Growing Lilies from Seed

One of the most satisfying pleasures for many gardeners is propagating their own plants from seed. Growing lilies from seed is not only incredibly fun and rewarding to do; it has two important advantages over purchasing bulbs directly. Propagating by seed allows one to raise his or her own unique hybrid stock, and also to obtain lilies that are virtually free from any viruses or infection.

If some of your lilies are developing seedpods, why not harvest them this fall and try growing them on? You just may create some one-of-a-kind lovely new hybrids, have a lot of fun in the process, and if nothing else, learn much more about growing one of your favorite perennials.If you don't have seed this year but would like to try growing lilies yourself, give me a call at 248/647-2672. I have fresh lily seeds for any interested MRLS member, and some are from very special crosses too (in my view).

A great seed source is also the annual seed exchange of the North American Lily Society (NALS) (www.lilies.org), through which hybridizers from all over the world generously share seed from their gardens.

I first tried sowing lilium seed three years ago, from a packet of "Anaconda x Lemon Star," that was given to me by Linda Darnton, a fellow MRLS member. Those 18 seeds have since grown on to become a large clump of absolutely gorgeous, healthy Aurilian trumpets. Indeed, they are some of the nicest lilies in my garden.

Asiatics and trumpets are the easiest lilies to propagate directly from seed. With both, germination is immediate epigeal, which means that when planted under the right conditions, the seed soon starts into growth, sending up its first leaf while simultaneously building a little bulb underground.

In contrast, with orientals and martagons germination is delayed hypogeal, which means that it often takes eight months or more, even under excellent conditions, before the first leaf appears above the surface. In this case all of the plant's initial growth occurs only underground, entirely unseen, as a tiny bulb forms. Only after a cold spell (e.g., a winter) will this bulb send up its first leaf. Although a bit more difficult, I have also successfully grown delayed hypogeal lilium seed, specifically, several types of martagons.

How does one grow lilies from seed? I recommend planting asiatic and trumpet seed in late winter; February or March is ideal. I usually start with a 1-gallon pot, filled with a free-draining sterile soil mixture. A pot this size is much preferable to those store-bought plastic trays, which are simply too shallow to accommodate the long roots of healthy lily seedlings. I distribute the seed thinly and evenly across the surface of the pot (no more than 15-20 seeds), and once in place, cover them with approximately 1/4 inch of "No-Damp" sterilized seed-starting moss. (The No-Damp sphagnum moss helps enormously in preventing damping-off and other fungal problems.) After watering the entire pot, I cover it with plastic wrap and place it in a slightly cool location, usually my basement laundry room, normally 64-68 degrees.

It takes about two to three weeks for the first leaf, called the cotyledon, to appear. It looks alot like a very thin blade of grass. When this occurs, the plastic wrap is removed immediately, and the entire pot placed in either a sunny window or under grow lights. Hopefully, within a week or so, you'll find that half or more of your seeds have germinated. With time, each little plant will begin to send up its true leaves, as well. They are much wider than a cotyledon, basically miniature versions of what we see in our gardens. Good light and water are all the plants will need for a while. An occasional application of liquid fish fertilizer, diluted to half-strength or less, is also a good idea.

As soon as the weather warms up (late May or early June), I harden off the seedlings, putting the entire pot outside in a sun or partial sun location. I prefer to transplant asiatics and trumpets to my garden near the end of their first summer. This operation is a delicate one because the seedlings' roots are typically quite long and tangled. It is best done with care to minimize disturbing both the roots and the leaves of each seedling. I'm always amazed, however, at the robustness of lily seedlings. I often think, "I've surely over-traumatized them, no way can they survive this," but amazingly Š they all do! About half will even begin blooming their very next year. The excitement of seeing those first blossoms is hard to describe. You just never know what you'll get; it may be a real surprise, something that appears to be only distantly related to its parents.

My success with martagon seed (delayed hypogeal), occurred when I started them in the month of December, a few years ago. Although I've only tried growing them twice, the following method worked quite well.

First, I potted them up as described above. They took longer to germinate than did the asiatics and trumpets, about two months from when I planted the seed. On the advice of a friend, I tried varying their temperature slightly from week to week, alternating between cool and cooler. First, I put them next to the water heater in the basement (cool), then I moved them to the basement floor (much cooler), and continued switching between these two locations every week.

From time-to-time, I gently dug down to see if they were developing their little bulbs. They were, so my efforts were paying off. Come mid-March, I transferred these pots to a refrigerator to chill for three months. Then, in mid-June, I took them out and put them outside in a partially shaded location. Shortly, each plant began to send up its cotyledon, and about a month after that, each sent up some true leaves. All told, I discovered I had close to 90 percent germination, about 90 plants in all.

Near the end of their first summer, they were not quite as far along as the asiatics or trumpets seedlings were. They were very healthy looking but still fairly small. Not wanting to jeopardize traumatizing them by transplanting them to the garden, I decided to leave them in their pots in my garage over winter. Then when spring came and I went to check on them I was simply horrified to discover that mice had devoured every last one!

What a heartache!  If only I had put them in the refrigerator instead, or even the garden. Oh well. I believe that the method I was using for propagation was pretty sound, but clearly my mistake was not thinking about the chance of a mice-attack.

Whether you decide to try growing some asiatics or trumpets, or the delayed hypogeal-type, such as orientals or martagons, I wish you the best of luck!

Try your hand at growing lilies from seed, and have some fun. You just may reap something beautiful and unique. Remember, it doesn't have to be a mass-marketed named clone to be an exquisite gem. It can be something you created yourself.