Getting it to bloom

Why won't my Pyrenean Lily bloom? (and how to make it flower)

Also called Pyrenean lily, Yellow Turk's-cap lily, Yellow martagon lily (Lilium pyrenaicum).

More about pyrenean lily

About Pyrenean Lily

Lilium pyrenaicum · also called Pyrenean lily, Yellow Turk's-cap lily · flowering

Lilium pyrenaicum is a species lily native to the Pyrenees and northern Iberian Peninsula, growing in mountain meadows and woodland edges at elevations up to 2,000 m. It produces pendulous, strongly reflexed yellow flowers spotted dark maroon in the throat, borne in racemes of up to 12 blooms on stems 60–120 cm tall. Plant bulbs 15 cm deep in autumn in moist, well-drained, humus-rich soil with the base of the plant shaded and the upper growth in full sun; it tolerates alkaline conditions better than most lilies. Toxic to cats — all parts can cause acute kidney failure; mildly GI irritant to dogs.

Plant type: flowering

The reasons pyrenean lily isn't blooming

Almost every non-blooming pyrenean lily traces back to one of these, roughly in order of how common they are:

Too little sun — most of these need full sun (or very bright light) to flower well; shade gives leaves, not blooms.
Too much nitrogen feed, driving lush foliage at the expense of flowers (very common with general or lawn feeds).
The plant has not been deadheaded, so it stops flowering once it sets seed.
Irregular watering — drought or waterlogging at the budding stage makes buds abort.
It is still too young or was checked by a transplant and is rebuilding before flowering.

Feeding pyrenean lily a high-nitrogen general feed and growing it in too little sun — you get a big leafy plant and almost no flowers.

The fix — how to get pyrenean lily to flower

Maximise sun. Give pyrenean lily the sunniest spot you have — for most bedding and fruiting plants, more direct light directly means more flowers.
Switch the feed. Move off high-nitrogen feeds and use a higher-potassium "bloom" or tomato-type feed as it comes into flower.
Deadhead regularly. Remove spent flowers often to keep it producing more rather than stopping to set seed.
Water consistently. Keep moisture even through budding and flowering — drought-then-flood swings make buds drop.

Light and feeding do most of the heavy lifting here. Dial in the spot with the light guide for pyrenean lily and get the feeding right with the pyrenean lily fertilising schedule — the wrong feed (too much nitrogen) is one of the most common silent reasons a healthy plant makes leaves instead of flowers.

Bloom season and what to expect

Pyrenean Lily flowers across its growing season (mostly summer) and, kept fed and deadheaded, can bloom for many weeks or right up to frost.

Post-bloom care so it flowers again

Deadhead, keep feeding lightly, and many will rebloom; collect seed from the best plants at the end of the season if you want to grow them again.

For everything else this plant needs day to day, see the full pyrenean lily care brief and its watering schedule — a stressed, badly watered plant rarely has the energy to flower at all.

Pyrenean Lily blooming — frequently asked questions

Why won't my pyrenean lily flower?

Pyrenean Lily blooms on the season's growth given enough sun, warmth and the right feed — there is no cold or photoperiod trick, just good growing conditions and a bloom-leaning feed. The most common reason it is not happening: Too little sun — most of these need full sun (or very bright light) to flower well; shade gives leaves, not blooms.

How do I make pyrenean lily bloom?

Give pyrenean lily the sunniest spot you have — for most bedding and fruiting plants, more direct light directly means more flowers. Move off high-nitrogen feeds and use a higher-potassium "bloom" or tomato-type feed as it comes into flower.

When does pyrenean lily normally bloom?