GARDENING : Pampering Extends Easter Lilies’ Parade

Easter lilies present two problems in the home: how to keep them flourishing while in bloom, and what to do with them after the flowering is over.

Both require some understanding of why pots of these fragrant, white, trumpet-shaped flowers are always available for sale at Easter, even though the Christian holiday comes at such different times in different years.

Growers use bulb-forcing to time the crop so the first flowers will appear at Easter, whether it be early (in March), late (as this year) or in between.

The process includes controlled lighting, fertilizing and watering, and it usually starts about 17 weeks before a salable plant is shipped to retailers. After precooling and potting, bulbs take about 120 days to flower.

In general, temperatures higher than 60 degrees will hasten flowering and lower ones delay it, if this becomes necessary at the commercial level.

There’s a good reason for all this care: Most growers say the Easter lily (Lilium longiflorum) is the most profitable potted plant.

So the Easter lily has been well-pampered by the time it reaches your home. For best indoor results, continue the treatment.

When in flower, they like bright, indirect light with daytime temperatures of around 70 degrees, although a little direct sun won’t hurt. Remove faded blooms as they develop.

It’s a good precaution to make sure the drainage hole is not obstructed. Fill with water once or twice and let drain. Then water only when the surface is dry to the touch. Don’t fertilize. Night temperatures around 40 to 45 degrees are ideal to prolong blooms. Try a sheltered, outdoor location at night.

While the plant is not likely to again be satisfactory indoors, it should flourish outdoors for years. However, the flowering won’t be around Easter but rather at the natural cycle a few months later.

To build up the bulb once the flowering is over, set the plant in the sun, fertilize lightly with a time-released product such as Democote and keep it moist. Do not remove any green foliage, which eventually will die back but meanwhile manufactures nutrients for another season.

While forcing bulbs again is counterproductive, they can be transferred to an outdoor container slightly larger than their original pot and grown successfully in partial-shade conditions. They will bloom in the natural cycle.

Or place the original pot in an outdoor bed and cover with soil for later handling.

But more satisfactory is in-ground planting of the bulb.

The location must drain well. If there is a slight slope, so much the better. Work a liberal amount of organic matter into the top 12 inches of soil and add a handful of superphosphate (0-20-0 formulation). Plant a little deeper than they were growing in the pot.

The first year, don’t be surprised if there are some landscape flowers in the fall. The bulb is recycling to nature.

In time, usually about three years, clumps become too large. Dig and divide in fall or spring. Replant the same as originally.

Caution: if you have other lilies, don’t plant potted Easter lilies near them. The forced ones may carry a virus.