BULBS > LILY > DEADHEADING

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LILY GUIDES

deadheading a lily plant

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There are thousands of types of lily , all impart an individual charm to the attractive central theme .

depend on your skills and ambition as a gardener you may go for the easy - to - rise varieties you ’ll find on the seed racks at your local garden eye , or you may give yourself a challenge and set about to grow something a little more finickity .

white lily flowers in focus

Perhaps the archetypal lily aesthetic: white trumpet-like flowers with vivid yellow

Whatever you go for , though , get it right and you ’ll be rewarded with a colourful and sometimes fragrant bloom .

When it comes to lily , one of the most rough-cut questions we get a line from fellow gardeners is “ what do you do with lily once they ’ve flowered ? ”

It ’s a sound inquiry – because while lilies wo n’t flower again once they ’ve flower , therearea couple of convert reasons to remove the heyday .

spent lily blooms

Or , as it ’s also known , todeadheadthem .

Why Deadhead Lilies?

“ Deadheading lilies will certainly activate the plant to direct its free energy to the prow and bulbs rather of the flower , ” says Lynn Slackman , from the North American Lily Society .

“ However , if you are a hybridiser , pollenation of the flower is of the essence to furthering your hybridising goals . ”

Before we skip over into showing you what to do with your lily once they ’ve finished blossom , we ’ll quickly introduce deadheading , in case you ’re not conversant .

seed pod of a lily on a granite surface

Put simply , deadheading is the process of removing flowers from cosmetic blossoming plants .

Using scissors , secateurs or similar to snip each spent bloom from the plant has several benefits :

What To Do When Your Lilies Are Done Flowering

This all takes us back to the title , and to the question of what you should do with your lily plants once they ’ve finished florescence and the bloom is commence to die off .

The brusque answer : remove each flush as it becomes spent .

“ I do n’t pass a slew of prison term deadheading in the garden but I will deadhead Lilies as they go over , ” says Master Horticulturist Colin Skelly .

deadheading a lily plant with secateurs

Deadheading a lily with secateurs

“ The flowers are so big   and I grow them in pots for prominent positions , so they ’d really detract from the hope effect if I did n’t . ”

You ’ll be able to separate when it ’s metre because the blossom will colour and droop .

( This is another benefit of deadheading : the vibrancy of your garden is maintain through the removal of dull , fading bloom of youth . )

different angle of lily deadheading with red secateurs

The effectiveness of deadheading as a direction to airt Energy Department to the bulb is reduced if you chop the leaves off .

How To Get The Best Bloom From Your Lilies

If you ’ve found your style to this article , perhaps you ’re keen to improve the overall quality and continuance of your lily flower .

There are plenty of path to do this , and whether you ’re take at the first or the end of their meter of interest , these gratuity will help you to enjoy a more vibrant growing season .

Firstly , we advocate planting your lily bulbs out in fall . While you could establish them out through March , you ’ll see better final result with early burial .

hands holding spent lily blooms and chopping them off with red secateurs

Exact conditions count on the diversity you ’re originate , but as a formula , lilies enjoy full sun or partial specter .

Soil should be rich and nutritious : John Innes ericaceous plant food with a small moderate - release chaser will do best , as these are hungry plant !

you may also feed lily while they ’re growing . Fortnightly feed are advocate .

another angle of lilies being deadheaded using secateurs

Your lily bloom will be strong if the plant is n’t allow for to dry out , peculiarly in hot condition .

Be argus-eyed with watering , taking care to strike the balance between not over - or under - watering .

Some lily smorgasbord are of sake to aphids and other pests : keep an eye out here as well and take step to remove any visitations as quickly as possible .

colourful lilies in bloom with pink and white flowers

slosh any lily beetles you see ( or bump off and relocate far forth , if you ’re feel disarmer ) .

These visitors will save no quarter make legal injury , sometimes irreparable , to your lily .

Take Good Care Of Those Lilies!

Hopefully , you now have a beneficial apprehension of what to do with your lilies when they ’ve finished flower .

The takeout : deadhead them , taking care not to polish off any leaves along with the flower .

Do this and your plant will direct its resources toward stack away energy in the bulb rather than create new seeds , leading to a stronger and healthier bloom next year .

blooming lilies in white and red

Take good care and you will be adequately rewarded!

As you get more conversant with lily you ’ll begin to get used to their speech rhythm and habits and , over time , you ’ll achieve consistently beautiful blooms .

The orbit of colours , flesh , and smells make this type of bloom deeply rewarding to any nurseryman uncoerced to invest the time and energy to get familiar .

So go , grow , and enjoy !

beautiful lilies in a cottage garden