How to Grow Lilies Year-Round

As with most plants, lilies generally produce their vibrant flowers in the spring and summer, only to fade and fall into dormancy as the fall and winter wear on. It’s hard not to experience some disappointment at seeing these flowers fade, but you can help their vibrancy live on into the winter months by planting some lilies indoors. As long as you take proper care of the lilies in their containers indoors, you can sprout them at any time of the year.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You’ll Need:

• Clay planting pot
• Gravel
• Compost
• Fertilizer granules
• Water

1. Fill the bottom 2 inches of an 8-inch-diameter clay planting pot with gravel or other small stones to facilitate drainage. An 8-inch pot will hold one large lily plant or four to five smaller flowers. You must allow 2 inches between each plant.

2. Fill the remainder of the clay pot with potting compost, which is available from many nurseries and garden centers. Mix in granules of slow-release flower fertilizer when adding the compost. Follow the instructions on your fertilizer product, as rates vary by product and by the number of plants you intend to grow.

3. Insert the lily bulbs in the soil with their roots facing downward. Cover the bulbs in ½ to 1 inch of compost over the top.

4. Water the compost so that the soil is moist but not puddling. Water the lily any time the top 1-½ to 2 inches of soil dries out to keep the lily moist but not soaked.

5. Store the lilies in an area of your home with temperatures that are approximately 65 degrees Fahrenheit, and where they can receive six to eight hours of sunlight each day.

6. Repeat the potting process with new lilies six to eight weeks after the first. This will ensure that the new lilies bloom as the old ones are fading, giving you a year-round supply of lilies.

Tips & Warnings

• Lilies need to rest for 10 to 12 weeks after fading in order to be ready to bloom again. Store old lilies in their pots at a temperature around 30 degrees Fahrenheit to simulate the winter the flowers are used to. You can then reuse these lilies to continue your year-round planting.