lilies and dahlias- when to dig up?

I have never grown either of these before this year so dont really know what to do. I have clay soil so I guess it's best to dig them up but do I wait until after the frost or should I be doing it now? Am I correct in saying that I cut off growth, dig them up, get dirst off , wrap them in paper and store them in frost free place?

 

Hi Lazy. I don't know anything about dahlias (except earwigs love them) but can you tell us what type of lily you mean? Unfortunately the name lily is used for so many plants that it is confusing. True lily, calla lily, the various arums, toad lilies etc. :confused:

 

Hi, L.G. You sound about right on how to deal with Dahlias. I've already taken mine up and tucked them away for the winter. They are offering the possibility of frost, so I did it sooner rather than later.

 

With Dahlias they always say wait till after the first frost when the vegitation has gone black before you dig them up. Dahlia bulbs, being protected under the ground, are much hardier than the foliage.

Once lifted, you must avoid water getting down the now hollow stem and rotting the crown. You can either dry them upside down for a couple of weeks to drain the stem, or you can push a screwdriver down the stem and push a hole through the bottom to do the same thing.

 

thanks for the replies I will maybe dig the dahlias up this wekend.

I cant remember the names of the lilies but I know one was called pink perfection which i think is a trumpet type lily and the others were very similar if this helps at all.

 

Hi LG, contrary to PeterS, like cajary I took have taken up my Dahlias already, but it's the first year I have had them, and just followed my Mum's advice. Mum has 20+yr old Dahlias that were my Grandad's.

I took some hemerocallis (Day Lily) up after they flowered because I was having a change around and they are going to live somewhere else next year, I'll replant them early Spring.
Other hemerocallis I will leave in the ground, same as my Gladioli.

I leave the foliage as long as poss, and tie it up when it looks untidy.

Beki x

 

Are the lilies in the ground or in a container? If they are in the ground I would leave them. That type which is the true lily is perfectly hardy, its the damp that gets them but watch for slugs eating the new shoots as they come through in spring. If lilies are in containers I would leave them. I generally find they are better the second year and then i lift them and split them at the end of that year. Lilies are best lifted at the end of the year after the stems have died off. Carefully seperate any crowded bulbs and replant immediately. They do not like being dried out. Late autumn is the best time to plant new lilies cause then they have more time to put out new root growth.

 

The main problem I get with Dahlias is how to get rid of the of-shoot plants in the Spring. If anyone wants any "Arabian Night" variety, next Spring, then give me a shout.

 

my lilies are in pots at present with still a lot of top growth. can I just pput the pots as they are in a shed and just not water them for a while until they die down a bit or wouldnt this be a good idea

 

At last Geoff and I agree on something. :D

Nothing to add to what he says, your lilies are the true lily, lilium.

 

I leave my bishop of llandaff dalias in the ground and all my lilys, they just come back up bigger every year. Have done this for over 6yrs now.

 

I have recently had a curious thing with my Salvia patens, which also has tubers and can be dug up and treated the same way as Dahlias (they say).

I dug them up 10 days ago, for the first time, and set them to dry off in a dark unheated garage. However they have all started to sprout again! The shoots would have died off in the dark, and I was advised by a Salvia expert to pot them up and give them light. I suspect that this may be due to them being dug up too early and not realising that winter was here. I wonder if you could have this problem with Dahlias, and is that why the advice is to not dig them up until the frost has killed off the foliage.

 

Could be so, Peter.
Although I never had it happen with dhalias, the drying off seems to force dormancy.
I have grown patens and overwintered the tubers but it was a long time ago, dont remember regrowth happening though.
I think there is a possability that dhalias have a more definite rest period perhaps. than salvia patens, which would like to be evergreen, except under very dry conditions.
Could be wrong, just guessing.

 

I think you must be right Pete. I have been told that most Salvias don't have a resting period in hot climates. Do Dahlias - where it never freezes.

Incidentally, I have just been reading an excellent book on botany (published in Dehli for Indian students!), and only now realise why single Dahlia tubers wont grow, but single potatoe tubers will grow. A Dahlia tuber is an enlarged part of the root, along with turnips, carrots etc. They generally don't have bud growing points. But a potatoe, along with bulbs, corms, rhizomes are all enlarged parts of the stem, and stems do have bud growing points. The scales of a tulip are simply enlarged underground leaves which grow from the stem, which is very short and at the bottom of the bulb, just above the roots.

 

Its all very interesting stuff Peter, the difference between bulbs, corms, rhisomes,tubers etc.
Once you understand the differences, the methods of propagation become simpler.