May I know I know which type of compost is best for Oriental and Asiatic lilies? BBC Gardeners world suggests that John Innes 2 is best for lilies while the John Innes Technical help team suggested Ericaceous compost. Can anyone out there who has grown lilies advice me from their experience as to which compost to go for?

My mum always used to say, use good old horse turds scraped up form the road outside the house???

On Thu, 25 Mar 2010 09:06:46 -0400, crustyshoveller
wrote:


farida;881363 Wrote:
May I know I know which type of compost is best for Oriental and Asiatic
lilies? BBC Gardeners world suggests that John Innes 2 is best for
lilies while the John Innes Technical help team suggested Ericaceous
compost. Can anyone out there who has grown lilies advice me from their
experience as to which compost to go for?

My mum always used to say, use good old horse turds scraped up form the
road outside the house???

In yer Bristle during yer war we were in constant competition with the
neighbours to get out and gather the turds while they were still hot
and steaming.

I was, on the way home from school, run over by a lorry on a Belisha
Beacon crossing and it took a load of flesh off of the outside of my
lower leg.

I was taken to hospital by a passing horse and cart coal delivery man.


--
(¯`·. ®óñ© © ²°¹° .·´¯)

"farida" wrote

May I know I know which type of compost is best for Oriental and Asiatic
lilies? BBC Gardeners world suggests that John Innes 2 is best for
lilies while the John Innes Technical help team suggested Ericaceous
compost. Can anyone out there who has grown lilies advice me from their
experience as to which compost to go for?

Most of the species Lilies insist on ericaceous compost, they are lime
haters, but most of the hybrid lilies seem to grow quite happily in neutral
soil. That said I would always go for ericaceous compost for lilies
especially if I lived in a hard water area (as I do) and didn't use rain
water (which I sometimes run out of).
Don't forget to give them a good feed every few waterings.
--
Regards
Bob Hobden
W.of London. UK

Bob Hobden wrote:
[...]

Most of the species Lilies insist on ericaceous compost, they are lime
haters, but most of the hybrid lilies seem to grow quite happily in
neutral soil. That said I would always go for ericaceous compost for
lilies especially if I lived in a hard water area (as I do) and
didn't use rain water (which I sometimes run out of).
Don't forget to give them a good feed every few waterings.

I've long ago lost my little roll of indicator paper: has anybody tried
and tested the rule-of-thumb way of making soft water for lime-hating
plants? I mean, half a pint of vinegar to a gallon of hard water. I'm
nervous about trying it, as I don't know how hard their "hard" is.

And I'm dubious about Crusty's advice: I've always assumed that lilies
want a nice polite leaf-mould, not a bucolic load of dung. And even if
they do like some muck, they'd certainly want it very well composted.

--
Mike.

Mike Lyle wrote:
Bob Hobden wrote:
[...]
Most of the species Lilies insist on ericaceous compost, they are lime
haters, but most of the hybrid lilies seem to grow quite happily in
neutral soil. That said I would always go for ericaceous compost for
lilies especially if I lived in a hard water area (as I do) and
didn't use rain water (which I sometimes run out of).
Don't forget to give them a good feed every few waterings.

I've got day lilies growing in ordinary soil - Norfolk is mainly clay on
chalk, so probably tends towards the alkaline

I've long ago lost my little roll of indicator paper: has anybody tried
and tested the rule-of-thumb way of making soft water for lime-hating
plants? I mean, half a pint of vinegar to a gallon of hard water. I'm
nervous about trying it, as I don't know how hard their "hard" is.

You should be able to get reels of pH indicator paper (not litmus...)
from places like Boot's.

And I'm dubious about Crusty's advice: I've always assumed that lilies
want a nice polite leaf-mould, not a bucolic load of dung. And even if
they do like some muck, they'd certainly want it very well composted.

Most lilies IME are thankful for what they're given.

--
Rusty

Rusty Hinge wrote:
I've got day lilies growing in ordinary soil - Norfolk is mainly clay on
chalk, so probably tends towards the alkaline

I'm not sure day lilies work in the same way as other lilies. I have a huge
clump of day lily that just keeps coming back no matter how mean I am to it
- every year it seems to double in size! - but I've never been able to get
other lilies growing in the same area.

Rusty Hinge wrote:
Mike Lyle wrote:
[...]

I've long ago lost my little roll of indicator paper: has anybody
tried and tested the rule-of-thumb way of making soft water for
lime-hating plants? I mean, half a pint of vinegar to a gallon of
hard water. I'm nervous about trying it, as I don't know how hard
their "hard" is.

You should be able to get reels of pH indicator paper (not litmus...)
from places like Boot's.

Well, certainly. But the point here is that ICBA, and hope somebody else
has done it already.

And I'm dubious about Crusty's advice: I've always assumed that
lilies want a nice polite leaf-mould, not a bucolic load of dung.
And even if they do like some muck, they'd certainly want it very
well composted.

Most lilies IME are thankful for what they're given.

What? Yer actual lily-type lilies, not your not-significantly-related
day ones?

--
Mike.

On 28 Mar 2010 20:53:17 GMT, wrote:

Rusty Hinge wrote:
I've got day lilies growing in ordinary soil - Norfolk is mainly clay on
chalk, so probably tends towards the alkaline

I'm not sure day lilies work in the same way as other lilies. I have a huge
clump of day lily that just keeps coming back no matter how mean I am to it
- every year it seems to double in size! - but I've never been able to get
other lilies growing in the same area.

You know the flowers are edible, do you?


Pam in Bristol

Pam Moore wrote:
I'm not sure day lilies work in the same way as other lilies. I have a huge
clump of day lily that just keeps coming back no matter how mean I am to it
- every year it seems to double in size! - but I've never been able to get
other lilies growing in the same area.
You know the flowers are edible, do you?

Day lily flowers, or all lily flowers? I've not heard that before, no.
What kind of thing would you do with them?

Mike Lyle wrote:
Rusty Hinge wrote:

Most lilies IME are thankful for what they're given.

What? Yer actual lily-type lilies, not your not-significantly-related
day ones?

Well, I was basing the observation on day lilies and tiger lilies.
Should I have tried a wider pool?

--
Rusty

Rusty Hinge wrote:
Mike Lyle wrote:
Rusty Hinge wrote:

Most lilies IME are thankful for what they're given.

What? Yer actual lily-type lilies, not your not-significantly-related
day ones?

Well, I was basing the observation on day lilies and tiger lilies.
Should I have tried a wider pool?

Well, tiger lilies are undeniably true lilies...looks in books...they
do seem to make a point of "well-rotted", and Hellyer even says that,
apart from bone meal and hoof and horn on poor soils, animal manure
shouldn't be used at all. So maybe views are evolving, and the pendulum
is swinging your way; in fact, perhaps you're the swinger...

--
Mike.

Mike Lyle wrote:
Rusty Hinge wrote:
Mike Lyle wrote:
Rusty Hinge wrote:
Most lilies IME are thankful for what they're given.
What? Yer actual lily-type lilies, not your not-significantly-related
day ones?
Well, I was basing the observation on day lilies and tiger lilies.
Should I have tried a wider pool?

Well, tiger lilies are undeniably true lilies...looks in books...they
do seem to make a point of "well-rotted", and Hellyer even says that,
apart from bone meal and hoof and horn on poor soils, animal manure
shouldn't be used at all. So maybe views are evolving, and the pendulum
is swinging your way; in fact, perhaps you're the swinger...

There are very few plants which really appreciate fresh manure

(Vicar to gardener's wife: "Do you think you could - ah - work on him
and persuade him to call it 'fertiliser'?"

"Heaves above, Vicar, it's taken me six years to persuade him to call it
'manure'!")

Cauliflowers (true caulis, not frit broccolis) and celery are the only
two garden plants I can think of. I wouldn't think of giving it to
anything else in any quantity.

Except perhaps a politician.

--
Rusty

On 29 Mar 2010 09:08:09 GMT, wrote:

Pam Moore wrote:
I'm not sure day lilies work in the same way as other lilies. I have a huge
clump of day lily that just keeps coming back no matter how mean I am to it
- every year it seems to double in size! - but I've never been able to get
other lilies growing in the same area.
You know the flowers are edible, do you?

Day lily flowers, or all lily flowers? I've not heard that before, no.
What kind of thing would you do with them?

Sorry, Day lilies only. I first heard it on TV from no less than
Prince Charles in his own garden. I've only eaten them straight off
the plant, or on salads. They have a peppery taste. Interesting.

Pam in Bristol

Pam Moore wrote:
Sorry, Day lilies only. I first heard it on TV from no less than
Prince Charles in his own garden. I've only eaten them straight off
the plant, or on salads. They have a peppery taste. Interesting.

Similar to nasturtiums?

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