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Picture of Oriental Lily Star Gazer taken in my garden, summer of 2013
I love to grow Oriental Lilies, so thinking ahead I order more Oriental Lily bulbs for my garden from John Scheepers Inc. a few weeks ago. I have purchased bulbs from many different sources, including the big box stores but I have found that the quality and size of bulbs are better from John Scheepers.
I received my order of oriental lily bulbs on Friday, packaged by variety. This order included three variety, Star Gazer, Lizzy Dizzy and Muscadet. I’ve now decided that I am going to place another order later today.
Now thru spring is the best time to plant lily bulbs, that is if your ground is thawed enough to dig. I planned to order more bulbs so back in October I had prepared a new garden bed for these bulbs.
Oriental Lilies produce enormous beautiful flowers on tall stems in a variety of colors and are easy to grow in zone 5 to 8. These oddly, scaly, bearded bulbs will produce a fancy trumpet shaped flower that is extremely fragrant, their fragrance is fabulous. There are other varieties of lilies like the Easter lily, Tiger lily, Asiatic lily, etc. but the Oriental Lily is the only one that is fragrant.
Before planting your lilies, pick an area with filter sunshine, avoid an area that is windy and receives the hot afternoon sun. The most important factor when preparing your soil for Oriental Lilies is drainage. Lilies need drainage and cannot be sitting in stagnant water especially during winter. Clay soil is rich in nutrients but lilies will not grow well in clay soil. Oriental lilies prefer a rich, moist and well-drained soil. I improve my soil by adding organic peak, leaf mold and composted manure. I also add crushed oyster shells, like you would give your chickens to eat and work all of this into the planting area about a foot deep. After you have the planting area ready, plant bulbs 6 to 8 inch deep. I plant the same variety in groups of three or five for more of an impact when they bloom.
Blooming in my area starts in July and continues thru August, I have even had some blooms into September depending on our summer heat. Oriental lilies will often need a little extra support because they tend to get top-heavy when in bloom. Summer rainstorms and wind can also toss them around. Many variety can reach 5 to 5 feet tall.
As blooming begins, take care not to get their pollen stains on your cloths. See the picture above of the stamens full of pollen. When I cut my lilies for arrangements I always cut the flowers early in the morning when it is cool just as the flower buds are opening. This is also the best time to cut the stamens before the pollen matures.
If you have flowers you leave in the garden, be sure to gently remove the blossoms as they fade to encourage blooming and to keep plants from using all their energy producing seeds. In the fall, once the leaves and stems turn yellow; cut the plant back to the ground. Do not pull the stems as this will cause damage to the bulb.
I love Oriental lilies for their beautiful flowers and their fragrance is fabulous. They make great flower arrangements too! This summer I will be posting flower pictures from these bulbs. 🙂
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