Lilium longiflorum, better known as the Easter Lily, has been a tradition at Easter for many, many years. With their fragrant, white trumpet shaped flowers they were introduced into the United States in 1919 when WWI soldier, Louis Houghton brought some home to the Oregon Coast from Japan. Symbolizing purity, innocence, virtue, hope and life these beautiful white flowers were said to spring from the earth where drops of Christ’s sweat fell to the ground during His final hours of stress and deep distress.
When picking out your potted Easter Lily, choose one that doesn’t have all the flowers open, make sure there are no bugs or damage. To keep it blooming longer, place in bright, indirect sunlight. Remove the yellow stamen or anther from the center, be careful they will stain everything! Don’t place too near a heat source and avoid drafts. Only water when dry, don’t over water or let them stand in water. Remove the flowers as they fade. Lilies are extremely toxic to cats and can cause kidney failure!
You can transplant your lily outside after all the flowers have faded and have been removed from the plant. Since Easter lilies are forced to bloom earlier than natural, they may take a little extra care. Choose a spot with filtered sunshine, well drained soil and protected from the wind. Plant the bulb the same depth as the pot it was in. When the original stem and leaves start to turn brown cut it back to a healthy green leaf. New growth will emerge from the base of the plant. You will get new foliage the first year, but it could take a year or more for flowers to form. You can expect flowers in June or July. Keep it well watered the first year. Leaves will yellow in the fall, they will need to be cut back to ground level. Apply mulch before winter for some extra insulation and gently remove the mulch in the spring. Once the plant is well established they take very little care and will produce beautiful flowers for many years to come.
Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. ~ Luke 12:27 (ESV)
