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Forcing Easter Lilies

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Eater Lily
Photo Credit: Megan Bame
Easter lilies are shipped from the greenhouse when the first buds reach the “puffy white stage.”
Even though the Easter lily (Lilium longiflorum) is native to the southern islands of Japan, today more than 95 percent of the Easter lilies grown in North America start on one of 10 bulb farms located along the border of Oregon and California. Easter lily bulbs are cultivated in the field for up to four years before being harvested and shipped in late September/early October to greenhouse growers who use controlled environmental conditions to force their blooming to coincide with Easter.

Forcing Easter lilies is no simple task. Unlike Christmas, which is always on Dec. 25, Easter is a holiday that moves around from year to year. Technically, Easter is the first Sunday following the first full moon after the vernal equinox. So depending on the cycle of the moon, Easter can fall between March 22 and April 25. The market window for Easter lilies is generally only one to two weeks prior to Easter Sunday, so crop scheduling is critical.

Unlike many bulbs, Easter lily bulbs never go dormant, but when they’re exposed to the proper environment, the bulb will sprout. Flowering is induced by supplying a cold, moist treatment. The most common cultivar, ‘Nellie White’, requires at least 1,000 hours of chilling at temperatures of 40-45 degrees F. Once sufficiently chilled, the bulbs are ready to be forced.

Two weeks after planting, in early January, the shoot should emerge. By the first Sunday of Lent (six weeks prior to Easter), flower buds measuring ½-1 inch long should be visible. The time period from “visible bud” to the first open flower allows some wiggle room to fine-tune the blooming to best coincide with each year’s market window.

Easter lilies are shipped when the older buds are at the “puffy white stage.” Research has shown that it takes 35 days at 63 degrees F for the plant to mature from visible bud to that puffy stage. A bud that’s 1 inch long requires 20 days to flower, while a 5-inch-long bud reaches bloom in five days. Commercially, the plants are separated to different greenhouses based on the size of the buds so that groups can be treated to various temperatures to encourage flowering at the desired time.

Warnings
  • Easter lilies are toxic to cats, causing kidney failure. Emergency care should be sought immediately if a cat is seen eating any part of the lily – particularly the leaves! (Note that cats appear to be the only animal reportedly affected by the plant.)
Facts
  • Easter lily bulbs must be handled up to 40 times in the 2-3 years it takes to grow from a baby bulblet to a commercial-size bulb ready to be harvested and forced for Easter.
Definitions
  • Determinate: An inflorescence in which the terminal flower blooms first, thereby halting further elongation of the flowering stem.
 
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