Growing Lilies: Planting and Care for Summer Blooms

Lilies are timeless garden favorites that bring elegance, color, and fragrance to any landscape. Whether you’re planting border lilies along a walkway or tall Asiatic and Oriental varieties for dramatic height, growing lilies is easier than you might think. In this updated guide, I’ll share how I plant and care for lilies in my Missouri garden—plus tips for keeping them healthy through hot summers and cold winters.

🌸 Lily Varieties for Every Garden

Lilies come in a wide range of colors and sizes. Mid‑sized border lilies look beautiful encircling trees or lining garden paths. Smaller varieties like Stella de Oro and Happy Returns daylilies are perfect for the front of the garden, while taller Asiatic, Oriental, and Tiger Lilies add height and drama in the back or center.

If you want an exotic touch, grow tiger lilies their spotted orange blooms appear in midsummer and continue through July and August, adding bold color when many other flowers fade.

🌞 How to Grow Lilies Successfully

Lilies are easy to grow once you understand their needs. Plant bulbs in fall for next year’s blooms, or nursery‑grown lilies in spring after frost danger has passed. Choose a location with full to part sun and well‑drained, slightly acidic soil.

If your summers are extremely hot, lilies appreciate partial shade. In my garden, they receive four hours of morning sun, four hours of filtered afternoon shade, and four hours of late‑day sun. Sheltering them from peak heat keeps them healthy and vibrant.

🌱 Planting Lilies Step‑by‑Step

1️⃣ Clear your garden site by removing grass, weeds, and rocks.
2️⃣ Loosen the soil to about 16 inches deep.
3️⃣ Dig a hole about 6 inches deep and sprinkle in bone meal.
4️⃣ Place the bulb with the flat end down and the pointed tip facing up.
5️⃣ Backfill with soil and water thoroughly.
6️⃣ Space multiple lilies 12–18 inches apart for airflow and growth.

🌿 Lily Care Tips

Once lilies emerge, apply mulch around the base to retain moisture and discourage weeds. Water deeply once a week during dry spells, and avoid overhead watering to prevent fungal issues.

In autumn, cut back the stems after they yellow and add about three inches of mulch to protect bulbs through winter. This simple step ensures strong, healthy blooms next year.

🌺 Final Thoughts

Lilies reward you with stunning blooms and graceful foliage year after year. By planting them correctly, providing balanced sun exposure, and protecting them through the seasons, you’ll enjoy a garden full of color and life. These flowers are proof that even in the heat of summer, beauty thrives with a little care and planning.

If you have questions about growing lilies or want to share your favorite varieties, leave

When to Plant Chrysanthemum

Summer is almost over and I find that I am thinking about the fall season. Fall is my favorite time of the year because of the garden activities. When it comes to working in the yard and garden there are many things to do, planting chrysanthemum is one of my favorite activities in fall.  

Do you plant mums in fall? 

In late August to the first week of September, I will plant Chrysanthemums in containers and in feature gardens. Now I live in growing zone 6 and we have a long autumn season. For other growing zones in the USA, I would say plant mums at least six weeks before a hard frost.

Chrysanthemums come in a variety of colors; white, yellow, lilac, purple bronze, cream, orange, pink, green burgundy-red, and bi-colors. There is a color flower for everyone and these long-lived flowers really brighten up the garden.

The mum is a beautiful flower so show it off by planting in your feature garden, or outlining your front walkway. You can also add to wheelbarrow gardens or plant container gardens for your front porch. 

I have planted mums in containers and in the ground. Then after a hard frost, I will cut the plant back into the soil and add a layer of mulch. The mum then returns the following year.

Here are a few photographs of chrysanthemums I hope they will inspire to plant this lovely flower in your fall garden.

All images are from pixabay.com

Snowdrop Flowers are Blooming in Garden

Today the weather had warmed to 38 degrees and I thought I would take a walk in the garden. I went into the garden to watch for nature and to check to see if any of the spring bulbs were blooming. To my surprise, I saw that the snowdrop flowers were blooming. A patch of 8 to 12 flowers was in full bloom.

This flower is a perennial in the Amaryllis family. There are 75 different species and varieties of snowdrops. All of the flowers are white in color. The species that grows in my garden and most gardens is the Galanthus Nivalis (snowdrop) Galanthus in Latin means milk-white-flowers.  These milk-white colored flowers have bloomed in my garden for the last 15 years and when I saw that they were in bloom a month early I was delighted but surprised.

People call this flower a snowdrop because it usually does not 
wait for the snow to melt. It usually is the first flower 
to bloom in a winter garden. 

This winter has been very warm, 20 degrees warmer than last year. Although we have had cool to cold weather this past week with snow flurries on Christmas day, prior to that the weather has been spring-like. Overall I think that the spring bulbs are confusing because they normally bloom the end of January - first week in February.

Planting tips:

1. Plant in fall six weeks prior to a hard frost and the snowdrops will bloom the following spring. Grow snowdrops in well-drained clay, or sandy soil in an area that has morning sun exposure with part to full shade in the afternoon. 
   
2. I think snowdrop flowers look nice when grown under evergreens or other trees and shrubs.  These flowers look especially nice when grown in a rock garden with other spring bulbs, such as crocus and daffodils.
   
3. Remember to space the bulbs when planting because they multiply quickly. Snowdrops are deer resistant
   

If you are interested in growing this long-lived spring-blooming flower in your garden then I would recommend that you shop for the bulbs at the following stores;

Brecks.com

Americanmeadows.com

lowes.com

ebay.com

netherlandbulb.com

Learn more about Netherland bulbs by reading my product review.

Transplant Tree or Shrub (How to)

Planting a tree or shrub is not difficult however purchasing a healthy tree or shrub may be a little tricky. Many trees and shrubs sold are root balls wrapped in wax-coated burlap. If purchasing from a nursery ask to check the root ball.

Look for a healthy root that is growing outward. If the root ball is tightly matted then it better to purchase a tree or shrub grown in a container. Before purchasing the tree or shrub, check the bottom of the container, if roots are growing out of the drain holes this is a good indication of a strong root. Another way to determine a healthy tree or shrub is to look for a full tree or bush with new growth.

Redbud tree newly planted

Planting Tips

Set the container on its side and gently roll the container on the ground. This method will loosen the root ball from inside the container.

Remove the tree or shrub from the container. Thoroughly wet the root ball prior to planting. By wetting the soil, you may loosen some of the roots from the root ball. If the roots are stubborn and are growing in a tight circle, use your hands to untangle the roots. Gently pull them away from the root ball. This is a necessary step to enable the roots to grow outward into the soil. 

Clear the planting site by removing all of the grass. Dig a hole that is twice as wide and as deep as the container. Add six inches of compost to the bottom of the hole. Mound the compost into the center of the hole. Set the tree or shrub on top of the mound. Spread the roots out so that they will grow outward into the soil. Fill the hole with the remaining soil and water thoroughly.

Apply two to four inches of mulch around the tree or shrub trunk. The mulch will add nutrients to the soil, retain moisture, and will prevent weeds. Water your tree or shrub daily in the morning before the heat of the day.  The soil should be evenly moist but not wet.

Notes From Susan:   Plant your tree or shrub in the late afternoon when the sun is not intense or plant on a cloudy day.