Overview

Bulbed flowering plants that grow to ~1m tall with extravagant flowers. Many other plants are called lilies, but only those belonging to the genus Lilium are true lilies.

Seasonal Photos

Spring	Summer	Autumn	Winter

Care Instructions

Plant them the right way up between 2-3 times the depth of the bulbs spaced a similar amount apart. Blackheath is cool enough over winter that the bulbs don’t need to lifted.

The shooting bulbs are attractive to slugs and snails, so pest protection is recommended once they start shooting.

Fertilise with a complete fertiliser in late winter and again in summer for best blooms.

They can be lifted and divided every 3-4 years. Failing to divide them may result in them not blooming as strongly as they get crowded.

When cutting blooms, keep at least 2/3 of the stalk to ensure that there are enough leaves for the bulb to get energy for the next year. Once finished flowering in the garden, cut the stems as soon as the flowers have finished, so the bulbs don’t waste their energy on seed production. Cut them leaving 2/3 of the stem standing, then let the foliage remain until it has yellowed. You can then cut your Lily stem to around 5cm, and the Lilium bulb will become dormant.

They respond well to liquid fertiliser on a semi-regular basis (fortnightly) over summer as well.

Use stakes to support the stems once they get tall, otherwise they will fall over due to the weight of the top and the size.

Plant History

Pauline bought these for Summer 2023 and I planted them soon after. They reappeared in 2024 in style.

Personal Musings

I was away for the three weeks that they flowered over the first summer. They grew pretty big pretty fast which is cool. It makes you think of all that energy stored in a bulb. Then I had decaying metre high stems in the planter box for a few months though. The second year we saw them bloom and they were very impressive.

More Photos

References

• Tesselar Lily Growing Guide