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  • Results 1 to 11 of 11

    Thread: Tropical lilies

    1. #1
      SueSTx's Avatar
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      Tropical lilies

      Saturday I took my tropicals out of the lily tank, cut them back, and brought them in and dropped them in the aqurium. The water stunk today. I did a complete water change and dropped them back in bare root. I'm thinking about just storing the tubers in baggies with cat litter and storing them in the closet til May.

      I just don't have the room or desire to do the aqurium another winter. 7 out of 13 survived last winter. Maybe a couple will survive the closet. If not, I guess I'll give up on them.
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    2. #2
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      Yes, the decay of dinged roots and shoots will be a problem in a small volume of water.

      Several sessions of trimming, water changes, soaks in a light bleach solution can usually keep a healthy tuber or rhisome in good condition while it settles into a new routine

      Regards, andy
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    3. #3
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      If you have the smallish, hard walnut looking propagating tubers, they will actually do better in the closet. They form as adaptation for a lily to survive the try season and will want to be either dried and stored or wet, heated and growing.

      If you have the large remnant of the growing rhizome...I don't think there is much to be gained beyond stinking up your closet. They aren't designed to be stored.

      I can get pictures tomorrow of what I am talking about, if that helps with the decision.
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    4. #4
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      I broke off these two tubers. The smaller is about the size of a quarter and the larger is about the size of a REAL silver dollar. The larger looks like it has a really small plant starting to grow out where the plant snapped off.

      Do you think these tubers will keep dry?

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    5. #5
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      Tubers that dry out are usually ex tubers, demised. They need a tad of moisture about them or the bits that form sprouts pop their clogs.

      Damp sand, peat are good for prolonged dormancy of several years at 50-70°f temps. Tubers that dry out are good for cat toys and thats about it.

      The exposed cells where the plant snapped might better be dabbed with sulphur and slightly scorched, to seal the starch from anything that might cause decay.

      Yups you might well see sprouts form while temps are mild, given 70°f plus the tuber wants to sprout like billio.

      Smallish tubers can be a bit more useful than larger tubers, which may well be older by years (even cold killed duds from prior seasons) and on their way out, while the smaller tubers are likely to have more years and more sprouts in their future.

      A ziploc baggy with slightly damp sand or peat should be reliable for their excursion into the closet, if you have sulphur a good dusting before they are bagged should provide an extra measure of safety so's no pesky fungus spores get the chance to become a blight

      A brief dip in a solution with some captan would be another option to eliminate spores.

      Should the urge to wake a tuber up be tempting, feel free to indulge, a sprouting tuber makes quite a pretty feature in a vase of water at room temperature, stunning submerse foliage in good light. A pleasant way to raise new plants in the Winter months.

      Miami Rose, Lavender Lace, Tina, islamorada, Ostara have the most spectacular mottled foliage, while Director Moore and Gigantea have fabulous transluscent bright green lilypads when cultivated indoors

      Regards, andy
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    6. #6
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      Those tubers appear to be some prime candidates to be stored dry...and dry is the operative word. I don't think individuals with limited experience growing tropical lilies comprehend just how dry the tubers can be and in fact, should be.

      They are essentially vessels of a sort to survive drought conditions, if conditions aren't right for growth, then moisture and dampness become their Achilles tendon,either with anemic growth in sub prime, wet conditions that depletes the stored nutrients or fungal attacks in cool damp conditions.

      Here are some photos from today showing just how dry things can get. It makes no never mind if the outside of the tuber dries as long as the germplasm and endosperm retain moisture. First, the dried up pond from which I removed the tubers, a shot of the dried tuber, a cross section that shows the endosperm is still good after months of no added moisture and a sprout is waiting to sproing as soon as water is added. Finally a shot showing the small secondary tuber that is visible in the pic of the overall tuber....and even this small one is still viable.

      I am not suggesting you store them quite this dry, what is pictured is actually neglect and not storage<g>....you can see the endosperm separating from the tuber wall, a sign it will dry and die soon...
      But I am saying there is no need to be afraid to store them dry, it is the natural condition for their dormant period.....period. If you have other house plants and a regimen of misting, tropical tubers can be stored in onion bags and misted whenever the other plants are. That is sufficient moisture to keep them viable and you remove the need of introducing any hazardous chemicals into your living space.
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    7. #7
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      Thanks for the facts Craig...AGAIN!

      Makes sense to me because I bought a bunch of dried water lily tubers at an aquarium store this spring in one of those cell packs...every one sprouted!
      ...Joyce

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    8. #8
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      Thanks guys.

      The water smelled again today so I trimmed off all the leaves, buds, and roots and dropped them back into a bucket of water.

      A few look like they will survive dry and some are mostly knobby where the roots and leaves were removed.

      I'm trying to decide what I need to do with all this mess. All the tubers came from 7 pots.



      Living in Zone 6, 4 months in the pond and 8 months in the house is beginning to sound like a lot of trouble. I need to rethink this whole tropical thing. I simply do not have room to keep them growing all winter.
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    9. #9
      CraigP's Avatar
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      I'd say you can toss the ones that are knobby because of leaves. buds and roots. They are usually the growing tuber and won't over winter. Anything hard and nut like is worth trying to store.

      I do completely understand what you are saying about tropicals and z6. As much as I enjoy the trops, being in 9B/10A makes the job a lot easier.<g> And short of storing the dried tubers, I really don't believe there is an easy way to keep them going through that long of a winter. Which is why I guess so many people avoid them or treat them like annuals.

      The one thing I would suggest is some tropicals are much easier to tuber than others. That way you'd at least get a supply of starts for the following season, but then to get the maximum enjoyment you are still going to need to start them either indoors or in a cold frame.
      Truth is not what you want it to be; it is what it is. And you must bend to its power or live a lie.”― Miyamoto Musashi

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      Craig

    10. #10
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      You can keep three or four tubers going indefinitely in a gallon container of water at room temperature in good light. A window or strip light will suffice.

      Quite an attractive feature in itself, the submerse foliage alone is quite pretty and offset development is compact indoors at room temps.

      Once in a while it would need topping up, a change of water will be a perk.

      By the time Summer comes round there will be a tangle of new plants to pluck and pot, trade with your friends

      Surplus plants store quite reliable in a small ziploc baggy, given slightly moist media. While storing dry sounds convenient, its worth bearing in mind you don't get in a house the morning dew that just about keeps tubers alive

      No need to waste a favourite plant as an 'annual', at all...

      Regards, andy
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      http://i93.photobucket.com/albums/l42/adavisus/

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    11. #11
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      Sue, you did a wonderful job of separating those all out and into a box for a picture.

      I hear you though about the energy & time. I use to over winter 6-7 T.lilies in the living room with 90% success, but I'd have to keep the pads pruned all winter. Once I went back to work I tried a bag method, where one wraps the whole pot in wet newspaper and double bags it in heavy duty lawn and leaf bags, shut tight with as much air squeezed out as physically possible. The first year they all made it, the next, with my Army son working on his car during R&R in February and the garage door going up & down constantly, lost them all. Needless to say, with working I didn't bother getting more till this summer when I got one. It is still out in the pond, with a bloom, water temp 52F and hard freeze coming tonight, so they claim. Last night they claimed 25F, we hit 35F, so we'll see. I won't get to it today... currently taking a short break from winterizing what HAS to be done, so there isn't serious damage tonight on sprinklers, pipes & valves. Plus, the lawn needed mowing and I'm about ready to head out and clean my pre-filter. Hope Maroon Beauty can hangth in there.
      ~ jj
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