Crenum Lily question??

Hi guys!
I got a bunch of bulbs from a co-op here at DG(YAY!!☻), and as I was getting then unpacked and ready to plant, I found a second little stalk coming out of the Crenum bulb. My gardening friend who was helping me plant them thought I should divide and plant as 2 little bulbs,but I'm just not sure, and as I only got 2 of these little guys, and it is a smaller bulb anyway, I wanted some advice before I go dividing anything! She laughed a little and told me to let her know what the consensus was, but she is using my DG for more and more stuff, I think I almost got her to join in on the fun here!!

Anyway, if this was your little Crenum, would you plant as is, or divide it, and plant as 2? And if dividing is the thing to do -- how? I knew the Crenum bulbs would be smaller, but they really are little things....like a quarter the size of the other bulbs...I really don't want to hurt it as they are my first Species lilies ever and I am so excited to see those blooms!!

TIA for the help! Off to plant all the others....
Jamie

I would plant it as is.Some of mine have grown into nice size "doubles".

Thanks gone2seed~
That was my thought, just to plant it as it is and let it grow 2 stalks if thats what it wants to do...:-) Thanks for the speedy response!! Do you grow this Lily? Do you have any pictures of it in bloom?? I really find myself drawn to this type of lily more and more! I really hope it blooms this year....
Jamie

Unless it's pretty loosely attached, I'd plant them together. Uh... that's a cernum lily, right?

Moby~

Maybe it is...I just went and checked and my invoice says Crenum, so that's what I've been calling it. But it could be a typo, is there a lily called "Crenum"? Oh lovely, if not, then I have it spelled wrong on the garden marker, the title of this thread, and my garden journal where I entered all my new lilies last night...LOL Not a big deal, but a little bit embarassing ..^_^ Thanks for the heads-up!

And I am going to just leave well enough alone and plant it as 1 bulb, as both you and gone2seed both thought that would be best. The bulb is so small compared to the Asiatics, Orientals, it doesn't seem like it could produce 2 stalks, but it is. I really am interested to see if they both bloom.
Thanks for the correction, and the advice!
Jamie

Is this it? If so, it's normal for the bulb to be on the small side. http://www.brentandbeckysbulbs.com/spring/productview/index.php?sku=31-0137

Here it's cernuum http://www.lilynook.mb.ca/Catalog/Species.html

AAhhh,different lily altogether.I thought you has misspelled Crinum which are the ones I grow.I would still leave the bulbs attached for now.My apologies for assuming your spelling was as poor as mine. :>)

gone2seed~~ I still misspelled it!! :-)

moby~~ It is Cernum, I looked at the co-op ordering thread and vendor website again, and my invoice has a typo. And I did plant it as one unit, kept it together, as every one of you all had the same suggestion it seemed the thing to do. I knew this lily had smaller bulbs, but seeing that little bulb, with 2 healthy stalks coming out of it - amazing to me!! I really am looking forward to seeing those blooms! Is it correct that these would be called recurved or Turks cap type blooms? Prior to this year, I've only grown trumpets, up-facing asiatics, and out facing orientals - so this would be my first lily with this type of bloom. I am really drawn to this bloom-type in lilies...they seem elegant somehow, if that makes sense!! :-) I know it will be my first of many to come.....

Thank-you all for the input! I will be back with pictures of these misspelled lilies when they bloom! Maybe both stalks :-)

Unfortunately vendors are not experts and occasionally get it wrong. Every reference I have at my disposal identifies it as It as Lilium cernuum. Go figure; even a big company like Brent and Becky's refer to me as pardelinum.... WRONG!! And they should know better!

And yes, you can describe them as Turks cap type of form. They will make a very nice addition to your garden. Count me in as one of those who prefer this form of lily. They look much less "manufactured".

Oh! and watch out for slugs or snails-- They will eat off the tops real quick, they love lilies as they emerge.

if it truly is L.cernum it should look like this:

pardalinum~~Now another spelling - cernuum.:-) This poor lily, I just can't get it right LOL ☻ I hadn't come across that one yet, but really only checked the site I ordered it from, and my invoice. Speaking of references - can you, or anyone else, recommend a good, thorough lily book for someone recently addicted to them? I have a couple really basic/beginner books, not nearly informative enough now that I am getting more and more interested in these plants all the time. I went to Timber Press looking to see what they had on Lilies, but then I thought you all might have good suggestions for me. I really want to learn more about the species lilies, as well as all the rest. I just a need good comprehensive Lily book.

And lastly, do snails/slugs like this lily more than most? I have huge problems with them eating Hosta, daylilies and other plants but never lilies. Have I been lucky with my other lilies, or is this one more likely to get eaten as it comes up?

Thank-you for all the info!! I feel like I learn something every day here on this forum! ~~ Jamie

I have Ed McRae's book "Lilies-- A Guide for Growers and Collectors". It is from Timber Press but it is out of print now so you might check Amazon.com. He provides a fairly comprehensive section on species. Since Ed was one of our local lily experts, the information he included on what grew well for him is useful info for us. It is not a highly technical book, but not really basic either. It was the first reference I went to check on cernuum!

As for slugs, it seems that many specie lilies are tender and easy for them to eat. Many hybrids are bred to be sturdier but even then some of mine get lopped off if I don't get out there in a timely manner and protect them.

Thanks for the book suggestion, I will check it out tomorrow for sure!! It sounds like just what I am looking for - not one for someone brand new to gardening, but not for the serious hybridizer either.

And the slugs/snails liking the species lilies better would explain why I have yet to have them bother any of mine! I am so new to my lily obsession that until this spring I didn't grow anything but the most common, easily found lilies. Now that I'm branching out into more expensive, harder to find lilies, I sure don't want slugs getting to them before I even get to see them bloom! I baited for slugs/snails where the cernum lilies will come up, and appreciate the tip :-) Do you grow many of the species lilies?? Do they do as well as other lilies do in our area? We really are lucky here in the PNW when it comes to lilies aren't we? I have one Asiatic that was 1 BIG bulb in Fall 2007 when I planted it, and sent up one stalk in spring 2008 , and has multiplied to about 10 now. Not all of them blooming size this year, but i see about 10 stalks there of differing sizes. I'm posting a pic below just because I was so excited, I really wanted to show someone besides my 16yo daughter who really tries to be interested, but ....... LOL :-)

Thanks again for the book suggestion!
Jamie

About all I have for blooming size species right now is pardalinum and that one is very easy to grow. It multiplies real fast too. I have some seedlings of monadelphum, parryi, martagon, nepalense, and a mix of Western North American species. These are not big enough to plant out in the garden yet. And I have seeds for many more species I haven't got around to starting yet. Lily seeds keep for years in the freezer so no hurry...

Your lilies look great! Yes, this is a good area for growing lilies. You might think about joining the Pacific Northwest Lily Society. They meet at Mt. Hood Community College in Gresham.