So I grow all my lilies in long rows,,,probably 50' long by 2' wide,, all colors everywhere A's & O's,,,,every year I seem to be getting more and more pinks with orange centers,,,I don't think I bought any like that,,Is thats what happening? cross pollination? surely bees fly for miles,,Is this my imagination? Dee
cross polination?
Of course, cross pollination cannot turn a lily plant of one color into another, but the progeny a cross pollination produces could certainly be variable in color. Have you been letting seedlings come up and continue growing to maturity?
well yes...so what happening?
It's conceiveable that a particular cross pollination has been very successful in your garden compared to other crosses that have happened by chance. We'll call it cross#1, which is parent(1) x parent(2). Even though both parents do not produce flowers of pink with orange centers, their offspring might. And it is common with hybridizing, that in the sibling groups there is a more common flowering pattern pretty much throughout the siblings, in this case, that would be pink with orange centers. Most often in cases like these, there are still minor differences, but over all, they are the same.
It is also conceiveable that this cross#1 siblings inhereted vigor greater than most of your other lilies and they are slowly taking over your beds. The "strong will survive" kind of thinking.
This message was edited Feb 24, 2009 11:06 PM
So is there really any way to keep the orential white ones ,,,white forever? I dont mind the colors,,but I prefer to keep the whites,,white.. Thanks for your great info.. Dee
Certainly. Just keep the same bulbs growing, or multipy them by asexual propagation (not seed). This would include dividing the bulbs, scaling and using stem bulbs to grow on.
Is scaling when a bulb like falls apart or 3 or 4 pices come off..does this produce new bulbs? I never let mine go to seed...Figured I get more bulbs quicker with bulblets!..i never really understood scaling!! I move all bulblets, and bulbs the moles push up into new beds,,every year...thanks for being patient with me and explaining this :) dee
If a bulb fall apart, it is maby rotten in the middle. And is just to throw away. I do scaling in the fall by breaking some scales off. Then i put them in a plastic bag with moist peat mixed with perlite. And put the bag in a dark place in a room. The temperature should be around 20 degrees celsius. After 3 months small bulbs is growing on the scales. If they have roots they can, if you live in a warm climate,be planted outside. Or store them for the winter in a cool but not cold place till the spring come. By doing this i have had flowers on the bulbs one year after i planted them outside.
Grapus is right. If a bulb is falling apart, it probably has (or was) rotted. Depending on how bad the rot is, you may be able to save some unaffected scales for propagation. Rotted areas will be soft or mushy, and discolored. If your fallen apart bulb does not have any of this, most likely it had rotted, but the portions that remain are healthy, and the rotted part(s) have disintegrated.
On the other hand, if scales just break off easily (as some do), there is probably not health concerns. Scaling is usually done deliberately, and when you remove scales, try to remove them as close to the basal plate (center section) as possible. This helps to insure propagation success. See here for what a basal plate is:
http://www.manitobalilies.ca/Articles/Novice/Lilium%20Bulbs.htm
After scales have produced bulblets, and it is time to store them in a cool but not cold place, a frig works well. Usually, only 4 weeks are needed, but storing for 3 months is fine.
Learn about scaling here:
http://www.lilies.org/propagation.html
I book marked this one,,Ill read up on this,,Im really into making more!!thank you both so much! Dee
this is a test i hope I figured it out! one of my 5 lilly beds..Dee
Great lilies, Dee. The only thing I'd change about that picture is that I'd lose somemore of that grass. It's taking up valuable lily space! :) LOL
now that I know how to use the photos,,youll die to see what it looks like now,,,no grass,,more rows...Ill post some more next weekend..good night Dee
