Lilies: How to Make the lily flower last longer (2024)

FAQs

Lilies: How to Make the lily flower last longer? ›

For the longest vase life place your cut lilies in a cool area away from direct sunlight. Change the water in the vase every two to three days and recut the stems at an angle to promote continued water absorption. Additionally, remove any wilted or spent flowers to maintain the arrangements appearance.

For dependable blooms, lilies should get 6 to 8 hours of direct sunlight daily (aka “full sun”). If it's too shady, the stems will attempt to lean toward the sun or get spindly and fall over. Also, a well-drained site is critical. Water trapped beneath the scales may rot the bulb.

Lilies have a vase life of around 10-14 days. Prepare your lilies by diagonally trimming the stems by roughly an inch. Remove any leaves that will fall below the water line. This will reduce the build up of bacteria in the water and keep your lily flowers fresher for longer.

You often hear that removing the anthers (or entire stamens) from lily flowers will make them last longer, but is it true? I'm afraid not.

As lilies are sensitive to sugar, it is best not to add any in order to avoid fungus and bacteria growth. If you can, remove the stamens from the lilies before arranging them, as they can cause the petals to brown.

Peace lilies can benefit from coffee grounds as they are a rich source of nutrients for the plant. Additionally, they prefer acidic soil, and coffee grounds add acidity to the soil. To get the maximum benefits from the grounds, use them as compost or liquid fertilizer.

Daylilies are strong performers in the garden.

If you deadhead them (cut off the old flower stalks at the base) you will get even more blossoms than if you leave the stalks up to form seed pods which over the summer will ripen and burst in the fall. While it isn't necessary, doing it will get you better performance.

As with most bulbs, lilies only bloom once per year. They need a cool winter dormancy period of at least 8 weeks in order to reinitiate the flowering cycle. Each plant blooms 2 - 3 weeks out of the year. By selecting varieties with staggered bloom season, it is possible to cover the entire summer (June - August).

Should I cut off dead lily flowers? ›

“Once all the flowers have dropped their flower petals, it is a good idea to deadhead the stem, by cutting of the flower spike at the base, just above the stem leaves. Keep in mind that the leaves are the most important plant component to allow the lily to come back next year and flower even more than the year before.

After your lilies have flowered, you need to….

Do not be tempted to cut the stem back until stems become hollow and brown. This will then feed the bulb for next year's flowering. Leave the bulbs in the ground or in your pots as they like a cold dormant phase throughout the winter (they can tolerate -20c).

Lilies are heavy feeders. As they come into flower, feed them with a high-potassium liquid fertiliser – such as tomato feed – every two weeks. Continue feeding lilies after they have finished flowering to help the bulbs grow and ensure a good display the following year.

For the longest vase life place your cut lilies in a cool area away from direct sunlight. Change the water in the vase every two to three days and recut the stems at an angle to promote continued water absorption. Additionally, remove any wilted or spent flowers to maintain the arrangements appearance.

Deadheading lilies will encourage more flowers to form and prolong their display. It will also divert energy away from seed production, which can reduce flowering performance in subsequent years. If you're growing martagon lilies, don't deadhead these as these will gradually self-seed.

Give Lilies Room to Shine

For healthy growth and good flower production, make sure the plants have enough room around them so sunlight can reach their stems and leaves.

All you have to do is hang the flowers upside down in a warm, dark, dry spot. Before you start, remove the bottom leaves and tie the flowers loosely in a bunch. Then hang the flowers up and wait, sometimes for up to two months, until the flowers are well and truly dry.

Get Lilies To Produce More Blooms

First, make sure the plant is getting enough sunlight. Lilies need at least 6 hours of sunlight per day to thrive, so be sure to place them in a location that gets plenty of light. Prevent overcrowding by dividing mature lily beds every 2-3 years to ensure enough space for each bulb.

Give them evenly moist, well-drained soil and temperatures of at least 55 degrees. If peace lilies wilt every two to three days, repot them in larger containers, which don't need watering as often. Fertilize plants growing in bright light about every six weeks with a liquid 20-20-20 product.