I left my oriental lilies in their pots over winter and now, dozens of small red bulblets have started to shoot. What should I do with them. I've grown lilies in pots for a number of years but never seen anything like this before.
I repotted mine last year and put all the babies into a pot of there own. I don't know if they'll come on to flower at any point, but they're showing through, so fingers crossed.
I'd pot up the bulblets separately in some gritty compost for a year or two to let them mature, they will be perfectly happy with a feed and take up little space. Keep frost free over the next few years and then replant wherever you want them. Free bulbs.
Agree with Dave. It'll take 3-5 years before they are of flowering size, but at that price it's worth the wait.
If anyone wants to propagate lilies, break a few of the outer scales off of large bulbs and place them in a plastic bag with some damp compost. Put them somewhere warm and dark for a few weeks and little bulbils will form. Pot those up, apply tlc and away you go. A few scales usually fall off anyway when re-potting them.
A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
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I repotted mine last year and put all the babies into a pot of there own. I don't know if they'll come on to flower at any point, but they're showing through, so fingers crossed.
They will flower eventually but may take a year or 2. Depends if you want more of the same or not..........
I'm planning to shift the main bulbs from the pots into the borders. Can I just put the little uns in as well or should they be potted up?
I'd pot up the bulblets separately in some gritty compost for a year or two to let them mature, they will be perfectly happy with a feed and take up little space. Keep frost free over the next few years and then replant wherever you want them. Free bulbs.
Agree with Dave. It'll take 3-5 years before they are of flowering size, but at that price it's worth the wait.
If anyone wants to propagate lilies, break a few of the outer scales off of large bulbs and place them in a plastic bag with some damp compost. Put them somewhere warm and dark for a few weeks and little bulbils will form. Pot those up, apply tlc and away you go.
A few scales usually fall off anyway when re-potting them.
Thanks Mike. Very informative.