Anybody know something about Oriental Lillies?

I have just finished a job I have been dreading and of course had put it off until now which is a bit late.
I have had the double Miss Lucy (my favourite oriental) growing in a big pot for the last 3 odd years. Last year they didn't flower very well so had a fair idea they had multiplied and were over crowded. I knew it was going to be 1 hell of a job to get them out of the pot without carnage (that dreaded crunch sound when you spear the bulbs!).
After an hour of an almighty struggle I have got 34!!!! big bulbs out of the pot, over crowded doesn't quite paint the picture, jammed together does. Anyway I have been pretty successful with not damaging the bulbs but have broken quite a few of the growing stems as they had grown about 4 inches already (my fault I should have plucked up courage sooner). If I replant the bulbs with no growing point will the bulbs send up new ones? Some of the really big bulbs have 2 grwoing points so I am hoping they will make new ones....does anybody know, thanks.

 

I am really not sure your climate, zone. etc. But if I disturbed mine in May, knowing that they are sending up some stems then for later blooming in July, and I broke them off, I would probably give up that they would not appear again until next year. And just re-plant accordingly.

 

Thank you @redstar . So therefore am I best to just store the bulbs without growing points and replant next season or replant now? If no growing point I'd worry they would rot? it's only March so plenty of time for the ones with stems to resettle and flower this season, here the Oriental Lilies flower about middle of August. Many people won't have even planted theirs yet.

 

I would plant them anyway, while in the soil they get nutrients needed for next year, if stored they do not. I have never "stored " a lily bulb. All my lily bulbs are in ground, and remain in ground forever.

 

I get the feeling the ones that have had their growing points removed will grow masses of new shoots, in effect each scale will go about making new bulbils, and you will have done a massive propagation exercise.

If they were my favourite then I think I would have broken the container rather than ruin the bulbs

Was it one of those stupid ones they sell which are narrower at the top than they are at the bottom?

 

No @pete because they are my favourite oriental I had them in a very nice ceramic pot which would have taken 1 hell of a belt to break.
I have replanted a dozen with growing points back in the same big pot with new soil and loads of rotted manure so hope they will flower well again. Not too sure what I'm going to do with the rest of the bulbs and the ones with broken growing points. Got 22 most of which are the size of your average orange so really don't need loads of new ones if that is what I have achieved by breaking the growing points Am I best to repot them tho rather than store them until the beginning of next year which is when I have planted new bulbs in the past?

 

Not much help but I broke some of mine last year, replanted in ground/pots and they didn't flower. Haven't had a prod at them yet, job to do this week or next.. fingers crossed they have multiplied like Pete said. Will let you know

 

I certainly wouldn't dry them off at this time of the year, something will grow from those with the broken shoots and should be allowed to go through the growing season.

 

Thanks @pete I'll repot the remaining with and without growing points tomorrow

 

Hope I'm right

 

So do I...only joking @pete, no worries if the ones with a growing tip "disappear"!

 

I doubt they will disappear entirely, as single scales can be used for propagation, just not quite sure if each scale will now grow a new leaf and a bulbil or the whole bunch of scales, ie. the bulb, will combine to form a new single flowering stem.