Those pretty indoor Easter lily plants that you buy at Easter time are really hardy perennials, so don’t throw them out after the Easter holiday has passed. Plant them outdoors to beautify your landscape instead.
How To Keep Easter Lilies After Easter
Just follow the easy instructions below to keep your Easter lilies each year and establish a nice outdoor lily garden (see Building Beautiful Garden Borders for ideas on where to plant them).
First, Prolong Indoor Bloom Time
To prolong bloom time indoors, be sure to pinch off the yellow anthers inside the flowers as soon as the flowers open. This prevents pollination (un-pollinated flowers last longer), and keeps the flowers white.
Keeping your lily plants in daytime temperatures in the 70’s and nighttime temperatures in the 40’s will also prolong bloom time. Warmer temperatures negatively impact bloom time.
Then, Prepare Them For Outdoor Blooming
If grown indoors as a houseplant, it’s difficult to get an Easter lily to re-bloom, but if planted outdoors, they readily re-bloom each year.
To prepare your plant for planting outdoors, remove all of the plant’s flowers once your plants flowers have faded. This forces the plant to enlarge the bulb rather than producing flower seed.
Then, keep your Easter lily in bright, indirect light until nighttime temperatures stay above 40 degrees outdoors.
Finally, Plant Them Outdoors
Plant your Easter lilies about 6 inches deep, in a partially-sunny site with well-drained soil.
Cover with several inches of mulch before winter in cold winter areas for winter protection. Lilies planted this way should bloom mid-summer next year and many years thereafter.
Finding Deals
Right after Easter is also a good time to check for deals on Easter lily plants at stores, they’re usually trying to get rid of them (who wants them after Easter has passed after all). Sometimes you can find them for ridiculously low prices!
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