The scent of Lilies pervades the garden, wafting from the group of 'Black Dragon Strain' Trumpet Lilies. Unlike like
last year, I was actually on top of things and staked them early. Unfortunately, my efforts at staking leave much to be desired. There must be an art to staking Lilies to keep them from looking like, at one extreme, a Victorian lady stuffed into a too stiff corset,
and at the other, from leaning over like baseball fans in the nosebleed seats. Or there are these supports, which, while keeping the 'Black Beauty' Lilies from lying on the ground, allow them to look like they're doing The Wave.
These 3-foot supports just aren't tall enough. I've used large single stem supports, tall single stakes, and even peony rings.
None of it is satisfactory. Have you found anything that keeps Lilies upright, yet doesn't make them look trussed up?
The scent of Lilies pervades the garden, wafting from the group of 'Black Dragon Strain' Trumpet Lilies. Unlike like last year, I was actually on top of things and staked them early. Unfortunately, my efforts at staking leave much to be desired. There must be an art to staking Lilies to keep them from looking like, at one extreme, a Victorian lady stuffed into a too stiff corset,
and at the other, from leaning over like baseball fans in the nosebleed seats. Or there are these supports, which, while keeping the 'Black Beauty' Lilies from lying on the ground, allow them to look like they're doing The Wave.
These 3-foot supports just aren't tall enough. I've used large single stem supports, tall single stakes, and even peony rings.
None of it is satisfactory. Have you found anything that keeps Lilies upright, yet doesn't make them look trussed up?
28 comments:
I just started propping mine up today. It's worth it.
No solutions for you, but I can practically smell the fragrance in that first image — yummy!
My garden is a cat's cradle of green jute twine. It's not pretty but it does the job. This is the one time I'm grateful for the chain-link fence - easy to tie to! Today I found an elaborate spider web attached between lengths of twine so at least someone appreciates my efforts.
These look kind of interesting -- they're twig-shaped and rust to a twiggy-looking patina (they say):
http://www.gardeners.com/twig-plant-supports/37-986RS,default,pd.html?SC=XNET8002
and I forgot to say: gorgeous lily picture.
MMD, your descriptions made me smile! I missed out too on the staking gene. So if you come up with a solution, I woild like to know.
Your lily photos are lovley and I can almost smell them through the screen.
My poor lily looks like it has a walking stick to get around in the garden so I can't help you with your staking dilemma. I love the fragrance of lilies. I can almost smell yours.
OH MY, that first photo should be a painting...it's BEAUTIFUL with the light casting like that! Also, your last post...LOVE 'Chosen Love'...I just added 10 more new daylilies to the garden...can never have enough!
Lynn
They may be falling over but these pictures are so lovely, I wouldn't mind it.
I love your gardening blog. I'm new to gardening and appreciate all that I can learn from you garden experts.
I'm no help. My daylilies are flopping terribly and I haven't even tried to stop it!
Maybe the key is to stake them with a short stake? That seemed to help with my delphiniums, though a good blast of wind will break the stem in half when it's staked low. Mostly I've just stuck with the shorter lilies to avoid the staking problem. My stakes are all in use on the delphs, anyway.
MMD, I'll keep an eye on the comments to see if there's an ingenious answer to this dilemma. I have some fairly tall green stakes with the little "circle" at the end that hold them up. But that means purchasing a lot of them! A few of my lilies did suffer from shorter stakes and wind. They were lovely indoors, though. ;-) Your first photo is absolutely beautiful. May I copy it? Perhaps I'll wax "artistic."
The Lilies are gorgeous - and the lime green Hosta...wow!
Katarina
Hi MMD, oh the lilies are sublime! Good year for them here too. As for staking, I use the ones shown in your first photo, the tall green plastic coated things. The stakes are left in the ground all year to help keep the mad planter from digging in the area when the lilies are dormant. Mine are stuck into the ground pretty far, to help with the leaning. I use black poly crochet twine in long lengths tied first to the stake tightly, then around several stems of the lilies loosely. Sometimes the ties have to be moved up the pole as the stems grow so tall. The larger clumps, like Black Beauty just beginning to open, they are giants!, have several ties holding one or two stems each. More work but worth it to hold those amazing flowers up. A big storm could do oh so much damage that would break a gardeners heart.
Frances
Hello MMD~~Your lilies are gorgeous! I do get hosta envy when I see how they add much needed texture and color to a shade garden. Sighing of course! Our lilies are past bloom time...and when blooming flopped all over the place. The orienpets that wanted to reach the sky were the worst, but, Star Gazer didn't lean too badly. Here it's also a sun/shade factor; those in high shade leaned less then a plant 3 feet away in deeper shade. Gail
No help here, but I did enjoy your similes. And that first photo is a beauty!
I've been getting lily envy lately! They don't grow that well down here so I've no experience with them. But I'll agree with you that many of the stakes out there are just too short. I have trouble corralling some of my Verbena bonariensis because my stakes are too short, and they're the tallest ones I could find. Perhaps those wavy tomato/veggie stakes would work? They're certainly tall and if you got them in at the right time they might work. Good luck with your lovely lilies!
Those are just gorgeous and I'll be the fragrance is tadiefer, as a friend of mine is wont to say. Re staking them, I've bought 3 to 4 ft lengths of rebar at Lowe's and used those for staking various plants.
Helen - thanks for the info. 54" is a good height for stakes.
Lynn - it's definitely the season for Daylily fever. I have to keep reminding myself, smaller flowers mean less deadheading.
Hi, Cheryl, thanks for visiting. The lesson here is - stake the Lilies, as trussed up is better than lying in the mud.
ROR - floppy Daylilies? That's just weird. Stake 'em!
VW - I have short stakes & tall stakes on the Lilies, taller is definitely better.
Shady - it's either shell out the cash for attractive tall stakes or go with bamboo. Yes, you can use the photo. It's an example of what a tripod & sunset can do for flowers.
Frances - leaving the stakes in place certainly avoids the problem of late staking.
Gail - the Lilies are terribly photogtropic, but as they have to perform in shade, staking is the rule.
Jean - the wavy stakes are pretty cool looking on their own. I will have to experiment with staking next year.
Cindy - rebar is cheap & practical. I'm assuming "tadiefer" is a good thing.
Your lilies are looking sublime - no answers for the staking - I use a tall bamboo cane for each stem :(
K
Staking is a necessary evil. I don't like the looks of staked plants but they look better than plants laying in the mulch or draped over their neighbors at crazy angles.
Your Black Dragon photo is stunning. I will definitely look for that one. I did get lucky with one planting of lilies. They are sandwiched between peonies and their stakes don't show, but I don't think they are as tall as yours.
Marnie
I used the spiral tomato stakes this year... mostly because they absolutely stink for tomatoes, and I had them laying around. They work really well for individual stems, but I should have used only the tall ones--the flower heads were too top-heavy and broke off on the ones where I used the shorter spirals. (Although, that just meant that I had to bring them inside... oh darn! ;)
Oh, the creamy yellow on the dark background is too beautiful, MMD!
My one Oriental lily just finished (would bloom in August in a normal climate) and in spite of a few of the stakes with the circle on top, were flopping on the ground. They kept twisting out of the circle - maybe trying for more light, but growing them in shade is the only way I can keep them alive at all here.
The twig supports look interesting, but you'd still have to tie each one on individually, right?
Annie at the Transplantable Rose
Karen - thanks! Sometimes the old fashioned way works too.
Marnie - I saw Black Dragon Lily bulbs for sale at several places, so you should have no trouble finding them.
Blackswamp Girl - tall spiral supports are looking better & better. Thanks for the insight.
Annie - I think the "twigs" on that support are supposed to keep the Lilies from flopping out, but I bet it would be best to ties them on.
I've used pieces of thin bamboo (from Jo-Anne's or other fabric/decorating store) and spray painted them green! I've found it works well, and when tied with some green twine to the stem, it is completely camouflaged!
/first of all, I love your lilies and I have some like them so I know how divine they smell. I've pretty much given up on trying to stake them, I just let them lean and find the diagonal note interesting in the garden.
This is called the line of least resistance, by the way.
When I do stake, I use bamboo and tie things to it using jute twine.
I really like Frances' idea of leaving stakes in place to remind one of where the bulbs are later on, I may just use that one later on. That is, if I become a less lazy gardener.
Jessica - spray painting bamboo stakes is a great idea!
HMH - my Lilies are in too much shade to follow the line of least resistance, but in sun that sounds like a good way to go.
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