Easter Lily Care

Botanical Name: Lilium Longiflorum

With a few Easter lily care tips, you'll keep your flowers fresh for 3 weeks or more.

Pots of big, beautiful trumpet-shaped blooms are a traditional Easter decoration or gift. The pristine white flowers symbolize purity and life. Here are some tips to get the most out of your potted lilies.

When you bring your potted plant home, take off the plastic sleeve right away to provide good air circulation. Also remove the foil covering from the pot so that the drainage holes are not blocked. This plant won't tolerate soggy soil, which will cause the bulb to rot.

Cut off spent flowers to keep your plant looking its best.

Easter lily bulbs won't bloom again indoors. If you want to keep them, you can replant them outside. They're cold-hardy to Zone 5. Although professional greenhouse growers force them into bloom before the spring holiday, you can expect your lilies to bloom outdoors in early summer, their natural bloom time.

Tips for Planting and Growing Easter Lilies Outdoors

• Plant your bulbs in the garden as soon as danger of frost has passed. Don't store them because lily bulbs don't go dormant.
• Choose a bright location where the plants will get at least a few hours of direct sun.
• Plant the bulbs 6 inches (15 cm) deep in rich, well-drained soil, 12 in (30 cm) apart.
• Water well and fertilize once a month in spring and summer.
• Deadhead flowers as they fade and cut stems back after the foliage has turned yellow.
• Mulch plants in cold climates in winter to protect them. Remember to remove the mulch covering in spring to allow the new shoots to grow.

When replanted outside, and with good Easter lily care, you'll enjoy flowers for many years to come.

Origin: Japan

Height: To 3 ft (90 cm)

Light: Bright light.

Water: Keep soil lightly moist.

Humidity: Average indoor humidity

Temperature: 60-75°F, 16-24°C

Soil: Any good potting mix.

Fertilizer: Not necessary unless you plan to transplant the bulbs outdoors. Feed monthly with a balanced liquid fertilizer.

Propagation: Bulbs