Gardening with Lilies of the Valley

In the past, I have told you how I love Lilies of the Valley and how I was thinking of putting them into my little garden out front.

My neighbor who had them growing in her front garden has since moved away and the ones she told me to take did not survive.I took about six of her plants which are pictured above and put them into my garden around the lone white lily that is coming up.

If there is one thing I know about Lilies of the Valley, it is that if they take hold they will multiply and in a couple of years my Lilies will have to vie for space in the garden.  My grandfather had a row of them along the back fence near the gate and every year they came up in profusion and the smell of the flowers was pungent when you went to the back gate.

A neighbor in my new neighborhood has them growing in bunches by her back gate.  She also offered them to me.  This year I will either have to buy the plants or see if I can get them to grow in my garden.  Even though they only flower once around in June, the tight green foliage is pretty in itself the rest of the growing season.

This is how you can grow lilies of the valley in your garden:

1. Make sure the ground where you plant them has good drainage.
2. Lilies of the Valley like partial sunlight and shade.
3. Soak the flower stems in lukewarm water to give them a faster start.
4. Snip off the end of the roots before inserting them in the soil so that the plant will take up water and grow faster.
5. After planting, soak the plants with water to get them started
6. Snipping the blooms will not hurt them after they have bloomed but they only bloom once.
7. Leave the plants in place after the flowers have gone to give the plants strength.

My first attempt at transplanting this flower was a complete failure but the second plant took and came back last year with bigger and more aromatic flowers.  As I said earlier, these flower tend to spread over the years and multiply.  I have lost most of my lilies of the valley but will continue to try.  I'm sure sometime I will have my favorite flowers back again.