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.
Easter lilies are shipped from the greenhouse when the first buds reach the “puffy white stage.”
Photo Credit: Megan Bame
The market window for Easter lilies is pretty narrow. Most are sold the week before Easter.
Photo Credit: Megan Bame
Forcing Easter lilies is no simple task. Unlike Christmas, which is always on December 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.
In order to determine the appropriate temperature manipulation, growers use a tedious method called leaf counting. The premise of leaf counting is that, as a determinate plant, once the flower buds have been initiated, no new leaves will form. A formula using the total number of leaves on the plant compared with the number of leaves that have and have not unfolded is used to determine the plant’s stage of development leading up to the visible bud.
Since temperature affects the rate of leaf unfolding, modifying the temperature allows the grower to increase or decrease the speed at which the plant develops. To increase the rate of leaf unfolding, the temperature is increased; to decrease the rate of leaf unfolding, the temperature’s lowered. (Remember, the goal is to hit a 1-2 week window that changes from year to year.)
Even with perfect timing, an estimated 5-15 percent of the crop will likely mature earlier than desired. With adequate cooler space, Easter lilies can be placed in the dark at 34-40 degrees F for up to one week at the puffy white stage with no detrimental effects. Considering the pressure to hit such a narrow market period, some growers work with a schedule that’s one week early just to ensure the plants aren’t too late. Despite all this work that goes into Easter lily production, the value of an Easter lily at retail on Easter Monday isn’t much.
Since the natural bloom time for Lilium longiflorum is June, home gardeners shouldn’t expect their lilies to rebloom next Easter. If you plant yours in the ground after the holiday in a sunny, well-drained location, you’ll likely be rewarded with glorious blooms in the summertime, but for a second Easter showing, you’ll have to follow the guidelines for forcing. (Personally, I think this Easter, I’ll show the growers my appreciation for their efforts by purchasing my Easter lily instead of trying to force it!)
