Things You Need for Growing Easter Lilies

Houseplants

• To grow Easter lilies as houseplants, place them in a room with bright, but indirect sunlight. Water the plants only when the soil feels dry to the touch, and keep the temperature between 65 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove the yellow stamens from the insides of the flowers to prolong their life and remove withered flowers. Place Easter lilies away from heat sources, such as a radiator or vent, and keep them out of reach of cats, because the leaves are toxic.

Easter Lilies in the Garden

• Move Easter lilies outdoors as soon as the soil is soft enough to work. Select a sunny area protected from wind and amend the soil with compost or manure since Easter lilies don't tolerate soggy soil. Plant the potted bulb so it is level with the surrounding soil, or so the top of the bulb sits six inches beneath the soil surface. Keep the soil evenly moist. Remove spent flowers, but wait to cut the foliage and leaves until the fall. Mulch the soil with wood chips to protect the tender bulbs over the winter.

Considerations

• Easter lilies are artificially forced to bloom for the Easter holiday in greenhouse culture, but in your garden, they won't bloom until mid-summer. Unlike some bulbs, lilies never go dormant, so their roots are always growing. Handle the bulbs and roots very carefully to avoid damaging them. Easter lilies don't need a lot of fertilizer, and in fact, will bloom less if given too much nitrogen. Fertilize them only if growth is slow or the leaves are pale.

Use

• Easter lilies produce beautiful flowers that make lovely cut arrangements, but they are somewhat awkward in the garden. Hide their tall, spindly stalks with other perennials that have similar growing conditions. Mounded plants, such as catmint, lavender, or wild geranium, are especially useful for disguising Easter lilies' lesser qualities.