Our Lilies

One of our striking, deep orange lily plants about to break out -



Here's a top view of the same plant that has breaked out (good English yes) with many, many more breakout blooms to go -



Asiatic, Easter & Oriental Lily Fun Facts:

• Many plants that have “lily” as part of their common name (such as daylily or peace lily) are not “true” lilies. True lilies belong to the genus Lilium. Lilies are bulbs made of fleshy, overlapping scales with no protective covering. Daylilies have long, slender fibrous roots with tubers attached to the roots which store food for the plant.
  
• Asiatic and Oriental lilies grow best in full sunlight. They'll grow taller, more spindly, and floppier in reduced light.
  
• Deadhead flowers as they fade, by breaking them off carefully. That way, none of the plant's energy is “wasted” on seed production. Do not remove stems or foliage, though. They'll continue to put energy into the bulb as long as they remain green. Remove old foliage in late fall or early spring by cutting down the dead stalks.
  
• The bright-red lily leaf beetle, Lilioceris lilii is a bad dude to all Lilium plants, as they only eat true lilies. In fact, if they’re not controlled, they’ll defoliate and kill them, see picture below -

Bright-red lily leaf beetle - adult. I check our lilies every day looking for these beetles, which are very easy to spot due to their bright red color. If and when I find any, which I did in the early spring as the plants were coming up, I simply pinch their head off! Painless, for me anyway, and not too messy.

If you don't put the time in to check for these pests when adults they'll multiply and you'll end up with the following. Now in this stage they are messy and not as easy to destroy, plus you'll get poo poo on your hands, YUK!



Slug-like larva carrying its frass (entymologist-speak for poop) on its back, an unpleasant habit developed to protect itself from predators.



Slug-like larva without the frass. Mmm, mmm good if you're a chicken - they gobble them up :-)

Note: My dad failed to check the lilies in his yard, which suffered immensely as a result and now look very much like a Charlie Brown Christmas tree...