Planting overwintered tropical lily tubers

[Mosfun]

UPDATE. Red Flare is going crazy, Antares is just sending out leaves and roots, that should take off, it was a much more vigorous grower in my pond. Hopeful anyway. I do water changes to scoop out the algae, and refresh the water every 2-3 days as needed. Lights are on 9 hours, not 12. Here are some pictures. All red flare, the Antares is on the left just beginning to sprout her stuff!

 

[Mosfun]

Ok on the left are three Red Flare, you can see large mature, serrated edge pads. On the right, is the Antares, it's the main tuber from last summer. It has several mature pads also. No flowers yet. Planted in soil and kitty litter. Fertilized every 3-4 weeks. I'd say they are doing ok. Just waiting on those glorious blooms!

 

[Mosfun]

Well, 15-19 leaves on Antares, but no buds in sight. Fertilizing every 3 weeks. Meanwhile, both of my Red Flare tubers are producing leaves and each have flowers! Counting the third bud coming up. They open at dusk, fully open at nightfall, and close around 9am. I will be wading through and pulling out the "done" leaves and buds. Soon the natives will be finished blooming, August is bittersweet. Annual Cicadas singing, Katydids, all marking the coming Autumn. I'll probably overwinter these tubers again.

 

[Mosfun]

November 2 update. All of my tropical nightblooming lillies have been pulled up to the shelf. I added in my sister's Antares to the group. We expect frost this week. After that frost, I will pull them all out, trim off the multitude, (ridiculous amount of gorgeous roots), and aerial leaves, and let the tubers dry out. When they are dry in 1-2 days, I will coat them with the planting powder, and place them into marked bags of damp, but not soaked, just that hint of coolness implying moisture, peat moss. I'll close the ziplock baggies, and put them into a box. The box will be stored until March 1. Then I will start the process again. That's my plan. The flowers on Antares and Red Flare were identical to my eye. The difference was in the leaves. RF had red leaves, Antares remained green. All of my plants 4, have unopened buds. It's hard to cut away everything growing so beautifully, but it is the only way they will survive in this SE Pennsylvania winter.

 

[Mosfun]

November 9, 2021 update: tubers all pulled. My sister's antares did not bloom, probably not enough sun. My two plants had buds on them, but the water is icy cold, and air temps have been in the 30s F at night. My Red Flare and Antares did not produce any little nodes I could use for additional plants. They all produced flowers, with Antares sending up continuous blooms in August. I'm in SE Pennsylvania, they need heat and sun for sure. A tornado blew through here, and finished off the maple that was blocking some of their sun, so hopefully next summer. Here are two pictures of the tubers. My sister's Antares is the biggest and healthiest looking, followed by my three, and then the last top row are the Red Flare. I love how the one tuber resembles a human heart. Might be my valentine card picture. lol

Edited to say, they all had extensive beautiful root systems beyond the plastic mesh pots. My sister's plant split the pot. It was held together by the roots!

 

[Mosfun]

Well new year, and once again I have shoot producing red flare and antares tubers. About half were rotted when I pulled them from their peat moss baggies. I am looking forward to another promising season. Two red flares, two antares, a third antares was from the plant I had sent to my sister last summer.

My little aquarium did not survive, some bumpkin cracked it when it was stored on the porch. I bought a big glass "cookie" jar with a lid, at Walmart, pre-rinsed some kitty litter and mixed a crushed tropical fertilizer (lilies) into it. About 2 inches of this and the tubers seated perfectly. I marked the outside of the jar so I know which is which. I have a small heat pad beneath the jar, and it sits in a sunny window. I'll need to check my diary to see when I added lights. More light=more algae. Only four tubers for me, and my sister's glorious tuber. I may be able to divide that, we'll see. I did trim a portion of it away as it had started to rot on one end. I'll update!

 

[Cichlidboy]

use some UNSCENTED clay cat litter. For floaters, I usually either put a rock on one end (where the eyes are not starting up) or wrap a string around a flat stone to the bottom of the tuber. Once you have roots, they will anchor the tuber down. If the tubers are that small, you could try using the cat litter and some toothpicks/popcicle sticks set crosswise over top the tuber.

I just opened my plastic bags of overwintered tropical lily tubers. Three have teeny tiny shoots, I tried to plant them in their growing container (nice glass jar) but I can't anchor them down, or need a suggestion as to how to anchor them. For now they are floating. I can find guides on planting established tubers with roots and growing tips, but nothing about the tiny tubers. Can anyone offer suggestions? Thanks! Maureen

I tie all my floaters to rocks with thin twine or rubber bands

 

[Mosfun]

Here is a picture of current growth, more advaced than they were last year. Smaller container, probably warmer water temp

 

[Mosfun]

I checked my diary, I will add lights soon, I have a 2nd hand aquarium I found at a thrift store. When it gets too crowded I'll prepare more litter, with a fertilizer tab crushed up in it, and move everyone over. Growth is about a month ahead of last year. I think the smaller vessel and lid help trap the heat, as well as condensation. I'm seeing some algae starting. My outside water garden is waking up. 10 greenfrogs, 8 adult goldie, one shubunkin survived the winter, and about 40 first years. Snail cleaning up. Native lily (one of several) sent up a pad. My bubbler died over the winter, when the power went out at the pond. The floating heater I had just bought the end of November had a leak and shorted out, pond froze. I was able to return it to Amazon (return window was about to close), and purchased a model like the original I had. I don't think they are built to last more than 1-2 seasons.

 

[Mosfun]

as of May 1, 2022 I was able to move all of the plants to a thrift store aquarium ($4). I prepared the unscented clay cat litter with one tropical lily grow tab ground up and mixed it (I pre rinsed the litter). The bigger tuber had several plantlets, I am not so sure they will be as strong as the single tuber plants. I tried to separate them Red Flare/Antares (both are essentially the same flower, just pad difference). I covered the top with stretch and seal, and added my amazon grow wands for additional light. It sits in a sunny window (when the sun is out in SE Pennsylvania). I also added heat pads under the aquarium so the heat will help keep them happy. It was easier in the thick walled glass cookie jar. They all look happy, new pads are coming up. I will keep this up to date, message me with questions.

 

[Mosfun]

Well, it didn't go well this year. They were thriving in the big closed jar, and even in the aquarium for a month or so, and then nothing. I added lightsticks, there was heat beneath the aquarium. Algae took over, so beginning of June, I moved them all to the pond. Yesterday I went in and pulled up the pots, all empty of plants. I found two floating, and replanted them, several floating tubers. I won't be putting this much effort into this again, unless these two take off.

 

[Max Hadrian]

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Ok on the left are three Red Flare, you can see large mature, serrated edge pads. On the right, is the Antares, it's the main tuber from last summer. It has several mature pads also. No flowers yet. Planted in soil and kitty litter. Fertilized every 3-4 weeks. I'd say they are doing ok. Just waiting on those glorious blooms!

How long does it takes until the pads looking round like that? Mine are still oval (and I think they're shrinking).