Lilly seeds

I was sent some beautiful
yellow lillys, huge blossoms.
Have now dropped seeds, I collected
them, do they need to dry out
before planting them? suggestions
please

If you have plenty of seeds (twice as many as you need) then try the following...

Divide the seeds in two.
Get two large coffee filters. Write the date, the fact that they are lilies and any other information you want on the filter (use waterproof pen - biro or permanent marker).

Put a table spoon of water onto each filter (or more if it is a big filter.
Open the filter out and sprinkle the seeds onto the (damp) filter. Try to get them evenly distributed.

Put each filter into a plastic bag (ziplock is best, but any sandwich bag will do, as long as you follow the rest of the instructions...

Put one in an air-tight container and put the container on the highest shelf in your kitchen (this is the room that has the most constant warm temperature). Put the other in the bottom of your fridge (not freezer).

After two weeks, look at each filter once a week to see if the seeds are germinating. If the warm ones are germinating, gently remove then, using a blunt knife andput them in a growing mixture. I like to use ½" of vermiculite (because it is guaranteed to be sterile) on top of good quality compost.

You should then bring the ones from the fridge and put them on the kitchen shelf. (They may happily germinate after their chilly winter holiday.)

IMPORTANT... If it is the ones in the fridge that germinate, just leave them there until about three or four months after they were sown. You can then move the warm ones to the fridge and see if that works for them...

Though they may develop long radicles, they could be a type that requires extended cold germination and would die if brought into the warm too early. If this is the case, be very careful when transferring the seedlings to the growing mix,as the radicle is very fragile.

The above has worked for me with 'mixed' Lily seeds.

If, after four months, neither has germinated, switch them round...

(This is a variation on the method of Norman Deno, seed propagator extraordinaire!)

Mike

Thanks for instuctions,
I will give it a try, it
would be amazing to be able
to grow the beautiful flowers
I recv. and make an arrangement
for the person who originally
sent them to me...that would
be neat!!
Do you know if they are
a shade of sun flower?
deller

Deller - Generally speaking lilies like full sun. However, most will tolerate some shade. Trumpet lilies like shade least of all. They should be planted in well-draining soil as they do not like to be wet. Brenda

BTW...if you really like lilies I'm hosting a lily COOP through tomorrow. http://davesgarden.com/t/423601/