Potted Easter Lily Care

©By Deborah S. Tukua
www.hollycreekbooks.com

Did you know that Easter lilies are the fourth largest potted plant crop grown in the U.S.? No doubt many homes, churches, and funeral homes will soon be graced with the fragrant and lovely white trumpet shaped flowers, symbolic of spring, purity and the Lord’s Resurrection.

To keep your potted Easter Lily as its best, it prefers a cool daytime temperature of 60° to 65° F. and nighttime temperatures 5 degrees cooler. To keep the flowers from wilting, avoid placing the potted plant in direct sunlight. Most plants will lean toward the sunlight. To keep the plant growing upright, turn the pot every two days.

Keep the plant moist, but not soggy. Most Easter Lilies are sold commercially in pots covered with decorative foil jackets. No water should be left standing in the bottom of this covering or the life of the lily will be ruined. Remove the pot from the foil covering every time the plant is watered. Once the water has soaked into the soil, return the pot to the foil covering. Also, to help your potted lily thrive, do not place the pot near a direct source of heat. Lilies thrive in a humid climate, more so than a dry one. To create natural humidity, fill a saucer with small pebbles and water and set beneath the potted lily.

Support an American industry by purchasing a beautiful Easter lily.
More great tips for growing healthy and lush container plants are in Deborah’s and Vicki West’s book, Pearls of Garden Wisdom.

Technorati tags: pots, lillies