Expert: Kenneth Joergensen - 6/30/2006

Question
State: Indiana    Garden Zone: 5

I really appreciated your response (dated 6/8/2004) to the person who had trouble getting their lilies to bloom after several years of good blooming.  You described exactly how to deadhead lilies.  I've searched the web looking for that very information and it's hard to find.  Now, in addition to that information, once the lily has been deadheaded, does the plant send up another main stem to allow more flowering in the same year or will a new flower appear on the deadheaded stem?  Also, you spoke of the green pods and to remove them.  I have been asked if there are seeds in those pods and can they plant them to grow lilies from seed.  If so, when is the appropriate time to plant them and at what stage do you remove seeds from the pod?
I am caring for multiple plants at a large nursing home facility and get asked lots of questions.  Hopefully you can help me!  Thank you in advance.

Lennis Ternet

Answer
First of all, there is a difference between lilies (genus: Lilium) which grow from a bulb and daylilies (genus: Hemerocallis) which is a perennial with broad turf like foilage from which several flower scapes emerge.

The lilium (grow from bulb) will not rebloom once dead headed. There is a single flower event per year, typically in late spring, early summer.

The daylily (perennial) will sometimes rebloom, depending on specific cultivar. Once you remove the flower scape from the turf of leaves, it may send up another flower scape.

Note: lily (lilium) from bulbs, has one central flower stem which grow upwards (the tip contain the flower). If the growing tip is removed before flowering, there will be no flowers. The leaves are attached to the flower stem itself.

Daylilies (Hemerocallis) will grow several leaves (looks like a big grassy mound) and bare/naked flower scapes will emerge in early summer (the scapes themselves have no leaves). The flowers will appear from the tip of these bare scapes.

In most cases, lily seeds are not the best way to propagate either type of "lily". Lilies from bulbs (Lilium) also create offsets (miniature bulbs at the base of the stem just under the soil) and these bulblets can be grown to mature flowering size in a few years. Daylilies (Hemerocallis) are true perennials which grow from a central "crown" (hard compact center). This center will gradually grow larger over the year and can be divided by cutting through the crown of the lily and each piece can then be re-planted seperately for two seperate plants.