My lily plant has loads of buds but they're not opening andthe petals appear to be stuck together! It's in a pot and has been in the same place for a few years, with no trouble. The lily (normally!) has large, fragrant white flowers. What could be causing the problem? 😢

Would this possibly be oriental lily "Casa Blanca" ? I had one in a pot, also. after a couple of years it began to do poorly, stunted growth, smaller flowers, and some buds that didn't open. Lilies like their roots cool in the summer; I think it was too hot where I live. I planted them in the ground and they did a lot better. I also mulched where they were planted.

Thank you Gardenfish, that might be the problem. I will have to try replanting it in the ground, though I suspect it's not as hot here in Liverpool as you have it in Arkansas! :D

I have a similar problem - this year my first hybrid was supposed to bloom in a pot, but the petals in its bud are stuck together and the flower doesn't want to open. The bud has not been growing for more than a month. The bloom is just slightly opened at its base.


...click for a better view...

If any flower bud is actually stagnant (unchanging) for more than a couple weeks, you should be cutting the bud off. If a flower bud isn't growing, opening, changing color, or doing something, then it is because the plant doesn't have the energy to complete the flower growth. As long as the bud is attached, it will drain the plant of the energy it has at the expense of growing roots and a healthy bulb for next year. You will also want to try to determine why the lily plant is having such a problem, not being able to sustain itself and grow a flower. perhaps the bulb was planted too late in the spring?

Sometimes exceptional heat can cause lily flowers to abort or prevent it normal growth. jeantierney, I'm sorry that I am not all-knowing. Please forgive me for not having a clue of where in the world "Merceyside" is. If I told you that my location was St. Francis, would you know where that is?

I was so excited when my giant lilies budded up so well after years of doing nothing at all, now however they just stand there week after week unchanged.
Where have I gone wrong?

Hi Marilyn - ordinarily these lilies should flower every year, so the fact that in previous years they haven't bloomed is a clue. My guess is that this year the bulbs have built up just enough energy to produce blooms, but not enough energy to get them to bloom. Are they in a shaded spot? I think I see fuchsia to the left, maybe euphorbia behind and nasturtiums to the right? The bulbs may be being starved of light that is preventing them from building strength. From the shape of the buds I think they are oriental lilies, and some of these can flower late in the season depending upon their parentage (I have L. speciosum Uchida that are still a few weeks away from opening). Oriental lilies have what are called 'stem roots' - roots that form underground from the flower stalk above the actual bulb and which also help provide sustenance to the main bulb. Fuchsias are shallow rooting too, and I suspect that your lily bulbs are probably being starved of nutrients also. I'd recommend giving them more space by either clearing away some of the encroaching other plants or moving them to a new location in the fall once the stems have died back. If you have it, I would give them some bone meal or some other low nitrogen fertilizer now to help with building energy for next year. You will have read Rick's (@Leftwood) comments in the previous post recommending cutting off buds that don't open. I would given them a couple of weeks still before cutting off all the buds, but reducing the bud count will preserve energy in the bulb. You could consider removing all but two or three buds from each stem. This way you might have a chance to get a flower this year. But remember too that if the bulb is stressed this could be a last-gasp effort to produce flowers before dying. It's a tough choice, but I would recommend giving them more space and giving them some low nitrogen fertilizer to start with. Hope this helps...

Hi Leftwood, sorry for some reason I didn't see your reply last year!
All I can say in my defence is that you must be very young, anyone who grew up on the Beatles would know where Merseyside is 🤣

I only knew where Merseyside is because of the NALS seed exchange. A person out there orders a ton of seed.

Dave, saying I was from Merseyside was not up to me, it was the NGA!
Good luck with your lilies 😄

These petals arent opening. Are they diseased.

Paul - I take it from your concern that these buds should have opened at the same time as their companions on the other stems? The foliage looks healthy enough from the photo, so I think the damage to the buds is cultural and not a virus. Maybe some wet / cold weather when the buds were forming, or some kind of pest attack could have caused this? As has been mentioned earlier in this discussion, if the buds are 'stuck' and not opening, then it is best to cut them off so that the bulb doesn't waste energy trying to develop these damaged buds. Form the photo is seems that not all buds are equally damaged, so I would cut off the worst half or 2/3rds of the total number of most badly affected buds and then wait a few days to see if the least-worst buds start to open. If not, then cut them off too. The lily should reemerge again next year, when hopefully the problem will have resolved itself. Hope this helps...

Thank you really helpful