- Type: Lilac
- Flowering Period: May, June, July, August, September, October
- Height: 20-250cm
- Color: white, yellow, orange, red, spotted, two-pointed
- Perennial
- Winters
- Sun loving
- Loving
Asiatic, oriental, tubular, long-flowered beauties-lilies fell in love with gardeners for large accent inflorescences of bright color and unpretentious nature. There are several options for propagating and growing these beautiful plants, but we will consider in more detail how the lilies are planted in the spring in the ground. A few simple recommendations - and now your cottage is buried in a lush and fragrant red-red-white cloud.
What determines the choice of landing time?
There are several opinions regarding the timing of planting lilies in open ground. The traditional planting time is autumn, or rather, its first half. This is due to the natural cycle of plant development: after flowering, a dormant period (only a few weeks) begins, after which the growth of the bulb is activated, the roots hatch. As a result, at the very beginning of spring, along with the first rays of the spring sun, a flower-bearing bud appears.
However, sometimes, for various reasons, gardeners choose an early spring for planting. The reasons can be anything from a simple lack of time to taking into account the characteristics of a particular variety. Suppose oriental hybrids develop very well, and North American varieties simply cannot withstand harsher conditions.
Consider the advantages of the April landing in open ground:
- bulbs do not need to be buried in the soil and specially insulated, a refrigerator is suitable for storage;
- home "wintering" eliminates freezing and spoilage, guarantees complete safety;
- with good preparation of soil and bulbs, the plant manages to develop and bloom on time.
There are also disadvantages that are worth mentioning. For example, in some varieties, the root system does not have time to fully develop, and plants exist only due to the strength of the bulb. It is clear that you should not expect either the desired growth or beautiful inflorescences. Another unpleasant nuance is the absence of "spring" lilies of children, which are often used for reproduction. By the way, crops planted in autumn give about 10 healthy children.
If the summer is short and cold, experts recommend to refrain from spring planting - lilies will most likely bloom only next year. In this case, it is rational to plant them in October: //diz-cafe.com/ozelenenie/posadka-lukovichnyx-cvetov-osenyu. html
For more convenient care of the flower garden, it is better to place spring and autumn plantings in different places, since soil preparation, watering regime, top dressing will radically differ.
In late spring, at the end of May, as well as at the beginning of summer, lilies should not be planted - plants grow weak and unprepared, more susceptible to diseases. The most suitable period for landing in the middle lane is the end of April.
Spring planting lilies
If you missed the fall season or just decided to conduct an experiment, remember that spring planting works have some differences. Both the soil under the lilies and the plants themselves require additional processing.
Keep in mind: before planting lilies, you need to determine their place in the garden, take into account the nuances of the design of the site. How to do it right: //diz-cafe.com/rastenija/lilii-v-landshaftnom-dizajne.html
Selection and storage of planting material
Beautiful, tall lilies can be grown only from bulbs that do not have signs of disease - rot, mold, specks, scales, which differ in color or texture. The roots should be “live”, not dried, about 5 cm long. If the purchase takes place in the spring, it is better to purchase bulbs that have already given small sprouts.
Suppose you yourself have prepared planting material since the fall and want to maintain its best qualities until spring. Place the bulbs on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator and regularly check their condition. Perhaps some will grow and “shoot” ahead of schedule. Sprouts must be preserved, and bulbs can be planted in special containers or ordinary flower pots. As soon as the frost ends, “sleeping” and sprouted specimens are taken out into the open ground.
There are several effective preventive measures to protect planting material from fungus and pathogenic bacteria. Bulb disinfection is carried out with well-known solutions, for example:
- washed in clean water, and then for 25-30 minutes placed in a weak solution of manganese - 5-10 g of substance in a bucket of water;
- incubated in a solution of fungicide "Fundazole" (according to instructions);
- remove damaged scales, rinse thoroughly in 2-3 waters, place in a solution of karbofos (1 tablespoon of a substance is enough on a bucket of water) - if traces of infections are noticed on the bulbs.
The effect of protection will increase if, after planting, to warm the nests. The easiest way is to use plastic cans or bottles with a cut off upper half. Inverted containers play the role of mini-greenhouses for shoots.
If you need to transport bulbs or keep them “over exposed” for several days, place them in any convenient containers, covered with moist moss, loose soil, sand or sawdust.
A little advice for lovers of Asian hybrids propagating by stem bulbs (formed at the time of ripening in the axils of the leaves). For storage in the winter, they are placed in hermetically sealed plastic bags and put pots with peat, which are installed in a room or refrigerator with a temperature of 1-3ºС.
In the process of acquisition, do not forget to clarify the variety of lilies - the place, time and conditions of planting, as well as methods of cultivation depend on this.
Soil preparation and processing
If in general terms to characterize the properties of the soil, useful for growing lilies, then it should be loose, healthy, alkaline, moist.
To do this, before the spring planting, when the ground thawed and became relatively soft, we carry out preparatory measures:
- dig the top layer of soil (35-40 cm deep);
- arrange drainage for the outflow of excess water;
- if earlier other species of plants were grown at this place - add fresh soil or substrate;
- enrich the soil with humus or phosphorus-potash fertilizers;
- reduce acidity to pH 6.5 (a pound of chalk or 200 g of wood ash per 1 m³ of soil);
The splendor of flowering and the selection of plants for a flower garden depends on the acidity of the soil. Read more about this in the expert material: //diz-cafe.com/vopros-otvet/uxod-za-sadom/kislotnost-pochvy-na-cvetnike.html
- water the soil periodically to keep it moist.
A layer of gravel or river pebbles can be used as drainage. In order for the bulbs to grow healthy, large and strong, a little needles mixed with sand can be added to the soil. The main thing - no biological fertilizers, especially manure! On top we put a layer of peat, rotted sawdust or compost.
We select a sunny place and dig a shallow pit (up to 10 cm), although much depends on the choice of variety. With the exception of some species, bulbs are usually placed at a depth equal to its three diameters.
Some gardeners, in order to protect sprouts from sudden spring frosts, dig holes a little deeper, but adhere to the rule: the lighter the soil, the deeper the hole. Thus, low-growing crops are planted to a depth of 8 to 12 cm (depending on the size of the bulb), tall - from 12 to 20 cm. If the roots are strong enough, add another 5 cm.
The planting intervals, like the depth of the holes, depend on the variety. It is enough to leave 15-20 cm between stunted plants, tall and powerful should be separated from each other by an interval of 25-30 cm.
Make sure that the lily planting site is not flooded with spring water. If you want the inflorescences to be turned towards the house or path, try to plant them north of the objects.
Material about planting and growing freesia can also be useful: //diz-cafe.com/rastenija/freziya-posadka-i-vyrashhivanie-v-domashnix-usloviyax-i-otkrytom-grunte.html
Primary and subsequent feeding
Regardless of the time of planting flowers, the soil must be fed with mineral fertilizers. Avoid cow dung, especially fresh manure. It negatively affects the growth of bulbs and the development of plants during flowering.
Depending on the type of soil, the following additives are added to the soil in spring:
- ammonium nitrate (1 tbsp.spoon per 1 m³ of soil);
- nitroammophosco (up to 50 g per bucket of water);
- wood ash.
When nourishing the soil, strict dosing must be observed, since an overabundance of minerals also adversely affects the development of sprouts. The only substance that lilies truly love is wood ash. It can be added during the season up to 5-6 times. Ash not only forms an alkaline environment that is useful for flowers, but also protects against certain types of pests and mold.
Plants planted in the spring, in addition to the initial feeding, must be fertilized at least 2 more times. Before the buds are formed, the earth should be soaked with nitrofoska solution, and after the flowering period with superphosphate solution (40-50 g per bucket of water). The last top dressing nourishes the bulbs, prepares them for the winter period.
At the same time as mineral fertilizers, diseases are prevented. In May, when the sprouts get a little stronger, saturate the soil with 1% Bordeaux fluid. Repeat the process a couple more times in July, but already by spraying the entire plant. If you notice signs of diseases on the plant, for example, gray rot, continue top dressing - the bulbs need additional nutrition.
Features of watering mode
Prepared and fed soil is useless if proper watering is not followed from the moment of bulb planting. On the first day, the soil must be carefully watered, and then watered regularly, observing two important conditions:
- prevent stagnation of water;
- Do not dry the soil.
Any violation entails a suspension of development, as a result of which the budding and the entire flowering process will not fully occur. Proper watering provides the most important thing for flowering crops - lush, healthy, beautiful inflorescences.
It is for a longer preservation of moisture that needles or rotted sawdust are mixed into the soil - they are saturated with water and do not allow the soil to dry out. Do not plant lilies too thickly so that moisture is distributed evenly and in sufficient quantities.
Morning and afternoon hours are suitable for watering. Water carefully, try to spray water in the root area. Spray on the leaves can cause the development of the disease (e.g. botritis) or burns. Water droplets are a kind of lens that concentrates sunlight. In this sense, consider such a method of irrigation as drip irrigation - water with a certain periodicity goes directly to the roots of plants, providing them with a strictly dosed amount of moisture.
What is scary overmoistening? In cloudy, cool weather, dampness favors the development of brown spotting, and in the heat of wet rot and Fusarium.
Pest and disease protection
Consider the dangers that lie in wait for plants planted in April-May.
In the early spring, you can encounter such a nuisance as bacterial (wet) rot. It manifests itself in the form of yellowish stains, stains, first appearing on the leaves, then moving to peduncles. Over time, the entire plant becomes infected, and the affected areas simply die. To protect yourself from this scourge, you should reduce watering and eliminate nitrogen fertilizers.
Small, but brighter, reddish spots on the leaves indicate another disease - rust. It is carried by bulbs, so it is worthwhile to carefully select planting material. Infected leaves gradually dry out, so they are immediately removed. Bordeaux liquid, some fungicides are suitable for treatment.
The real scourge for lilies is botritis (gray mold). The infected plant is covered with rapidly spreading brown spots. The reasons for the appearance may be different, but the most common are waterlogging and a sharp change in temperature. To avoid mold, it is necessary to loosen the soil more often and treat the plants with substances containing copper.
If the tops of the sprouts begin to turn yellow, root rot has appeared. She lives only on the roots of the bulbs. We'll have to tear out the plant, remove the diseased parts and disinfect.
Not only diseases, but also harmful representatives of the fauna can harm lilies: thrips, aphids, squeak beetle, larvae of snarls and nutcrackers, spider mites. To destroy them, a number of chemicals, for example, Inta-Vir, have been created. Insecticides do not cope with the squeak beetle, therefore, it should be removed only manually. In a similar way, a bright orange lily-beetle bug is usually destroyed.
Lily flies, thrips, aphids, and larvae of beetles are hatched with the chemicals Thunder, Povotox, Flies, Pochin, Medvetoks, Grizzly.
Bulbs are sometimes invaded by mice. In addition to the generally accepted mesh fences, plantings of snowdrop, daffodils or colchicum are used to protect against rodents.
Mistakes when growing lilies
Some errors associated with the spring planting of lilies and further care of the flower garden are fraught with the death of plants, so try to avoid them in the first place:
- Planting bulbs in the lowland. This is a critical zone of flooding, which means that lilies sensitive to waterlogging in such a zone will simply die.
- Violation of the irrigation regime. A long period of drought, like waterlogging, is dangerous for flowers. Water less often, but more plentifully.
- Fertilizer planting with manure. It threatens a whole range of diseases. Instead of mullein, use humus or composts of the "Athlete" type.
- Overheating of the soil. Direct sunlight and heat damage plants. Exit - landing in partial shade and mulching with dry grass or sawdust.
As you can see, the rules for planting and caring for lilies are unpretentious, and for a good result, only one thing is important - regularity. Do not expect abundant flowering from spring plantings in the first year, but next year the beauty and splendor of the flower beds will exceed all your hopes.
And finally, a few more tips on the video: