I am afraid to ask this, because I have planted about fifty and I am sure they are not more than 8 inch apart....so I may already have really messed up! Is this too close together, before I plant the other 75 I have to plant...thanks for any help..I am trying like crazy to get them into the ground today before we get rain the rest of the week.
`How far apart should I be planting my lily bulbs?
You want to make sure that you have good air circulation around them, so each site may be a little different. I did lose a couple of lilies to botrytis that were planted too close between shrubs that had poor air flow to begin with. My fault ~
I wouldn't worry about the ones you've already done, 6-8 in. is fine, but you may eventually have to divide them a little sooner as they multiply.
Janet and Moby, what do you have planted with your lilies? I haven't received my coop order yet. How long can they wait before they are planted? I am frantically working on another bed and planting cannas and hoping I'm ready when the lilies get here.
Don't sweat it ~ just put the lilies in the fridge until you're ready to plant. But no apples in the same fridge!
Hmm, it's more like.... where do I find a spot to poke a lily in. Anywhere you need something vertical. My beds are all mixed -- lilies, irises, daylilies, peonies. etc. Tall ones in back, shorties in front.
Mine are all mixed as well...I am also using some of the cannas with my lilies...mixing the same colors together in places, and contrasting colors in other spots, also using the glads with them....just putting them here and there..lol
Thanks for the help Moby, I will plant the rest a little further apart.....but not much, I really want impact quickly..lol
Would lilies look strange mixed in with ferns?
Ferns that require shade?
Do you plant your lilies in full sun? At the Rose Emporium in San Antone where I bought a lily once, they told me to put it in light shade or partial shade because it's so hot even in the spring alot of times.
Part shade will save the blooms from extreme heat.
Ahh... I didn't look at your zone, silverfluter. Mags is right, some shade would be a very good thing in your area. Thought I can tell you from personal experience (with lilies and ferns together) that you get better color development if you can give it some direct sun. Maybe toward the outer edge of your shade garden?
I did the ferns and white lilies a couple years ago. The lilies leaned waaaay over and weren't really happy when I tried staking them either. I decided to leave them alone, leaning and they have done fine. It's probably a bulb that will decline and die off eventually, from the shade I have subjected it to, but ahh well, I think it is pretty anyway. I'll enjoy it while it lasts;)
I like the look of 3 lilies of the same kind planted in a triangle about 8 to 10 in. apart if I can affort 3 to start out with. It gives a nice impact right from the start. It sometimes surprises me how well lilies can do even in amost full shade. I had one poor thing planted way under a shrub for years and it would always sneak it's head out and bloom every year. I finally took pity on it last year and moved it to a better location. Mine are mixed in with everything too.
Susan
This one asiatic lily that I've had for years is planted between a redbud and a pecan. I bought it probably 5 years ago. It has increased only a little, but atleast it's holding its own. The trees are both getting bigger though and meeting in the middle, so I'll have to move it sooner or later. I do have some sunnier spots.
silver,
Asiatics have worked well for me in full sun because they tend to bloom here before it gets REALLY hot. The ones I worry about and plant in part shade are the later blooming ones such as Orientals or Orienpets. Actually an eastern or northern exposure works well as it keeps them from the hottest sun of the day.
Hmmm. Do either of those grow here?
Both will grow here but Orienpets are much stronger and have a great deal more tolerance for sun and heat. Orientals don't like extremely hot conditions at all.
Orientals don't like out summer sun up here either--just fall apart. I plant mine with afternoon shade and away from the house. llilyfan has some growing against a garage and doing well. Greenthumb, I guess.
Hmmm. Sounds like I need some Orienpets. What's a good company to order those from? Has there ever been a coop for those?
Steve, you put those on the north side of the house? If you put them too close they get no sun at all. Do they bloom OK that way?
Well Wanda good to hear we're not the only ones who have to do without! :-( :-)
Silver, I plant mine on the facing north and east, close to the house. They seem to really like eastern exposures where the hot afternoon sun is blocked. They do need SOME sun - morning sun is best. If they don't get any, they will become long and leggy and stretch...and future flower production may not be as good. Some of my orienpets last year were over 7 ft tall - the house faced east and they were a few feet in front of it.
I sold that house this past winter and bought a new place with a lot more land. I transplanted a couple dozen lilies I dug up - including my huge Silk Road bulbs, and bought some new Asiatics as well and planted those. They will be likely blooming in a couple of weeks, but the Silk Roads not till June probably.
I personally like B&D, but I bought my Silk Roads from Wayside/Park Seed, and I THINK they came from The Lily Garden, as its owner developed this flower in the first place. They have done very well for me.
Good luck and let us know what you've decided to plant!
I got a couple of my Orienpets from Buggycrazzy plus Lily Pad, B&D and other places. Not too many varities of the Orientpets available yet, but I like what I've seen bloom so far.
Do you need to stake them?
Normally I do not stake unless they get very tall. I did start staking the Silk Roads in their 3rd year when some of them were 6 and even over 7 ft tall as they were starting to "lean" when the flowers bloomed because of the weight. First or second year, you should not need to stake, and I have never had to stake Asiatics as they rarely get more than 3 or 4 ft tall.
Wow, I am trying to imagine a lily being 7 feet tall. Do they face up or down? Down I hope, cuz that's where I'll be.:)
Hehehehe - those face down ....they look like this!
What do you plant with them?
Whatever you want! Other lilies, daylilies, other perennials...I like to mix, match and experiment.
Do you plant something tall to cover all that stem?
Sometimes....but the stem does not bother me, and in this area stays green until frost. Some other lily stems turn brown earlier but not the Orienpets for me. When they turn brown I just cut them down.
I guess mayber Fanick's phlox or victoria phlox would be good?
Yes - I like phlox but have never tried them....will be interested to hear how those look!
You should also be able to safely cut the stem back by about a third. 4.5 feet is a lot easier on the eyes when not in bloom.
yes, I agree on that. The leaves collect energy for the next year, right?
Right.
I hate to cut back a lily stem at all--a healthy one like yours needs lots of energy for next year. Just plant other tall plants around it--maybe holly hocks, tall zinnias or even Siberian iris? Lily stems like to grow right up behind everything else.
Well, Siberian iris does do too well here, but I had a different thought. (Not unusual for me to have one of those.:) I have a Mdm Alfred rose that grows on a trellis that is 2 feet from the house. I had to plant it 2 feet from the house so that it wouldn't be under the eave. Could I plant lilies between the trellis and the house. It sounds weird but the trellis frames a window and the lilies would grow up in that space and be visible from inside the house. I'll try to send a picture tomorrow.
I'm with Wanda on that one...while Beaker may be right, I don't cut any of mine back at all until they yellow or brown. They really don't look that bad!
Just make sure if you plant behind a trellis you don't block too much sun - I would not plant a lily behind a trellis, as it would diminish visiblity from the outside! Would be interested to see what yours looks like.
Ok if I did this right, it should be a picture of the trellis. fingers crossed.:)
The spot I was thinking of is right in front of the double window or possibly to the right of it.
If that's as full as the roses get, I think you could get away with a few lilies back there. Looks like they'd get plenty of sun.