| I planted a dozen lilies in my yard about 3 weeks ago.They get at least 6 hours of sun daily and I water them once a week. All of the flowers have fallen off and the leaves on 4 of the plants are turning brown. What should I do? |
| I think your Asiatic lilies are behaving normally. Lilies provide an easy to grow, and by choosing a combination of early, mid-season, and late-blooming cultivars, you can have lilies in flower from mid May through mid September. These hardy bulbs require only minimal care and each has the capacity to grow, eventually, into an large cluster of flowering stems. It sounds as though you have the early blooming cultivars. When the flowers are spent, pull or cut them off the plants. Allow the foliage and stems to ripen on their own (they are producing energy for the bulbs to store). When the top of the plant turns brown, cut it off at ground level. To have lilies blooming in your garden all summer long, consider planting the following as companions to your early blooming cultivars: Enchantment (orange) blooms in June; Connecticut King (yellow) flowers in June; Corsica (pink) blooms June/July; Crete (deep pink) blooms June/July, Dawn Star (cream) blooms in July; Black Beauty (dark red), blooms July/August; Journey's End ( deep pink) blooms in August; Stargazer (crimson-red) blooms in August; Yellow Ribbons (white/yellow) in August, and Casa Blanca (white) blooms August/September. Enjoy! |
