moving seedlings? too much of a good thing...

Ok, maybe I have found a downside to the hardware cloth boxes....here is a pic of this years lilies sprouting...this is a VERY vigorous (probably tetraploid) asiatic that is coming up....it was planted 5 bulbs in a 12" sqare box. I guess I should have moved a couple at the end of the season last year.....I don't even see the big stems coming up - only smaller sprouts here. Any ideas on the best way to move these out without damaging too many? Should I just sacrafice one in one corner to be able to get the others out with less damage? I f I can get them out.....anyone want to trade for some 'Pisa'

Here is 'Pisa'

I had Pisa last year for the first time. It is a real beauty and one of my favorites now. I highly recommend it.

I just leave my seedlings alone for a couple of years. I call them liy grass.
inanda

It does look like grass, but I think there are some big bulbs down there.....will it interfere? I guess I know that at some point I am going to have to thin the bulbs out some....best timing?
I have heard some argue that moving in flower is ok as the feeding roots are not as devolped yet, and will still allow for roots to develop before winter....late in the year puts it at more risk? any thoughts?

I've always heard that bulbs should be divided in the fall. I've moved lilies during the summer, but I wasn't really messing with the bulbs and always took enough soil around them not to disturb them. Now, having said that, these have always been bulbs that I had planted that same year and for some reason I decided to move them. In established beds, you're not really sure where the bulbs are and run the risk of doing a bit of damage. I would wait until fall after the first killing frost. Use a garden fork, not a shovel.

Is it possible the seedlings are up because those bulblets are closer to the surface and the big bulbs just haven't made an appearance yet?

you are probably right beaker_ch....I am being a nervous nellie and realizing the 'cost' of planting so many bulbs in such a relatively small space - not realizing how much they would produce.

Inanda, I like 'lily grass' ~ it's a good name for it.

I don't worry about new growth as it doesn't amount to much the first year. When they die back in the Fall, then it's a good time to dig them, investigate their progress and replant to your liking, without disturbing any important process.

I line them out in the spring so I can see where they are. Not martagons however. I leave them ALONE for at least 2years and then plant out in squares that fit my dog crates. Think I'll have to buy small holed wire for next year so I can enclose their entire garden area.

G

I have a martagon (Terrace City) that is looking especially good this year. I have my fingers crossed that maybe, after three long years of waiting, I'll get to see a bloom.

Moby - you are probably right....that way I get to enjoy any blooms before the digout.
OOH! Awsome. beaker_ch! I have a bunch of martagon seeds to start this year and a couple that are beginning to show this year (I thought they were lost last year, but just sulking)
inanda - I have been thinking about creating a 'nursery bed' that is entirely lined....those holes for the smaller cages are a pain!

So those are not seedlings in the pic, esw. They are bulblets from previous years' stems. Right? If that is the case, it is normal for bulblets to emerge before the large mother bulb below, for the reason that was stated prior: they wake up earlier because they warm faster in the spring.

I do my best to get those stem bulblets all out each fall, leaving only the main bulbs. But I always miss some.

And I must agree with you all: Pisa sure is vigorous!

Rick

I have a couple of pots with the bulblets from last fall already...but I can't say I was ruthless in trying to find them all. I guess it could be worse than to be overrun by a pretty lily....

So any particular reason why you guys go looking for bulblets each fall?

I took some out to pot up separately....for some reason it made sense that they might not 'survive' so close to the surface here (ok, I can't say I was really thinking this through correctly)

Here's an update on that 'patch' of Pisa! Quite vigorous.

My fall stem bulblet hunt has a few purposes. Some may apply to you, some may not:
1. Putting bulblets in their own nursery bed is the quickest way to propagate good size new plants.
2. Keeping the mother bulb(s) cleaned up reduces competition for mom and babies. Both will benefit.
3. Inevitably I come up with bulblets coming up away from the parent plants. Which cultivar is it? I hate it when that happens.
4. They make great gifts too.

I'd say about 3/4 of my lilies are peaking through now in my gardens - right on schedule as far as I am concerned. Martagons, in general, came up first.

Rick

There's a big old fat robin sitting on my garage roof checking out the yard. Proabaly looking for worms now that it's raining.

If I have to do extra work, I'll buy into reason 2. That means I'm going to have to find someplace for a nursery. The cost of lily real estate keeps going up and up (LOL).

I'm very happy with the show so far. There are a few that haven't showed up that I'm getting a little concerned over, but I think there is still time. Some just popped up in the past few days and with this nice rain, maybe the laggers will show up soon.