Lilies are easy to propagate. Garden lilies can be propagated with little fuss, despite the intimidating image of an eccentric English lord patiently growing rare jungle lilies in a Victorian greenhouse. In the garden, you can grow Asian lilies, Oriental lilies, Tiger lilies, and American hybrids.
Over the course of several seasons, well-maintained lilies can quickly take over an entire garden bed if left alone. Plants that have been propagated by a gardener can be strategically placed and the process is accelerated. Growing lilies in the early fall is an ideal time to do so.
Lilies, by their very nature, desire to reproduce and have developed a variety of methods for doing so. Lilies have at least six ways to reproduce, whereas most plants have just one or two ways of doing so. All of them are simple enough for even the most novice gardener to complete.
Lilies can be propagated from seed, but this method is the most time-consuming. It’s easy to collect the seeds after the flowers have gone to seed, but it takes more time for the plants to fully develop from seed. You may not see flowers for a few years. In order to collect seeds and create new hybrids, professional growers and dedicated amateurs will cross-pollinate different species of plants. For the most part, home gardeners shouldn’t bother with this method of propagating lilies because there are more efficient and less time-consuming alternatives.
Most gardeners are familiar with the division method of propagation, which is ideal for lilies. Lilies are bulb-based plants. A clone is formed when the bulb of a mature plant reaches a certain size and naturally splits in two. Offsets are the divisions that make up the bulb. A new lily plant will emerge from each of the offsets. Each offset will eventually split into new bulbs if left alone in the garden. A clump of lily plants grows as a result of this procedure.
The first division is an easy place to start when propagating. Two plants emerging from the soil close to each other is a good indicator of this. The two bulbs can be easily discovered by carefully digging up the plant. With a sharp knife or a pair of scissors, you can easily separate them. Each bulb-attached plant can be planted separately and will thrive. The best time for this is after the plant has bloomed so that all of the plant’s energy is directed toward root growth.
The best way to separate lilies is to dig up a bunch and carefully separate each bulb for planting, but you can also do this with just two offsets. The thickest sections of clumps must often be cut apart in order for them to be separated as easily as two bulbs. If you want your lily bed to remain balanced and healthy, divide clumps from time to time.
Some lilies, such as Tiger Lilies, allow for bulbil propagation. This type of bulb is a small bulb that grows at the junction of the plant’s leaves and its stem. It is possible to plant individual bulbils after they have been removed from the plant. Some of them may even begin to grow roots and sprout on the plant if they are left in place long enough. Falling to the ground and growing where they land is the norm in nature. Seeds, on the other hand, take longer to mature. Tiger lilies and bulbils are both easy to grow, but I haven’t tried them myself.
Lilies with bulbils on their stalks may be laid horizontally and covered with soil. Each bulbil produces a new plant. Do not worry about missing out on bulbils because not all lilies have them.
I like using bulblets as a method of propagation. Between the primary bulb and the soil’s surface, young bulbs are known as bulblets from underground. Even though they’re smaller than mature bulbs, they’ll mature into full-sized plants. To replant, simply dig the lily up, remove all of the bulblets growing from its roots, and then replant the main stem. Alternatively, you can leave the plant in place and dig down to the bulb in the soil below. You’ll come across the tiny, glowing bulbs as you make your way.
The bulblets can be planted with the pointed end facing up in any location where you need a new specimen. The bulblets will grow and develop more fully if you wait a few weeks after flowering to harvest them. For the bulblets to start growing in the soil, you need temperatures above freezing for at least two months. While there won’t be any visible growth in the fall, a new plant should appear where each bulblet is planted in the spring.
The bulblets can be harvested in cold regions and grown over the winter for spring transplanting. It takes between three and six weeks for most lily bulbs to sprout leaves. Bulblets that you intend to grow indoors should be placed in a plastic bag and placed in the refrigerator for at least a month before being potted up. They’ll get this naturally outside. When they are ready to be transplanted, they can be grown like any other houseplant.
Scales are the fifth propagation method. Most plants can be produced from a single parent using this method, but it is more time-consuming. Because lily bulbs are made up of overlapping scales, each one can sprout into a new plant. Scales should be collected after the plant has bloomed. When it comes to bulb plants, you can either dig them up and dispose of them, or you can carefully remove soil until you get to the bulb’s core. Peel back the outermost layer of the main bulb and remove the scales with extreme care. A mature lily should be fine if eight or ten scales are removed from the bulb. Try to keep a piece of the bulb base (the basal plate) attached to each scale when you break it off. This is the area where the roots begin to take shape.
Scales are also found on bulblets. Bulblets can be collected and separated into scales, but the scales from the main bulb may not be as developed as those from the bulblets.
Wash the scales and place them in a plastic bag with moist vermiculite, peat, or potting soil after they have been collected. As soon as they’re placed in a warm, well-lit area, they’ll begin to sprout little bulblets. Cold soaking is required for bullets from the stem root before leaves and a plant can develop, so after this period of development place the bag in the fridge.
With a third of the pointy end above the surface, you can also place the scales in a moist growing medium. The bulblets will begin to form at the same time. They’ll be ready to pot up after another month in the frigid temperatures.
It is possible to plant these new bulblets in individual pots after either of these preparation methods are completed. After a period of growth over the winter, the seeds will be ready to be planted in the spring. After a few seasons, you won’t be able to tell whether the lilies you see were grown from scales, bulblets, or full-size bulbs.
The final method of propagation is common to a wide range of plants in the garden. You can also use the stems or leaves to start new plants. Take a small piece of stem tissue from a leaf and place it in moist sand or potting soil after dipping it in rooting hormone. Do the same with a stem piece, if you prefer. Roots and a small bulb will appear within a month. As a new plant, you can transplant the little bulb.
Healthy, disease-free plants are the best starting point for any kind of propagation method. Your lily’s offsets, bulbils, bullets, or scales will also be infected if they are infected with a virus because viruses do not spread in the seed. For plants that are diseased, it is best to discard them rather than attempt to propagate them. If you have a problem with fungus, you can also coat the bulbils, bulblets, and scales with a fungicide before planting.
Labeling the propagation product is helpful for an orderly planting because it lets you know which plant goes where. Alternatively, you can simply pick a random spot for a bulb and let the power of chance choose the best place for it, as I do on occasion. That results in a bed covered in a variety of hues. Using any of the simple lily propagation methods, you’ll have plenty of new plants to fill in bare spots.
Hardiness zones 4–9 of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) are ideal for growing lilies. The majority of these low-maintenance perennials are grown from bulbs. There is no direct way to grow lilies from stem cuttings; instead, they must first form bulbs or bulblets. Even though it takes longer to grow lilies from seed, it is possible.
Flowers that are ready to be cut from separate bulbs
The bulb of the lily splits as it matures, creating a new bulb. It is possible to divide the main plant into multiple offsets, each of which can develop into a new lily plant. A clump of lilies is formed as the offsets produce new bulblets and bulbs over time. With a sterilized sharp knife or by hand, dig up the lilies’ bulbs and separate the bulblets from the plants. Do this in the fall, perhaps in early October or late September, in most planting zones.
A Place to Grow
The sooner you move your bulbs, the better. Cut lily bulbs don’t go dormant like some other flower bulbs. Choose a location where you can get some morning sun and some afternoon shade. To avoid root rot, plant the bulbs in well-drained soil.
Adding Bone Meal to Soil Preparation
To help your lilies grow, add bone meal to the soil. The phosphorus in bone meal aids in the growth of a stronger plant.
Add Compost and mulch to the soil
The pH of the soil can be determined using a soil test kit (often available from a local university extension service). To grow lilies, you need soil with a pH of 7 or close to neutral. Sand and humus, manure, or compost can be added. Add organic matter to dry soil. Compost can be added to the soil to help keep the bulbs from drying out. Mulch should be applied in a layer no deeper than two inches. Mulching cools the roots, allowing them to grow.
Put the Lilies in the Ground
Plant the flowers three times as deep as the bulb’s length apart as a general rule of thumb. There is no minimum depth for Asiatic or Oriental Lilies (Lilium Orientalis; Lilium auratum), which can be planted as shallow as 4 inches. Make sure the bulb’s pointed end is facing up when planting. Keep your cut lilies away from each other and don’t plant them too close together. To create clumps, plant them in groups.
Make Sure the Light Bulbs Are Well Watered
Even if you live in an area that receives less than an inch of rain per week, make sure to keep your bulbs moist, not soggy.
Apply a Liquid Fertilizer.
From the time of planting to six weeks after the flower has bloomed, apply a high-potassium liquid fertilizer.
Tighten Lily Staples
Oriental lilies are the tallest of the cut lilies. MO BOTANIC GARDENS says that the hybrid Lilium henryi/Lilium speciosum ‘Black Beauties’ can reach a height of 6 feet. Lilies that are more commonly found in lily bouquets or cut flowers in vases can reach a height of 2 to 4 feet.
Get Rid of Old Flowers.
Remove the wilting lily blooms from your garden and replace them with new ones. This conserves the plants’ resources by halting the production of flowers.
Prepare the Seeds for Planting Now.
The flowering stage of lily plants takes two to six years to reach after they are propagated from seeds, according to North Dakota State University research. From the flower’s pod, the lily’s black seeds can be harvested.
Warning
Keep the leaves on your lily plants intact until the end of the growing season. The bulb and bulblets of the plant receive nourishment from the leaves.
The University of Nebraska extension recommends replanting bulblets, which grow at the base of the lily, every three years.
Large lily seeds should be treated as bulbils. Compost-rich soil and frequent watering are essential for their success. In about two weeks, they’ll start to sprout leaves.
