Lily - planting and care in the open field

2024 Author: James Gerald | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 14:00

Lily is a beautiful flower, which in Christianity is considered a symbol of the Mother of God, and in ancient Rome it was used as a medicinal plant for abrasions, burns and wounds. Consider the features of planting lilies and care in the open field.

Description

Lily is a representative of perennial herbs that grow from the bulb. The latter can have the shape of a ball or ovoid, they can be of different diameters - from 1 to 30 cm. The bottom is covered with scales, and here is the point from which the roots sprout.

The lily has a stem, the height of which can be 15 cm, and even 2.5 m, it all depends on the variety. The leaves are different in the flower, in some species they are curled up in a spiral right in the stem, in others they form a basal rosette.

Inflorescences can be of the most unusual shape, for example, in the form of umbrellas, cones or cylinders. In each inflorescence, from 8 to 16 flowers are formed, but there are species with 30 flowers, which do not bloom immediately, but alternately, starting from the bottom row to the very top. Lily blooms from 3 to 9 days.

The shapes of flowers can be very diverse, as well as their size. So, in funnel-shaped, the smallest are 4 cm, and the largest are 25 cm in flat ones.

The color of the petals can be enumerated for a long time - in nature, perhaps, there are only blue lilies. At the same time, there are not only monochromatic, but also lilies of two colors at once, as well as with overflows, various mosaics, borders and spots.

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Features of growing lilies in the open field

This flower is a perennial, that is, over the years it will grow in the same place. Planting and caring for a lily outdoors always starts with choosing a place and soil.

Lily is a demanding flower, so the right choice of soil, as well as the place for planting, are important points. So, the flower loves the sun, but does not tolerate drafts and strong winds.

The soil should be fertile and loose. And the acid-base balance is also very important, different varieties of lilies have their own requirements for it. For example, tubular hybrids like alkaline soil, while American ones, on the contrary, love acidic soil. For other varieties and species, neutral is suitable.

Before planting, in about 2-3 weeks, the soil must be dug up together with ash, with the addition of mineral fertilizers, peat and humus. Then the site needs to be leveled, watered abundantly and tamped. Oriental lily species love acidic soil, so ash is not needed.

For planting, it is very important to choose high-quality planting material. Before buying, be sure to ask what species the flower belongs to, because care also depends on this.

The bulbs should be healthy, fleshy, with an intact bottom, without dried scales. And, what is also very important - with a root length of at least 5 cm.

Before planting, carefully examine the bulb. If there are scales with specks of brown color, wilted roots, dried and rotten places, then we must remove everything. And before sending the planting material into open ground, soak it for 30 minutes in 0.2% Fundazol solution.

Planting lilies in spring and autumn

A very interesting question: when is the best time to plant lilies - in spring or autumn. And here there is no exact answer, it all depends on the variety. Lilies can be planted in autumn, spring and even summer. But there are species that, for example, are strictly forbidden to plant in spring.

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Feature and rules for planting lilies in spring

If you plant lilies in the spring, then you can protect the bulbs from freezing and getting wet. Also, during this period, the root system develops better, and the bulbs take root faster, which is good for later varieties.

As soon as the snow melts, experienced flower growers recommend planting oriental, tubular and Asian lilies. When the air temperature warms up to 10 degrees, you can plant terry varieties and a little later, but in March - all varieties of lilies that bloom in autumn, including tiger and Tibetan.

The second half of April is suitable for planting other varieties, but they need to be protected from possible night frosts. Varieties such as Shovitsa, Hanson, Llilia, one-brother, Candidum, Kudrevataya, and Canadian varieties are not suitable for spring planting.

The process of planting lilies in spring is simple. We dig a hole, the depth of which depends on the size of the bulbs. For low-growing varieties - from 8 cm for small and 12 cm for large ones, medium-sized ones - 10 cm and 15 cm, tall ones - 12 cm and 20 cm, respectively. Be sure to keep the distance between the holes - 20 cm, for tall varieties - 30 cm.

Pour coarse sand into each prepared hole, put the onion, straighten the roots, cover first with sand, and then with loose soil. For quick rooting of the bulb, water well.

Please note that beds with Asiatic, Oriental lilies and la-hybrids need to be mulched with sawdust or peat. The layer of mulch should be at least 5 cm. The deeper the bulb is planted, the later the lily will bloom, but it will also give more children.

Features and rules for planting lilies in the fall

Some experienced flower growers believe that it is better to plant lilies in the fall. So the root system, before the onset of cold weather, will have time to develop normally, get stronger and in spring the flowers will be able to better tolerate sudden changes in temperature.

The best autumn month for planting lilies is September. But there is one catch: it is difficult to find planting material in the fall. But if lilies are already growing on the site, then this is the best time for seating and transplanting.

To plant new flowers, carefully dig up the lily, shake the soil off the bulb and rinse it. Now, carefully with a sharp knife, separate the babies from the mother's bulb, soak them in a light solution of potassium permanganate for 20 minutes and dry them in a dark place. We plant in a mulched garden bed.

If there is no time to plant lilies in the fall, then you can do this after flowering, but only after 1-1.5 months, since the flower bulbs are still quite loose.

Features of caring for lilies

Care, like planting lilies in the open field, is not so difficult, the main thing is timely watering and feeding. Throughout the entire growth and development, lilies need moisture, especially in no case should we forget about watering in the first half of summer. But you don't need to fill in the flowers either, lilies are very sensitive to waterlogging.

In the hot summer, water the lilies in the morning and evening. We bring water under the root, slightly loosening the soil in the root system, if there is no layer of mulch. After flowering and until late autumn, we reduce the amount of water, but we do not stop watering itself.

Caring for lilies is also feeding. The first is carried out in early spring, while the shoots have not yet broken through the ground. At this stage, we use complex fertilizers.

We carry out the same feeding during the period of bud formation. After flowering, we feed the lilies with potassium-phosphorus fertilizers to restore the bulbs.

If the lily on your site is only the first year, then it is better to remove the unopened buds. So the plant will get stronger and next year it will delight with abundant beautiful flowering.

Lilies also love the sun, but only the flower itself, but the root likes the shadow more. Therefore, experienced flower growers advise planting some undersized plants between the lilies that will create shade, prevent the soil from overheating, which means that the root system will feel comfortable.

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Pests and diseases

When studying the rules for planting and caring for lilies in the open field, it is also important to know what pests and diseases may lie in wait for them. For lilies, the most dangerous pest is the lily beetle, its larvae simply glue the buds and leaves together.

This pest is easy to spot, bright and can be easily picked up by hand. But if he goes unnoticed, he will quickly give birth, and the flowers will have to be treated with chemicals, which will negatively affect their attractiveness.

There are also pests that are dangerous for the bulb - the larva of the May beetle, bear and thrips. It is difficult to deal with them, flower growers most often use drugs such as Grizzly, Thunder-2, Thunder, Mukhoed to destroy them.

If we talk about diseases, then onion and bacterial rot are considered the most dangerous. Appear due to waterlogging of the soil. The flower begins to turn yellow, wither, and, unfortunately, it cannot be cured, it will have to be dug up and destroyed.

Sometimes, brown spots may appear on flowers grown in regions where autumn is wet and cool. With this disease, the stem suffers, not the bulb, therefore, a flower can be saved from such a disease with the help of antifungal solutions, for example, by treating the plant with Bordeaux liquid.

Preventive measures are also important, which consists in the fact that every three years lilies need to be planted, the soil should be mulched, and in the fall all wilted buds, stems and leaves should be burned.

If you follow all the rules for planting and caring for lilies in the open field, and also do not forget about prevention, then healthy and stunningly beautiful plants will grow in your garden.

Summarize

1. Depending on the variety, lilies can be planted in fall, spring and summer.
2. The flowers of the plant love the sun, and the root loves the shade.
3. Regular watering and feeding are the main elements of care.
4. The most dangerous thing for lilies is different types of rot that do not respond to treatment.