This is how Lily addiction starts, you only try one, then you need more and then more, then your spouse cuts you off from the online lily stores, then you go thru withdrawls because it will be another week until the next one blooms. Arghhhhhh now I don't have any more room, tear down the garage I need more acreage!!! But honey, they were on sale...

Had a red center orange tip noid asiatic open this morning, made my day

Good Luck Nu2

Hi Nu2

Looks like no one wants to answer this, probably because of my smart alec response. Your lily is going thru it's normal life cycle, you just didn't get to enjoy the ground breaking, watching it grow then bloom. Wait until all leaves have turned brown, gently remove the bulbs with as much as the root system as possible, plant them 6 to 8 inches deep and enjoy them next year.

When I was looking at my lily patches last night(over 300 now) I had more thoughts on my previous post. Yes they are like a drug, first the small time dealer gets you hooked (Lowe's, Home Depot) with the easy access. Then the need for a stronger more potent high moves you on to the mail order dealers (Michigan, Brecks)even enticing you with dreams of freebies, still not getting satisfied, the quest for the ultimate buzz leads you to the "growers" to get the uncut, pure, high end stuff(buggycrazy,Brent&Becky's)just to satisfy your cravings. This is my 8th year of addiction, I am a junkie

High in Utah
Kenny

Lilies are intoxicating... one will never be enough. And there are lots of different lilies out there with different blooming times so the season can be extended. But, if you're new to lilies, what you experienced is exactly what lilies do - when all the buds on the candelabra open and bloom out, they've finished flowering for the season. There's no reblooming. The foliage gradually yellows and browns out over the season and in the Fall you just cut it down. I usually leave an inch or two of stem so I know where to look for them in the Spring as they can shift a little bit with the bulb revitalizing itself or producing new bulbs and pulling itself down to a level in the soil where it wants to be.

Don't know what zone you're in - and if the lily you have is in a pot, you might want to take it out of the pot and plant it exactly as it is in the ground (tip of the bulb - right beneath where the stem starts, 6" under the surface of the soil) to give it the best shot of returning for you next season.

I don't know what zone you are in.
If the gound freezes there then you are better off than in a warm climate with Lilies. Take the bulb and babies and plant in the garden. Yeah outside in the dirt. LOL. Set at 4" deep. Let mother nature do the rest. You will see nothing until next spring. Lilies bloom once per year but propagate themselves very readily. They will look much nicer if you don't plant them too far apart. A group of 10 looks way better than 2 here and 1 there and 3 way over there etc. The new bulbs will bloom with less flowers the first year. each bulb will multiply itself by growing anywhere from 2 new babies to 22.
If you are somewhere the ground does NOT freeze you have a problem. Lilies WILL NOT....NOT...grow a second time unless they are frozen for 8 weeks. You can do this in your kitchen freezer unless you are the husband then you have to use the frig in the garage. After 8 weeks in the freezer plant them back in the ground...or pot. There is a lot more to know but thats the easy way. Lilies are the most forgiving plant. They can be abused a lot and still come back every year. Warm, cold, wet dry they just grow and bloom. the only disadvantage is most of the bloms are short lived of 2 weeks at the longest. Never cut down the foliage before it turns brown. I said brown not yellow. It is storing food for the bulb for next year.
LILY ADDICTION???? I resent that. Just because I bought 2 20 years ago and now have 1000 in my yard? That makes me addicted? Just because my wife checks the gardenm weekly to see if I bought more? My wife called H.D. and Lowes not to seel me any more. Then she sent a thing to the post office to return any flower catalogs. So that makes me addicted to them? NOT FAIR. Hey I told my wife, "well hun I could be spending the money at a bar. This way you get nice fresh flowers for the table every day. But you preattier than the flowers anyway. She didn't fall for that one. So I spent $75 more on Lilies so what woman. She stopped the catalogs....ahh but there is the internet.... HEEE HEEE HEEE evil laugh.
nu2flowers...buy more you'll be happy.
note to Kenny.... got you beat at 20 years and 1000 in the ground.
note to all....the biggest and best quality Lily bulb are at...DUTCH GARDENS catalog. You absolutely MUST have "NIPPON". Can't find anywhere except "Dutch Gardens". Their price matches the size and quality but worth it.

Lilium_guy56, do you have any references which support your claim about freezing lily bulbs? Are you aware that commercial growers freeze their bulbs at 28 degrees F, NOT 0 degrees F, which is what a home freezer is set to? Are you aware that many lily species grow in the coastal regions of Oregon, California, Japan and the Philippines, where it NEVER freezes? Are you aware that some lily species are native to the Himalayas, where it never gets below 50 degrees F ?

You may have access to information that I do not have. I am always ready to learn new things. I would appreciate it if you would share some references with us. In the meantime, I strongly encourage everyone to refrain from freezing ANY flower bulb.

Here is a link that might be useful: do not freeze flower bulbs!

I too question the advice to freeze any bulb. Freezing a lily bulb will have exactly the same affect as freezing an onion - it turns to mush! Lilies will flower and perennialize perfectly well without any significant cold treatment. In fact, unlike many other bulbs, they never go fully dormant, which is one of the reasons they do not store well out of the ground.

duluthinbloom's instructions for planting out are great and you can do so at any time. Like most bulbs, they prefer an organically rich, well-draining soil.

liliumguy56: Just love your humor! I've become addicted in the last several years, but haven't reached your champion number yet! Besides there are worst things tospend money on (clothes, gasoline etc) At least we're leaving a lasting memorial (good or bad!!!) Love this site I found a few days ago, now I'm addicted to lily postings!Its going to be 100 degrees today (MD) so I may as well stay cool and add to my lily knowledge. We had a terrible winter for lilies (warm Jan) so I am already looking forward to NEXT year. Thanks for some info on different catalogs--will now look for the Cadilacs.
Questions: know I should fertilize, but with what and when? i.e. dig in a small amount of bone meal? when?

The only answer is buy more!

I loved this bit: " You can do this in your kitchen freezer unless you are the husband then you have to use the frig in the garage."

anyway, this post was very helpful. I have a depressingly yellow potted lily (my favourite plant - lily addiction starting) which I thought was slowly dying a horrible plant death (lily-guilt! nnoooo!)

so, I should take my tortured lily as is out of its pot and plop it in the front garden approx 4-6" down to give it it's best chance of survival?
(and exactly what kind of cold climate are we talking about here, cause I'm in south/central BC and we are likely to have about 2-3 feet of snow all winter with bottom temps of about -30'C)

Yes, plant it. Asiatic hybrids like yours want full sun.

My friends in Vancouver grow them in pots on their deck with no winter protection. Should be just fine in the ground.

I agree, plant it. Asiatics are very hardy, so do not worry about cold temperatures.
One more thing: provide it with excellent dranaige! Add some bone meal to the hole. The exposure should be sun/part shade.
Good luck!

Definitely take it out of the pot and plant it 6" deep in your garden. If you keep in indoors trying to grow it as a houseplant you'll be quite disappointed in the results.

Try not to break the stalk when you plant it outside - let it turn all yellow then brown and woody, which means the browning out stalk is feeding the bulb for next season. Later in the fall cut the stalk down leaving a couple of inches above the ground so you can locate it in the spring.

A few feet of snow is the best insolation a garden can get. We frequently get temps here to -30 with wind chills far below that, and my lilies come through like troopers. But trust me, your lily will not survive as a houseplant.

I'll miss it in my office but if it needs to be outside to survive I will gladly make the sacrifice. ;) thanks for the feedback. :)