.

Your sunniest window inside is like open shade outside. Plants that normally grow outside in your climate naturally have a tough time growing inside. There are a lot of changes inside (compared to outside) that a plant may or may not adapt to well: low humidity, stagnant air, insufficient light, lack of significant diurnal temperature swings, "bad" water, no natural soil flora and fauna, no dormant period, etc.

That's a lot for a plant to deal with, fortunately plants are quite forgiving. My point here is that in this case, you are probably not gaining much (in bulb size), prolonging its growth phase by bringing it inside, especially with the short days and natural light for the plant to grow with.

Also fortuitous, I have just been reading an article by Marina Baranova in the 1987 Lily Yearbook, regarding the phases in a lily's life. Certain groups of lilies produce only one leaf or two to four in the first year. The book is at work and I am not (so I can't look it up), but I am sure your tiger lily falls into one of these groups.
Grapus is right in that your plant will need to go into dormancy to continue normal growth this spring and summer. Use of a refrigerator (minimum 2 months) is an excellent method.

BTW, bulbils are the little bulbs that grow above ground where a leaf meets the stem. Bulblets are small bulbs underground. The term usually refers to stem bulblets, that grow on the lily stem below the soil surface.

Rick

Thank you both for the excellent replies. Very, very helpful. Glad to know it appears they are doing ok.

One question--you mentioned the fridge for a dormant period--do I just stick them in there? That seems like quite an abrupt change from a sunny window at 78 degrees F to a refrigerator. I'm feeling pretty nervous about doing that....can't think of a way to simulate gradual dormancy except, perhaps, moving them into a cooler north facing room first. It would still be relatively warm compared with the fridge, though. Anyone have a solution?

PS Grapus--where is Andebu? Quite a coincidence, but my spouse is traveling to Norway soon for work.

I don`t think they will be a problem for them if you put them in the refrigerator. Let them stay there for 3 months, and they will grow.
I live in the south of Norway, on the countryside. It take me 1.5 hours by car to Oslo.

If your other room is around 60F or less, or (better) if you have a garage that is 45-60F, you might give it a week there before in the fridge, even if light is minimal. Otherwise don't worry about it and put 'em directly in the fridge. Do not water. When you think the soil is half dry in the fridge, put the whole pot inside a plastic bag. You want the bulb to be in a just barely moist condition while dormant.

Rick