Lily bulbs spouting in November...bad?

I put several lily bulbs in the ground that I received late this season but because we've had such warm weather they are spouting. Will this hinder their growth and blooms in the Spring?

Eden, I don't want to sound discouraging but this does not sound promising. This is my first fall planting lily bulbs (lots of them) and I searched through the DG Lily Forum for similar experiences to yours. One person said her newly planted lilies started sprouting in the fall, but the top growth froze off during the winter and bulbs refused to sprout the following season. However, they resprouted the following spring (about 18 months after first planting!) and survived and bloomed.

Where did you get your bulbs? It is unlikely that lily bulbs would sprout after fall planting unless they were improperly stored. Some unscrupulous sellers will hold over lily bulbs that did not sell during the spring season under refrigeration to sell in the fall and then they will sprout immediately when planted in a desperate attempt to grow. Other times some bulbs are held over in refrigeration too long because they are the unused remnants of the cut flower greenhouse forcing industry.

Happy lily bulbs properly harvested and stored should only sprout basal roots from the bottom of the bulb when planted in the fall, regardless of how early you plant or how warm or long the season is. They need the cold period of winter to reset their growth. Lily bulbs sold in spring are refrigerated to mimic the winter cold.

Hope this provides some ideas,
Ispahan

thanks...I will contact the seller, Royal Dutch.

Eden, be sure to check Garden Watchdog first before ordering anything. That company has a horrible rating. I would contact them right away.

This is something that often happens with Dutch bulbs grown for the cut flower industry. They are programmed to sprout early for cut sales. That's why you're really better off buying from a US grower, like The Lily Garden.

I have had this happen many times, as I grow lilies for pot sales in my nursery. You most probably will get no bloom next year, but you will the year after.

My bulbs that have been in the ground for 3 years are sprouting. It is just this warm weather we are having. I found some daffodil bulbs that I took up this summer and forgot to plant , putting out roots and starting to grow. They were just laying on the ground.

Marie_kap, it is normal for daffodils, tulips, hyacinths, crocuses, etc., to sprout and grow this time of year. They are actively growing roots in the autumn and *slowly* sending up top growth which seldom breaks through the soil until a spring warm up period. Since you found some unburied daffodils, it just makes this top growth look exaggerated, but imagine if they were buried the proper 6-8 inches underground? Freshly planted lilies, however, should *never* start growing above ground so soon as described by the original poster. That is a sign of bad quality lily bulbs.

No , you misunderstood,I found bulbs planted in the ground popping up out of the ground as I was planting more bulbs.

Marie, my tulips and daffodils have also started showing as well, and these aren't newly planted. They've never done this before. My muscari and Dutch iris have been out for weeks as well, but they did the same thing last year, and were fine. This crazy weather's driving me nuts. It was 70 and rainy today, we're expected to get flurries in the next few days.

Yep, calling for flurries here tomorrow too after being close to 70 today. These poor plants do not know what to do...lol

Sometimes asiatic lilies will sprout in fall, but that has never had a problem with blooms next season either in NC or when I lived in NJ

I have an easter lily which has just sprouted today.

Marie, if your sprouting bulbs are spring bulbs (not lilies) there is nothing to worry about as long as the flower buds are not showing. Leaves have incredible frost resistance. A little nub sticking out of the ground can survive to zero F easily. Unfolding leaves 4 inches high to 10F easily. Even so, there is really not much you can do about it. If you cover, then you are gambling because you will be providing a warmer place for them and they will grow faster in the long run, making their premature growth worse.

You are lucky with the unplanted daffs. If they don't produce roots in what they think is "fall", they won't produce roots at all.

My LA Trinity bulbs sprouted not long after planting, and seems to be surviving our cold snaps ok. I'm glad Leftwood mentioned not putting mulch on them since I thought about doing this, but thank goodness hadn't had the time to do so. I'll just leave them alone and hope for the best for the rest of winter.

I looked out today and the ones I just planted late this fall are coming up, these poor things, they don't know what to do,

One more thing about mulching specific to this thread. If you are in an area where the soil freezes deeply, mulching after the soil freezes a foot down would be beneficial for premature sprouts. It will keep the cold in, and delay growth in the spring that would otherwise begin prematurely again. And at the same time, moderate the temperature so that when below zero temps hit, growth would be unaffected.