Lillium coming up!

piegirl · November 10, 2007

After coming up quite early last spring, my entire lily patch - asiatics, orientals, etc. were completely wiped out by a long, zero temp cold snap. Now as winter is approaching, they are sprouting up - about an inch so. Tomorrow a thick layer of chopped leaves will be placed on top. Will they actually make it through the winter? They have been my pride and joy with everyone from blocks away coming to see the lillies. They must really have their internal clocks mixed up - our weather has been fair, nothing out of the ordinary. Anything I can do? Piegirl

**carolyn137** · November 10, 2007

Anything I can do? Piegirl

****

The best thing you can do is to NOT mulch them and hope for some hard freezes to kill that top growth.

The more top growth there is the less likely they'll make it OK over the winter.

bcday · November 10, 2007

I second what Carolyn said, what you need to do is keep them from making any more top growth than they have already. Putting mulch over them now will keep the soil warm and encourage more top growth, which is exactly what you don't want going into winter, when the tops will only freeze and be kllled off again.

Leave the mulch off until the soil freezes hard. After the soil is frozen at least as far down as the bulbs were planted, put enough mulch on to insulate the ground and make sure it will stay frozen even if you have a temporary warm spell. Hopefully that will keep the lilies from making any more top growth until the weather is reliably warm in spring.

piegirl · November 11, 2007

Thank you thank you Carolyn and BC - I hadn't thought that. I will set the bags of chopped leaves in the area and put it down in Dec or so. 72 degrees today. Piegirl

November 10, 2007	#1
piegirl Tomatovillian™ Honoree Join Date: May 2006 Location: Lincoln, NE Posts: 791	Lillium coming up! After coming up quite early last spring, my entire lily patch - asiatics, orientals, etc. were completely wiped out by a long, zero temp cold snap. Now as winter is approaching, they are sprouting up - about an inch so. Tomorrow a thick layer of chopped leaves will be placed on top. Will they actually make it through the winter? They have been my pride and joy with everyone from blocks away coming to see the lillies. They must really have their internal clocks mixed up - our weather has been fair, nothing out of the ordinary. Anything I can do? Piegirl

November 10, 2007	#2
carolyn137 Moderator Emeritus Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Upstate NY, zone 4b/5a Posts: 21,169	Anything I can do? Piegirl **** The best thing you can do is to NOT mulch them and hope for some hard freezes to kill that top growth. The more top growth there is the less likely they'll make it OK over the winter. __________________ Carolyn

November 10, 2007	#3
bcday Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: NY z5 Posts: 1,205	I second what Carolyn said, what you need to do is keep them from making any more top growth than they have already. Putting mulch over them now will keep the soil warm and encourage more top growth, which is exactly what you don't want going into winter, when the tops will only freeze and be kllled off again. Leave the mulch off until the soil freezes hard. After the soil is frozen at least as far down as the bulbs were planted, put enough mulch on to insulate the ground and make sure it will stay frozen even if you have a temporary warm spell. Hopefully that will keep the lilies from making any more top growth until the weather is reliably warm in spring.

November 11, 2007	#4
piegirl Tomatovillian™ Honoree Join Date: May 2006 Location: Lincoln, NE Posts: 791	Thank you thank you Carolyn and BC - I hadn't thought that. I will set the bags of chopped leaves in the area and put it down in Dec or so. 72 degrees today. Piegirl