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why did my lillies not flower thi season

chaz

By Chaz

antrim, United Kingdom

the leaves where brown with holes




Answers

 

The holes in the leaves suggest something like the dreaded lily beetle. Did you see any red beetles? The adults lay eggs which leave grubs on the leaves which they eat, and then they progress to the stems and roots. Horrible pest. I'd dig them up and see what damage has been done to the bulbs. (Carefully so you can plant them again if ok). If it's not too bad they might come back next year as long as the plant can make a little growth this year to build up the bulb again.
If they have flowered previously, it's possible that damage in previous years has weakened the plant or damaged the flower shoot which forms within the bulb.

5 Jul, 2009

 

thanks berti but how do i stop the lilly beetle

5 Jul, 2009

 

Unfortunately there is no biological control for lily beetle - its a case of being vigilant once the leaves appear next year and picking off the little blighters - they're about the size of aladybird, but bright scarlet red, without spots. Have a latex glove on or a plastic bag over your hand, pick them off (they're very quick) and kill them.

5 Jul, 2009

How do I say thanks?

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