The 19 Types of Lilies You Should Consider Growing This Year

Lilies are one of the most stunning flowering bulbs you can add to your garden, and they’re easy to grow in the right conditions. “Lilies have been cultivated for centuries, so there are many different types of lilies,” says Jim Sutton, associate director of display design at Longwood Gardens. “Most lilies are fragrant, they come in many different heights and colors except blue, and they don’t take up a lot of space in your garden.”

Lilies also are tough flowers that excel in a variety of garden settings. “There are thousands of types of lilies, so almost everyone can grow some type of lily,” says Claire Krofft, bulb garden senior horticulturalist at the Missouri Botanical Garden. The benefits don’t end there: They “return for many years, so they’re a great long-lived perennial. And pollinators love them,” she adds.

• Jim Sutton is the associate director of display design at Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, PA, where he oversees its themes and ideas. He has worked there for more than 10 years and has served as the lead judge for the Philadelphia Flower Show for several years.
• Claire Krofft is a senior horticulturist at the Missouri Botanical Garden, where she has worked for nearly four years. She studied ornamental horticulture at the University of Arkansas and received a master’s degree in horticultural science from Auburn University.

Lilies need lots of sun to bloom well. Find a spot in full sun, which is considered 6 or more hours of direct sunlight per day. While some lilies tolerate a little shade, they’re not the best option for you if your garden is mostly shade, says Krofft. In general, lilies like well-drained soil that stays a little moist. But they’ll rot in heavy clay soils that don’t drain well.

Lilies grow from bulbs, and most lily bulbs should be planted approximately three times as deep as the bulb is wide, says Krofft. Err on the side of planting them too deep, rather than too shallow, then add a few inches of mulch on top of the planting area.

Also, lilies look best when planted in groups of three or more, rather than one here and one there in the garden, says Sutton. If you like, you also can feed your bulbs with a granular extended release fertilizer (something like a 20-20-20) in the spring when you first see the foliage appear.

Unlike spring-flowering bulbs which must be planted in the fall for the blooms the following year, you can plant lilies in either the spring or fall. In much of the country, the latest you typically can plant lilies in your garden for summer blooms is May. Or plant the bulbs in the fall from September until November for blooms the following summer, says Sutton.