How to Prune Lilies
Decide whether it's necessary to prune your lilies., Deadhead any spent blooms from your lily throughout the growing season., Wait until the foliage has died and withered away before pruning., Replant your lily in a container (optional)., Prune the...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Decide whether it's necessary to prune your lilies.
The main reason to prune any variety of lily is for the appearance and to remove any diseased or damaged growth in the hope of preserving the rest of the plant.
Unlike shrubs, it isn't possible to limit the height of the lily plant by pruning.
If you feel that your lilies grow too high for their location, your only solution is to replace them with a lower growing (dwarf) lily variety.
Don’t feel that you have to prune your lilies
- it’s actually better not to do it at all.
Remember that once you cut away the foliage, you won’t be able to spot where your lilies are planted because there will be no visible sign of the plant above ground. -
Step 2: Deadhead any spent blooms from your lily throughout the growing season.
It’s a good idea to remove any spent blooms from your lily throughout the growing season.
Once flowers fade, the plant begins to make seeds; removing the spent blooms will stop the plant doing this.
This prevents the plant diverting its energies into seed production when you want it to focus on making more flowers.
Once the flowers have begun to fade, cut them with a sharp clean blade or pinch them off.
Cutting flowers for vase arrangement also prevents the plant from forming seed heads.
Cut the blooms with a clean sharp blade, leaving about a third of the stem on the plant.
This leaves something behind to help the bulb store energy. , Like all bulb plants, the lily uses its foliage to store energy from sunlight.
This nourishes the bulb and helps it survive the dormant period to revive again and regrow the following year.
This will also encourage the bulb to divide, helping you propagate from your lily at a later point if you wish to do so.
For this reason, it’s important not to prune the foliage too early, as it is drawing in this energy.
After the flowering stops, leave the foliage on the plant until it begins to wither and die away.
This is a signal that the bulb has taken in what it needs.
The foliage usually reaches this stage by late fall. , If you find that the withering foliage looks unattractive at this part in the cycle, you may prefer to plant your lilies in containers so they can be moved to a less visible location while the plant is looking less appealing.
Remember that the lily plant still needs full sun (or partial shade in very hot areas).
Other gardeners shield the lily by planting other flowers around it.
Salvia or baby’s breath are popular choices. , After the foliage turns yellow and withers away (usually in the fall) you can cut it off to ground level.
Use a pair of sharp, clean scissors, garden shears or secateurs.
Better still, wait until the foliage really has died away and is brown and withered.
A sharp tug should remove what’s left – just be careful not to pull up the bulb when you do this! You can compost the removed foliage if it seems healthy.
Foliage showing any signs of disease should be burned or thrown out with domestic trash to prevent infection spreading to other garden plants. , It’s a good idea to cut away any damaged or diseased foliage, at any point throughout the year.
When cutting off damaged parts of the plant, try to preserve as much of the green, healthy foliage on the plant as possible.
If your lily leaves are mottled or spotted this could be a sign of mosaic virus.
Unfortunately the only solution is to remove the entire plant and burn it to prevent the infection spreading in your garden.
If your bulb or roots experience any rotting, the whole plant should also be destroyed as it will not recover from this. , If you are pruning just as the plant enters dormancy, it’s a good idea to apply a layer of mulch over the pruned lilies to help the bulbs survive winter.
A thick 3 to 4 inch (7.6 to
10.2 cm) layer of mulching material such as leaf mold, well-rotted manure or sawdust will all help the bulb survive over winter.
Remember to this before the ground gets too cold. -
Step 3: Wait until the foliage has died and withered away before pruning.
-
Step 4: Replant your lily in a container (optional).
-
Step 5: Prune the foliage to ground level.
-
Step 6: Cut away any damaged or diseased foliage throughout the year.
-
Step 7: After pruning
-
Step 8: mulch the ground to help the bulbs survive winter.
Detailed Guide
The main reason to prune any variety of lily is for the appearance and to remove any diseased or damaged growth in the hope of preserving the rest of the plant.
Unlike shrubs, it isn't possible to limit the height of the lily plant by pruning.
If you feel that your lilies grow too high for their location, your only solution is to replace them with a lower growing (dwarf) lily variety.
Don’t feel that you have to prune your lilies
- it’s actually better not to do it at all.
Remember that once you cut away the foliage, you won’t be able to spot where your lilies are planted because there will be no visible sign of the plant above ground.
It’s a good idea to remove any spent blooms from your lily throughout the growing season.
Once flowers fade, the plant begins to make seeds; removing the spent blooms will stop the plant doing this.
This prevents the plant diverting its energies into seed production when you want it to focus on making more flowers.
Once the flowers have begun to fade, cut them with a sharp clean blade or pinch them off.
Cutting flowers for vase arrangement also prevents the plant from forming seed heads.
Cut the blooms with a clean sharp blade, leaving about a third of the stem on the plant.
This leaves something behind to help the bulb store energy. , Like all bulb plants, the lily uses its foliage to store energy from sunlight.
This nourishes the bulb and helps it survive the dormant period to revive again and regrow the following year.
This will also encourage the bulb to divide, helping you propagate from your lily at a later point if you wish to do so.
For this reason, it’s important not to prune the foliage too early, as it is drawing in this energy.
After the flowering stops, leave the foliage on the plant until it begins to wither and die away.
This is a signal that the bulb has taken in what it needs.
The foliage usually reaches this stage by late fall. , If you find that the withering foliage looks unattractive at this part in the cycle, you may prefer to plant your lilies in containers so they can be moved to a less visible location while the plant is looking less appealing.
Remember that the lily plant still needs full sun (or partial shade in very hot areas).
Other gardeners shield the lily by planting other flowers around it.
Salvia or baby’s breath are popular choices. , After the foliage turns yellow and withers away (usually in the fall) you can cut it off to ground level.
Use a pair of sharp, clean scissors, garden shears or secateurs.
Better still, wait until the foliage really has died away and is brown and withered.
A sharp tug should remove what’s left – just be careful not to pull up the bulb when you do this! You can compost the removed foliage if it seems healthy.
Foliage showing any signs of disease should be burned or thrown out with domestic trash to prevent infection spreading to other garden plants. , It’s a good idea to cut away any damaged or diseased foliage, at any point throughout the year.
When cutting off damaged parts of the plant, try to preserve as much of the green, healthy foliage on the plant as possible.
If your lily leaves are mottled or spotted this could be a sign of mosaic virus.
Unfortunately the only solution is to remove the entire plant and burn it to prevent the infection spreading in your garden.
If your bulb or roots experience any rotting, the whole plant should also be destroyed as it will not recover from this. , If you are pruning just as the plant enters dormancy, it’s a good idea to apply a layer of mulch over the pruned lilies to help the bulbs survive winter.
A thick 3 to 4 inch (7.6 to
10.2 cm) layer of mulching material such as leaf mold, well-rotted manure or sawdust will all help the bulb survive over winter.
Remember to this before the ground gets too cold.
About the Author
Sharon Davis
Experienced content creator specializing in cooking guides and tutorials.
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