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Lily

Lilium spp.
Also known as: True Lily, Asiatic Lily, Oriental Lily

Lily is a flower in the Liliaceae family. It grows best in full sun to part shade with medium moisture, and is listed for USDA zones 4-8. Plants sit about 6 inches apart.

Varieties

1 · sorted by days to maturity
  • Lily

    PROPAGATION CATEGORY: Bulb (not currently in seed catalog). Bloom season: Early to late summer. Attracts: Bees, butterflies, hummingbirds. Flower meaning: Purity, devotion.

    True Lilies (Lilium) are top-selling cut flowers grown from scaly bulbs, with large showy blooms. Asiatic lilies are upright and scentless; Oriental lilies are fragrant with large blooms. Plant bulbs in fall or spring. Note: all parts (petals, leaves, pollen, even vase water) are severely toxic to cats.

    Growing notes: Botanical name: Lilium spp.|Hardiness zones: 4-8|Propagation: bulb|Sun needs: Full sun to part shade|Water needs: Medium|Mature height: 2-6 feet|Spacing: 9 inches|Bloom season: Early to late summer

Family
Liliaceae
Category
Flower
Form
Bulb
Lifecycle
perennial
Zone
4-8
Height
2–6 ft
Spread
0.6666666666666666–1 ft
Sun
Full sun to part shade

Plant spacing

4 plants per square footSquare-foot planting diagram: a 1-foot square divided into a 2-by-2 grid holding 4 lily plants spaced 6 inches apart.
4 plants per square foot

In a square-foot bed, space lily about 6 in apart — that fits 4 plants in each 1-foot square (2×2). Wider rows or containers space the same.

Water
Medium

Plan your lily planting

Add lily to a free GardenDraft plan and get sow, transplant, and harvest dates computed for your ZIP code — with a drag-and-drop bed layout and reminders when it’s time to plant.

Start your free plan →

Growing timeline

Propagation
Bulb
Schedule anchor
First Frost

Care & troubleshooting

No curated care & troubleshooting advice for lily yet. Our extension-sourced library currently focuses on common edible crops; we're expanding it over time.