Methods for storing lily bulbs in winter and spring before planting in the ground
The flowering of lilies completely depends on how developed and healthy their root system is, in this case, the bulb. In order to prevent disease and drying out, it is necessary to provide it with the correct storage conditions, because most often planting material is purchased from the middle of winter: it is at this time that there is a wide range in stores and you can choose the desired variety. It is clear that planting plants on a flowerbed in winter is out of the question, but you still need to be able to hold them before the arrival of heat. In addition, in some regions, winters are so severe that the bulbs left in the soil freeze, and growers are forced to dig up their own lilies to protect them from death. As you already understood, today's topic of conversation is how to save lily bulbs for planting.
Only healthy bulbs should be stored for storage, without signs of rotting: if there is at least one infected specimen in a common container, the disease will spread to the rest.
Features of winter storage
We'll start, perhaps, by storing bulbs dug up or purchased in late autumn. So that the lilies are perfectly preserved until spring, do not freeze, do not sprout ahead of time, but at the same time do not rot, it is necessary to find a place for them with optimal and stable storage conditions, namely:
- air temperature not lower than 0 and not higher than 5 degrees Celsius;
- relative (not high and not low) air humidity.
For winter storage of bulbs, you can use the following places:
- Fridge. The best option, because the temperature and humidity there are always stable. The bulbs are stored in the refrigerator in a zip bag, into which a little moist peat is poured.
- Basement. In this case, the bulbs are placed in a wooden box with peat and periodically ventilate the room. You can also plant them in pots and keep them in your basement until spring.
- Balcony... On an uninsulated balcony, the bulbs must be additionally folded into a container with good thermal insulation, while making sure that the lilies do not start sprouting when the sun begins to warm the extension through the glass.
- Flower bed. The most daring growers, who are allowed to do this by climatic conditions, add bulbs in the open field for the winter. True, you should first make an insulated trench, laying out its sides with boards and providing a cover, under which you must necessarily put a film so that the storage does not freeze.
Bulbs stored in the refrigerator and on the balcony should be ventilated from time to time during the winter, and checked for rot.
How to store bulbs purchased in early spring?
If, at the end of winter or early spring, you just acquired your lilies, you can delay their development a little and hold out until the heat.At first, the bulbs can lie in the refrigerator, also in a bag with peat, but not for long - a month of such aging is enough, otherwise there is a risk that they will not wake up.
Some varieties of lilies (oriental, martagon) do not react well to long-term storage, so the maximum aging period in the refrigerator for them is no more than two weeks.
The next step is to plant the bulbs in small pots or cups. They must also be kept in the refrigerator until germination or taken out to the balcony, providing a shelter from the light.
If the roots are too long, they can be cut in half to make it easier to plant, because the containers are small.
When the bulbs form sprouts and stretch up to 15 cm in height, they can be rearranged to the light, to the windowsill, but only to the north, and when the heat comes, they can be planted in the flower bed.