Detailed Lily Growing Tips: Learn How to Grow Lilies with Ease

Lilies are plants of the genus Lilium in the family Liliaceae. They are excellent both as medicine and food, with the bulb used for eating or medicinal purposes. They have the functions of nourishing yin and moistening the lungs, and calming the heart and soothing the mind. Lilies prefer warm, humid environments and grow poorly in high-temperature regions. They like dryness and fear waterlogging.

If soil moisture is too high, it causes the bulbs to rot and die. They are not demanding about soil, but in deep, fertile, loose sandy loam, the bulbs are pure white in color and thicker in flesh. They grow well in plots with partial shade and partial sun and slightly acidic soil.

Heavy clay soil is not suitable for cultivation. The root system is thick and well developed, and the plants are tolerant of fertilizer. After emerging in spring, they require sufficient nitrogen nutrition and adequate phosphorus and potassium fertilizer, N:P:K = 1:0.8:1, and the fertilizer should be mainly organic fertilizer. Avoid continuous cropping; rotate once every 3-4 years, with legumes and grasses as the preferable previous crops.

1. Site selection and land preparation:

Choose sandy loam with fertile soil, high and open terrain, good drainage and loose texture for cultivation. While preparing the land, apply 2000 kg of organic fertilizer per mu plus 40-50 kg of Yangfeng compound fertilizer as base fertilizer. Apply 50-60 kg of lime per mu (or 0.6 kg of 50% diazinon) to disinfect the soil. Then work the soil fine and rake it level to make beds 1.3 m wide or flat beds, with furrow width of 30 cm, and open relatively deep drainage ditches around the perimeter for good drainage.

2. Lily planting methods:

Lilies are mainly propagated by bulblets. Select small bulbs with tightly clasped scales, white color, regular shape, no damage and no pests or diseases as seed stock.

Soak the lily seed bulbs in a solution of 70% thiophanate-methyl, or carbendazim, or agricultural streptomycin for 15-30 minutes to disinfect them, then dry them and plant. The best time is late September to October. On the prepared bed surface, open horizontal furrows at a row spacing of 25 cm, with a furrow depth of 12 cm, then place one small bulb every 15 cm (plant spacing), with the tip pointing upward, cover with fine soil and press firmly, then cover with soil; where conditions permit, add a layer of fallen leaves or rice straw to prevent freezing and preserve moisture, gently press the leaves and straw down, and remove them when sprouting begins. Plant 10,000-15,000 plants per mu, with a seeding rate of 150-200/kg per mu.

3. Lily field management:

(1) Early-stage management. In winter, choose sunny days for intertillage, sun the surface soil, and preserve soil moisture and warmth. Before emergence in spring, loosen the soil and hoe weeds to raise soil temperature and promote early sprouting; cover with straw to preserve moisture. In summer, prevent rot caused by high temperatures; when it turns cool, keep warm again, prevent frost damage, and apply a seedling-promoting fertilizer to promote lily growth.

(2) Mid- and late-stage management. First, clean ditches for drainage. Second, top the plants at the right time. The optimal timing is: when the flower buds turn from upright to drooping, and the color changes from fully green to peach-red on the sun-facing side. The time is June. Third, control nitrogen fertilizer application after topping. This promotes rapid swelling of the young bulbs. Around the Summer Solstice, remove bulbils and clean the furrows and beds in time to reduce field temperature and humidity.

(3) Topdressing. The first application is a steady application of winter fertilizer; in January, before the lily shoots emerge, apply about 5-10 kg of urea per mu along with intertillage to promote new root growth. The second is a heavy application of seedling-strengthening fertilizer; in early April, when lily shoots are 10-20 cm tall, apply 10-15 kg of Yangfeng compound fertilizer plus 5-10 kg of urea per mu to strengthen the seedlings. The third is an appropriate application of bulb-swelling fertilizer; in early to mid-June, after flowering and topping, apply 30-40 kg of Yangfeng 48% urea-based compound fertilizer per mu to promote bulb swelling. At the same time, spray 0.2% potassium dihydrogen phosphate on the leaves. This topdressing must be completed 40-50 days before harvest.

4. Lily pest and disease control

(1) Lily phytophthora blight:

Phytophthora blight is one of the common diseases of lilies, occurring severely in rainy years, causing stem and leaf rot and seriously affecting bulb yield. The pathogen can infect stems, leaves, flowers and scales. When the stem base is damaged, it becomes water-soaked and constricted, causing the whole plant to wilt and die rapidly. When leaves are affected, the lesions are water-soaked, light brown, and form irregular large spots. In severe cases, flowers, pedicels and scales can all be damaged, causing discoloration and rot of the affected parts.

Phytophthora blightControl methods:① Practice crop rotation; ② Choose plots with good drainage and loose soil for cultivation; ③ Disinfect seed bulbs; ④ Strengthen field management, pay attention to opening ditches for drainage; increase phosphorus and potassium fertilizer applications to make seedlings grow robustly; ⑤ Spray 1:2:200 Bordeaux mixture once before emergence, and after emergence spray 800-fold 50% carbendazim solution 2-3 times to protect the seedlings; after disease onset, promptly remove diseased plants and treat with 50% quicklime.

(2) Lily viral disease:

Affected plants of lily viral disease show yellowing leaves or yellow spots, yellow streaks, acute leaf drop, poor plant growth and stunting. Flower buds turn yellow and cannot open, and in severe cases the plants wilt and die.

Control methods for viral disease:① Breed disease-resistant varieties or propagate from disease-free bulbs; ② Strengthen field management, appropriately increase phosphorus and potassium fertilizer applications to make plants grow robustly and enhance disease resistance; ③ Remove severely affected plants and control aphids early to reduce reinfection by virus-carrying aphids.

(3) Lily leaf blight and soft rot:

Lily leaf blight and soft rot are the main diseases during the growing season and storage period, respectively.

Control methods for lily leaf blight and soft rot: Select robust, disease-free seed bulbs for propagation. Before sowing, soak the seeds in 500-600-fold 50% benomyl solution for 20-30 minutes, then dry and plant. During harvest and transport, avoid bruising the bulbs as much as possible, and during storage pay attention to ventilation and cooling.

(4) Common lily pests:

Common lily pests include aphids, scarab larvae and mites. Aphids gather on tender leaves and flower buds to suck sap, causing plants to stunt, grow poorly, and suffer in both flowering and fruiting.

Control methods for lily pests:

① Clean the field, remove field weeds, and reduce overwintering pest populations; ② During outbreaks, spray 2000-fold fenpropathrin solution, or 1500-fold 40% omethoate solution, or 1000-fold 50% malathion solution, or pirimicarb, or Dachenggong.

For scarab larvae, malathion or phoxim can be used. For mites, acaricides can be used.

IV. Harvest and processing

From late July to early August, when the aboveground parts of the plants wither and the bulbs are fully mature, harvest on a sunny day. After harvest, cut off the aboveground parts, fibrous roots and seed roots, and store in a ventilated place. Lilies kept for seed are best left in the ground, and when sowing in autumn, dig, select and sow at the same time. Alternatively, after harvest, dry them slightly and stratify them in dry sand for later use.