Lily Question

[Sherri]

Hi,
Newbie visiting from the Hosta Forum! :0)

I have my first Lilies this year. I have to admit, I've never been a big Lily fan only because the foliage looks weedy to me until the flowers bloom, then who notices the foliage??

Anyway, I got some free with a mail order last year and wasn't sure what to do with them. I ended up putting them behind a bench (to hide the foliage ) and they were absolutely GORGEOUS this year. I even managed to stop the little red lily beetles in their tracks. (Chickens eat them like they're lil' red M&Ms)

Now most are finished blooming and I'm left with....you got it...ugly spikey weedy stems! I also need to move them because I finished the shrub border behind the bench and the lilies compete. So my questions:

Can I cut the stalks back now or do they need to feed the tuber (or bulb or whatever it is) and when is it ok to move them? I know not to do it now, but can it be done in the fall or should it wait til spring?

Thanks for any advice!

[Chris_W]

Hi Sherri,

They are easiest to move in the fall, just wait until the foliage has died back and then dig up the bulbs. You could trim the tops off now, but leave most of the stems up.

They can also be moved in the spring but I usually wait too long and then I end up damaging some of the new sprouts.

Hope that helps!

Chris

[Sherri]

Big help, Thanks Chris!

I did snip off the spikey tops, I just couldn't look at those nekkid pistils anymore!

I'll take them down a bit more so they're hiding behind the bench and move them is Sept.

Thanks a bunch!