Caring for lilies: tips from the experts

Lilies are a real beauty both in the pot and in the summer border. But without the right care you cannot enjoy their wonderful flowers.

lilies (Lilium) are frugal and at the same time beautiful summer bloomers in the bed, which, apart from a bit of skill when watering, do not have many demands on care. Even overwintering in the bed is not a problem for many species. If you don't have a bed for the flowers, you can cultivate small species in pots. However, this involves a bit more maintenance. Because lilies in pots are a bit more demanding, especially when it comes to the supply of nutrients. Finally, the supreme discipline is the care of a houseplant. But with our helpful tips you can also master this challenge. Of course, a few things should also be considered when choosing the location or the variety. That's why you find here everything you need to know about growing the queen of flowering plants.

In the following, you will learn everything you need to know about watering, fertilizing and overwintering lilies, both in beds and in pots, so that your lilies can show off their full blooms. We also clarify whether you should remove faded flowers.

Watering lilies: How much water do lilies need?

Lilies require some attention when it comes to watering. The magnificent flowers like it nice and moist, but are very sensitive to waterlogging. The soil should therefore be well drained. It is best to lay out a drainage layer of gravel or broken clay at the bottom of the planting hole when planting. Otherwise the plants quickly tend to develop stem rot and die. Because lily bulbs lack a firm scale, they tend to dry out faster than other bulb flowers. On the one hand, this plays a role in storing the onions, but it must not be ignored when watering. Because you should never let the substrate around the onion dry out completely. In summer, this means reaching for the watering can every day. How often you have to water depends on many factors, such as the weather or the substrate. In general, however, it can be said that lilies are watered as soon as the soil around the plant has dried off on the surface.

Fertilize lilies: when, how often and with what to fertilize lilies?

To grow big, strong and beautiful, lilies need proper nutrition. When, with what and how much is fertilized ultimately decides to a considerable extent how much lily flowers later decorate your garden and how many years your lily maintain this splendor can. When it comes to fertilization, especially with bulb flowers such as lilies, too much of a good thing is not always beneficial. It is also advisable to mix compost into the soil when planting.

Fertilize lilies: when and how often?

As far as fertilization is concerned, lilies are really easy to care for, but are still considered heavy consumers among bulb flowers. Therefore, it is fertilized twice a year. Fertilization is done in spring. The first fertilization takes place before the onions sprout. It is best to choose a sunny day without ground frost. The second time is fertilized during budding.

notice: A third fertilization in summer, in August at the latest, should prolong flowering.

Fertilize lilies: the right fertilizer

When fertilizing, you have the choice between a mineral or an organic fertilizer. Although both have their advantages, the fast and concentrated availability of nutrients with mineral fertilizers is more harmful, especially for undemanding bulbous plants. The organic variant, on the other hand, scores with a slow release of nutrients over time and a long-term promotion of soil life.

If you rely on an organic-mineral flower fertilizer with organic certification, you can take advantage of both fertilizer variants. Through the combination, an optimal fertilizing effect can be achieved: A quick effect with simultaneous Floor care, prevention of leaching and over-fertilization, a natural long-term effect and protection of the Resources. The special thing about organic-mineral organic fertilizers is that they only use mineral components that are also permitted in organic farming and can even contain living microorganisms. Also with ours Plantura organic flower fertilizer with a long-term effect it is such a bio-fertilizer. In this way you can optimally supply your lilies with nutrients and at the same time protect the environment and promote soil life.

As an alternative to an organic-mineral organic fertilizer, you can also fertilize with mature manure, horn shavings and compost. However, never use fresh manure as lilies are sensitive to it.

Summary of fertilizing lilies:

• When? In the spring
• How often? 1x before sprouting, 1x at sprouting
• By which? Mineral-organic organic fertilizer, mature manure, horn shavings or compost

Caring for lilies in pots

Care in the pot does not differ much from care in the bed. After all, they are still plants of the same species with the same requirements. However, an environment that meets the requirements of the lily can be created differently in a pot than in a bed. Watering is the same as for lilies that have been planted out. The watering can is therefore used as soon as the upper layer of soil has dried out. It should also be noted that the pot you choose has a drainage hole. The risk of waterlogging is otherwise even greater than in the bed. You can also use an organic fertilizer like ours for lilies in pots Plantura organic flower fertilizer set. In general, pot cultures are fertilized more often than lilies in beds, as they only have a limited storage volume and are therefore depleted more quickly.

Caring for lilies as houseplants

Potted lilies can also thrive indoors in a beautifully sunny spot without direct sunlight, enchanting the room with their lovely scent. As a houseplant, however, lilies cost the human need for care a little more than in the wild in the garden. To ensure that your lily is still an impressive houseplant, there are a few things to keep in mind when caring for it:

• Temperatures: 15 – 20°C
• Watering: Always keep the substrate moist, no waterlogging
• Fertilization: vegetation phase: every 2 - 3 weeks with low-nitrogen complete fertilizer in the irrigation water; for bud formation once with flowering fertilizer in the irrigation water
• Pruning: trimming of faded inflorescences, pruning in autumn
• Hibernation: Cool, dark place at approx. 10°C

Too warm temperatures and dried out soil quickly lead to the shedding of flowers. Which is why it is considered difficult to care for lilies as a houseplant in the long term. Cut back in autumn when the above-ground parts of the plant have withered. It is cut back with a clean and sharp knife to a hand's breadth above the ground. It is particularly important that the rest period in winter is observed. How to overwinter in the pot is explained in more detail in the section "Overwintering and caring for lilies in winter".

notice: Lilies are known for incredible amounts of pollen, which load in waves of yellow on furniture and in the noses of allergy sufferers. Double varieties such as 'Miss Lucy', 'Blushing Girl' or 'Annemarie's Dream' offer a wonderful alternative. Further Lily Varieties you'll find here.

Caring for lilies: Cut faded flowers

If you do not intend to propagate your lilies from seed, faded flowers are cut off. Cleaning prevents seed formation. Otherwise, this costs the plant a lot of energy, which you could also store for next year. In the case of potted and bedding plants, the remaining parts of the plant lying above ground are only cut off after they have wilted. So that the nutrients it contains can migrate into the onion during wilting. That means even more energy for the coming flowering season.

Hibernate lilies and care for them in winter

How lilies planted in the garden are overwintered depends on whether your lily is hardy or not. With hardy varieties, the bulbs can remain in the bed over the winter. After the first frost, you only have to cut off the withered leaves a hand's breadth above the ground. Then a protective layer of brushwood, straw or twigs is spread over the bed. The bulbs of non-hardy varieties need to be dug up before the first frost and stored indoors over the winter. Potted lilies, whether houseplants or balcony greenery, should also be kept in a cool, dark and frost-free place over the winter.

You can find out more about preparing hardy and non-hardy lilies for winter and care afterwards in our article on the subject Lilies overwinter.