Easter lilies (Lilium longiflorum) are recognized throughout North America as the traditional flower associated with the Christian Easter celebration. The fragrant, trumpet-shaped, white blooms adorn church altars over the holiday and are lovely Easter gifts that can be enjoyed indoors – then planted in the garden for years of summer blooms.
The glossy, dark foliage topped by the white, trumpet-shaped flower make the Easter lily a holiday favorite.
Photo Credit: Megan Bame
Remove the anthers with a gentle tug to avoid pollen shedding on the white blooms or your tablecloth. Pollen can stain fabric, so be careful when removing and disposing of the anthers.
Photo Credit: Megan Bame
Select an Easter lily with only one or two open blooms and several buds at different stages of development. This way you can enjoy the flowers and fragrance for a couple of weeks.
Photo Credit: Megan Bame
The legend and lore of the lily’s association with Easter is plentiful. One story goes that lilies grew at the foot of the cross, where drops of Jesus’ sweat fell as he was crucified; another associates the lily with the Virgin Mary; and yet another attributes the tears of a repentant Eve in the Garden of Eden to have brought forth the plant.
I’m partial to the more symbolic idea that the flower retells the Resurrection story with its life cycle: The bulb represents the tomb of Jesus, while the white, fragrant blooms symbolize His life after death. The snowy-white flowers stand for the purity of the Divine Savior and the joy of the Resurrection, while their trumpet shape signifies Gabriel’s trumpet call to rebirth and new life.
Of course, there’s a slight hiccup with this lovely notion, since the Easter lily naturally blooms in June and must be forced in the greenhouse every year to meet the holiday deadline in March or April. So with no real consensus on the Easter lily’s holiday history, I suppose tradition will have to account for this widely accepted – and perhaps, expected – floral display.
While growers work hard to force these flower bulbs to bloom during a narrow (and floating) two-week window, Easter lily care and maintenance requires little effort for your continued enjoyment.
Here’s what you need to know:
Start by selecting the best plant. Choose an Easter lily that has dark green leaves on a compact plant (meaning a lily that’s not too tall that it becomes top-heavy when the large blooms open). You can prolong your enjoyment of the flowers by picking out a plant that has only 1-2 open blooms and several unopened buds. If the plant’s packaged in a paper, plastic or mesh sleeve that surrounds the foliage and flowers, remove the sleeve immediately for prolonged blooming and best quality. (Note: A decorative pot cover is fine to leave on – the sleeve was intended for plant protection during shipping, the pot cover is for aesthetics.)
Easter lilies prefer cool temperatures, like 60-65 degrees F. Place your plant in bright, indirect light and water it thoroughly when the soil surface is dry to the touch. Just be sure to remove that decorative pot cover when you give your plant a drink, so the water can drain out. Remember, it’s never a good idea to let potted plants stand in water, since this can promote root diseases!
The flowers will continue blooming for 1-2 weeks. You may choose to remove the yellow anthers before the pollen starts to shed. (The flower will last longer if you do, and there’s less chance of the pollen staining the white petals – or worse, your tablecloth!) When a mature flower starts to wither, simply cut it off and continue to enjoy the fresher blooms.
Once all of the flowers have been exhausted, place the plant in a sunny window and continue watering as needed until the threat of frost outside has passed. Then select a well-drained, sunny site outdoors where you can plant the bulb about 6 inches deep. Be sure to water immediately after planting and then as needed.
The foliage will die back shortly after planting, but there’s no need to worry. Simply cut back the old shoots and wait for new ones to emerge soon afterward. Your lily may rebloom in late summer, but thereafter, it’ll most likely bloom in June (because remember, the bulb was first forced to bloom at Easter by manipulating greenhouse conditions).
Just think, if you get an Easter lily every year to celebrate the holiday, you can grow quite a garden of these majestic beauties! As for forcing the bulbs again for next Easter, well, I’d leave that to the pros and just enjoy those glorious summertime blooms in the garden.
