How to dig up lily bulbs and transplant

[@day1678]

My wife is so grateful for your kind response - many thanks. From Sydney, Australia.

[@rogthegardener1]

That's great - best wishes to our friends and family 'down under'!

[@colin9481]

Wow thats a lily bulb and a half, i bet they looked lovely when they were in flower Roger, funnily i collected the seeds of my day lilies so hoping they will give something back, and yes love the sound effects...haha. Thanks for the helpful videos.

[@rogthegardener1]

Thanks Colin! if you want to see those lilies in flower take a look at 'my how to grow perfumed lilies' video from last year - enjoy your garden!

[@milesaway3699]

I did that last Fall. I got 3 or 4 about that size and quite a few other amazingly sized ones. I like to rinse them off completely with the garden hose after letting them soak awhile in a bucket. I didn’t think Lily bulbs could get that big so it was a fun project. I ended up replanting them in different areas and gave some to a friend. It’s a big job but a fun one too!

[@rogthegardener1]

Thanks for your comment, great to hear about your lily success! Hope you get a big show of flowers this summer - where are you living?

[@milesaway3699]

@@rogthegardener1 Northern Michigan, about 30 miles south of the Mackinaw bridge. Zone 4/5.

[@dianac2596]

Remarkable video! I’ve never seen anything like those bulbs! 👍

[@rogthegardener1]

Thanks Diana for your comment, yes I was shocked at the size of them! ... I have been selling them for about 40 years but have never seen them that big! if you look at my latest video (uploaded 30th Dec) you will see them in flower ..equally huge - happy new year!

[@day1678]

Roger, when is the best time to dip up Madonna lilies bulbs and transplant them?

[@rogthegardener1]

I would suggest to do this when the plants are dormant - when the leaves have died off in the autumn .. so for me here in south wales in the UK that would be around late October - good luck and please keep us posted with your progress, thanks!

[@paulawagstaff686]

Still trying to figure out why most of the beloveds filming was in the shade? Maybe she doesn't know as much as you think she does!!

[@rogthegardener1]

I am told that she is always right !😀

[@theladfromireland.]

What's the name of the lillys

[@rogthegardener1]

Hi, thanks for your comment There were 2 varieties in there - one called Big Tom and one called Debbie ( I think) you can see them in flower in this video kzbin.info/www/bejne/j3eQZaqZqtSDhZo Hope this helps?

[@Silverfeather1015]

How old are these lilies you dug? They are massive and beautiful. I hope mine will get as large as yours one day.

[@rogthegardener1]

Hi Samuel, thanks for your comment, those bulbs had been in the ground about 3 or 4 years I think ... maybe more ... they may be what we call 'tree lilies' here in the UK which can get bigger than normal 'normal lilies' - hope that helps?

[@ourv9603]

ROGER, You're killing yourself with that flat snout shovel. You need a pointed snout shovel. In fact, the best shovel made for digging up plants is a narrow trenching shovel. It has a pointy snout & it is narrow allowing you to work yourself around the plant. Try it. You'll like it!! !

[@rogthegardener1]

Thanks for that tip - Ill look out for one of them and mention it in my letter to Santa later this year! great tip .. but I will still be making my grunts and groans as I put the effort in! take care and enjoy your garden.

[@marrige1985]

At what atmospheric temprature and at in which season (I.e in agra up india) this procedure should be done. ?? Thank u.

[@rogthegardener1]

Hi, thanks for your comment. I am not familiar with the climate in Agra but have just looked on Google and it seems that it should be getting dryer and cooler for the next few months so that would be a good time to do this procedure, so tha bulbs are mostly dormant and there will be less stress to the bulbs and they can star to grow again in spring. I am planning to do this procedure with our lilies in pots in a few weeks time, as the plants are just dying back as it gets cooler here in the UK (it is about 15 C at the moment) The most important thing is that the plants should not be growing any leaves and stems when you dig up the bulbs so we do it when the leaves and stems have died back before they start to grow again - I hope this makes sense?

[@foxybuddy]

If we can grow strawberries nearby since they both like wet?

[@rogthegardener1]

I don't see why not - but I suppose the lily might shade the strawberries from the sun a bit which may affect the fruiting / ripening?

[@foxybuddy]

@@rogthegardener1 right, that's the point, thanks for that, I may have to plant the strawberry in the front

[@rogthegardener1]

@@foxybuddy sounds like a good plan - enjoy!

[@laurabrennan6450]

Great video.... my lillies have succumbed to red beetles two years in a row dispite my beat efforts. I have dug the bulbs up this year in the hope it will kill the left over ones....is there any hope?

[@rogthegardener1]

Hi Laura - thanks for your comment and question ... there is always hope! Unfortunately there is no easy way of keeping the lily beetles under control ... especially if you do not want to kill the beetles ... I use 2 methods neither of which are good for the beetles but it helps my lilies. 1 - Pick off the beetles when I see them (and their poo covered larvae) and squash them 2 - Spray with an insecticide (once in mid April, and again in late June) The one I currently use is Provanto (which is one of the few which is approved for use against Red lily beetles) Here are 2 of my videos which deal with this challenging subject kzbin.info/www/bejne/roaaoKuZpsidgaM and kzbin.info/www/bejne/h4GtpXiretSlrrc I hope this makes sense and helps? please keep us posted with your progress Roger

[@draguta8995]

One method my roommate swears by (I am overall new to gardening) is a soap and water mixture sprayed directly onto the plant (bottom and tops of the leaves, on eggs and bugs, etc). You'll want to do it after a watering, because you want the soap to sit for a couple of days to ensure as many bugs/babies as possible are killed off, with maybe a fresh spray every day or couple days until the next watering. The soap kills off the live bugs and usually sticks around on the underside of leaves to kill off babies after they emerge, without damaging the plant. And as the soap passes into the soil during waterings, it will dilute more and more and drain out, without causing damage to the plant. Water as normal, and repeat if you see them again. The issue with it is the same as the issue with any other pesticide - i.e. it doesn't discriminate bugs, so lady bugs and butterflies are just as likely to be killed off. Avoid spraying the blooms to decrease butterfly/bee deaths.

[@AdobeRose1]

It is now the end of September and my lillies are still in bloom but fading. these are the first I've planted (Asiatic). there are 3 in one tall pot. Can I leave them there til spring? If so, should I wrap the clay pot (urn style)with a warming blanket of some kind?

[@rogthegardener1]

Hi - thanks for your comment, I leave ours outside all year round with no protection here in Wales in the UK ... now if your weather is different where you live (where do you live if you don't mind me asking?) especially if you get cold winters you may need to protect ...

[@berniebacot6149]

Have you ever used any cotton seed hulls to make your mulch

[@rogthegardener1]

Hi, thanks for your comment, no I haven’t (they are not generally available here in the uk ...mainly because cotton is not grown here) we tend to use bark chips, but are also starting to experiment with ‘digestate’ which is a biproduct of the green energy industry. Do you use cotton husks - do they work well?

[@izabelagabor8779]

Hi, Two years ago I was planting two containers, and because I wanted to have some flowers from spring to fall, I plant in each container 1 lily, one rose, one peony, and 5 tulips, the first year the plants was small, the peony didn’t had flowers. Second year, I had huge lily, and in stead of one I had two in each container. This is the 3th year and I am worried that are to many plants in the containers. Do you recommend me to split the containers now or wait to fall. Thanks

[@rogthegardener1]

Hi Izabela, thanks for your comment, good to hear that your plants are growing - I would probably wait until they are dormant in the fall (as we did in this video), as there will be less damage to the plants .. they can grow quite big in pots - so long as they are big pots (if they are in smaller pots the pots can fall over with bigger plants in them) ... if you have no choice then you could try transplanting now but you may not get so many flowers this summer as they recover from the 'shock' - does that make sense?

[@izabelagabor8779]

@@rogthegardener1 Thanks

[@bjfifi]

All I used to dig up bulbs from my friends house is a fork.He gave me a calla btw

[@rogthegardener1]

Great - good job!

[@thescrutineer7022]

Hi Roger, thank you for all of the information. I planted my Lilly's in a pot (not from bulbs), unfortunately the pot is not deep enough for them as I have learnt from watching these videos! I have other pots to use but can you please tell me whether to remove the bulbs or just to re-pot it as it is and trim the stems down once it has all died off? There are three stems there and they are still very green at the moment. I'm a bit stuck as to what to do with them! Thank you.

[@rogthegardener1]

Hi Miss M - thanks for your comment, they will love some extra root room! when I transplant / pot up the plants from a smaller pot into larger pots I do not dig out the bulbs, I just slide the whole plant and roots as it is out of the small pot and plant them a little deeper into a larger pot. If those stems are green don't cut them back until they go brown, as they are storing energy from the sunlight back into the bulbs while they are green. It should be fine to transplant them while they are still green so long as they do not dry out in their new pot. When the leaves / stems do go brown you could cut them back here's our little video about that kzbin.info/www/bejne/horPeaqJo5WIhcU

[@thescrutineer7022]

@@rogthegardener1 Thank you very much for your reply and the link. I will do that and hope that they may turn out like yours one day Roger!

[@saabomar3405]

Hello, what kind of lillies these are and also what kind compost do you use, thanks

[@rogthegardener1]

Hi Saab Omar - I do not have the variety names but if you look for tree lilies you will be looking at the right lilies. I tend to use Westlands multipurpose with added John Innes compost - I like that one as it is a blend of two different types of compost so you get the 'best of both worlds' - other brands are available depending on where you live - hope that helps?

[@saabomar3405]

Thank you, by the way your videos are very helpful I learned alot...

[@rogthegardener1]

@@saabomar3405 - Thanks very much, I think we all never stop learning in the garden ...?

[@agustasister5624]

Omg those are WONDERFUL LILIES...WONDERFUL....I ALWAYS STIR IN BONE MEAL AND BLOOD MEAL. compost is rare as.hens teeth around these parts

[@rogthegardener1]

Thanks - yes great advice!

[@natashabrooks8735]

Careful not to brake the spade 😂😂

[@rogthegardener1]

I may have broken 1 or 2 over the years!

[@janyaratpongam6562]

So massive bulbs but mine tiny 😂

[@rogthegardener1]

Hi, thanks for your comment, those bulbs of mine started out tiny too - but after a few years they grew to that size ... they have been in the ground for many years since I did that video so I wonder how big they are now?!

[@lovedunkin]

People who think they are funny, are usually not.

[@rogthegardener1]

Many thanks for your wise words - enjoy your garden!

[@BigBlueSky123]

I thought he was quite funny 😄

[@lovedunkin]

Why do these old codgers think they are funny?

[@rogthegardener1]

Good question :-)