A product programme planned from cultivar and pot selection to growing conditions and home care. Shape your potted lily programme with us for brands, wholesalers and retail collections.
Specify cultivar and colour, pot diameter, bulbs per pot, target height, bud count, packaging and label language. Share quantities in pots, together with your destination and delivery dates.
Select a cultivar & request production (TR)Bulb preparation, rooting, leaf development, budding and dispatch are tracked as separate stages. Light, temperature and irrigation are planned around crop development and the potting medium. Cultivar, volume, pricing and delivery conditions are agreed at quotation stage.
A bright position, free drainage and even moisture. Keep green leaves after the flowers fade and allow dormancy for the next growing season.
Go to home careReviewed: 08.10.2026
Figures apply to the named series and source conditions. Planning examples are not product guarantees; confirm them against the current cultivar sheet and bulb lot. Historical catalogues do not establish current stock or prices.
The sales unit is a rooted, budded pot. This workflow starts with commercially prepared, pre-cooled bulbs.
| Stage | Work and checks | Release criterion |
|---|---|---|
| 1 · Bulb receipt | Record cultivar, circumference grade, count, cooling history, arrival temperature and health documents. Separate soft/rotted bulbs. | Lot identity and supplier protocol complete. |
| 2 · Thawing and planting | Follow the supplier thawing protocol. Roots down, tip up; moisten the substrate evenly after planting. | Labelled pot, free drainage, recorded planting date. |
| 3 · Rooting and emergence | Monitor root-zone temperature and pot weight. Record emergence and root condition. | Uniform emergence and healthy roots. |
| 4 · Leaf expansion | Start series-appropriate feeding. Measure height, leaf colour, irrigation use and light; space crowded pots. | Balanced stems and visible buds. |
| 5 · Bud development and colour | Monitor drying stress, condensation and bud loss. Update the sales date from observed development. | Sound, coloured buds matching buyer specifications. |
| 6 · Grading and dispatch | Check pot stability, height, buds, leaves and roots. Add lot and care labels. | Dispatch check complete; quantity recorded in pots. |
Historical Matrix and Tiny examples list 60–70 days; the Romance guide gives 13–16 weeks. These are forcing times for prepared bulbs; cooling, procurement and transport are additional. Confirm cultivar, lot and season before committing a dispatch date.
Start with a compact cultivar bred for pots. A 12/14 bulb grade means 12–14 cm circumference, not diameter.
| Series / cultivar | Group | Catalogue height | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Matrix / Orange Matrix | Asiatic | 40–50 cm | 60–70 days |
| Tiny Bee / Tiny Ghost | Asiatic | 40–50 cm | 60–70 days |
| Tiny Invader / Tiny Padhye | Asiatic | 30–40 cm | 60–70 days |
| First Romance / Pink Romance | Oriental | 40–50 cm | 90–100 days |
Height and timing are 2017–2018 catalogue references. Confirm current availability, colour, fragrance, bud count and grade with the supplier. A cut cultivar is not automatically suitable for pots.
| Reference | Size / quantity | Scope |
|---|---|---|
| Van den Bos | 12 cm / >0.62 L / 35 pots·m⁻² | Net growing-area reference |
| Van den Bos | 14 cm / >1 L / 30 pots·m⁻² | Spacing depends on the canopy |
| Van den Bos | 17 cm / >2 L / 25 pots·m⁻² | Not gross building capacity |
| Romance multi-bulb planting | 15 cm: 3 bulbs; 25.5 cm: 5–7 bulbs | Guide example for this series only |
Matrix: at least 2.5 cm of medium below and 5 cm above the bulb, preserving space for stem roots. Romance: approximately 7.5 cm cover. Use a porous, freely draining professional mix and a pot deep enough for the bulb and both root zones.
Keep each series on its own temperature programme. A single lily setting cannot cover every pot cultivar.
| Series | Rooting | After emergence |
|---|---|---|
| Matrix | Medium around 13 °C; emergence commonly 2–3 weeks | Day 17–20 °C / night 10–13 °C; 24-hour average around 16 °C |
| Romance | Initial rooting 9–11 °C | Day 20–24 °C / night 14–18 °C; avoid below 13 °C after rooting |
Proposed operating band: 65–75% RH, not a cultivar-specific optimum. Prevent condensation and provide gentle, even canopy airflow. Log RH, leaf and root-zone temperature together; do not rely on RH alone when leaves are wet or the medium lacks air.
The Romance guide lists 2,500–4,000 foot-candles (about 27–43 klux). This greenhouse illuminance cannot be directly converted into LED PPFD. This review did not establish a validated indoor PPFD/DLI optimum for each cultivar. Measure at canopy height with a PAR sensor; do not copy a chrysanthemum short-day programme.
| Constant PPFD | Light duration | Calculated DLI |
|---|---|---|
| 150 µmol/m²/s | 14 hours | 7.56 mol/m²/day |
| 200 µmol/m²/s | 14 hours | 10.08 mol/m²/day |
| 250 µmol/m²/s | 14 hours | 12.60 mol/m²/day |
DLI = PPFD × hours × 0.0036. W/m² = target PPFD ÷ (fixture efficacy × canopy delivery fraction). Example: 200 ÷ (2.7 × 0.8) = 92.6 W/m²; at 14 hours, lighting alone uses 1.30 kWh/m²/day. Efficacy and delivery are assumptions; HVAC is excluded.
Assess water analysis, the substrate starter charge and EC measured by a consistent method together.
Trendy guide: substrate pH 5.8–6.4. At 5–7.5 cm shoot height, feed with 100–150 ppm N intermittently or 50–75 ppm N at every irrigation. These are alternatives, not cumulative treatments. Account for bulb reserves and substrate charge early on. Never let the medium dry completely at budding.
The Romance guide lists EC 1.4 and pH 5.5 without an EC sampling method. Therefore 1.4 is not assigned as an automatic tank target. Final irrigation solution, drainage, 1:2 extract and saturated-media EC are separate measurements. Water EC alone cannot determine calcium, alkalinity or fertiliser dose.
Fertiliser g/L = target N ppm ÷ (10 × label N percentage). A 15% N product supplies 75 ppm N at 0.50 g/L, or 50 g per 100 L final solution. This is nitrogen arithmetic, not a complete recipe. Calculate Ca, Mg, K, micronutrients, water contributions and compatibility separately.
Use pot weight, substrate moisture, root colour and drainage checks instead of a fixed daily volume. Establish watering thresholds using representative pots from the same lot. Monitor emitter uniformity and salt accumulation under subirrigation. Reuse of drainage water requires a separate analysis, cleaning and disinfection design.
Lilium can be displayed indoors while flowering; it is not a continuously flowering plant for a warm, dim room all year.
Choose a bright, airy position without overheating the roots. Use a deep pot with drainage holes; empty standing water from decorative covers. Check the medium before watering: keep it lightly moist, never waterlogged. Water demand rises with growth. Home container growing and compact commercial production use different spacing.
Remove faded flowers, retaining green leaves and stems. During active growth, a high-potassium liquid feed can be used fortnightly at the label rate; account for existing fertiliser. Reduce watering as foliage naturally yellows. Provide cool, airy winter conditions protected from frost and waterlogging; a continuously warm room is unsuitable for dormancy.
True lily leaves, flowers and pollen are highly toxic to cats; pollen-free cultivars are not safe either. Avoid recommending them for homes with cats. Suspected exposure or ingestion requires immediate veterinary contact without waiting for symptoms.
This checklist is an operating proposal. Crop protection and height control depend on diagnosis, cultivar and the applicable local product label.
| Symptom | Check and action |
|---|---|
| Oval brown leaf spots | Possible Botrytis: check leaf wetness and airflow; remove affected debris. |
| Yellowing, brown/rotted bulb | Possible root/bulb rot: inspect drainage and the lot; isolate affected pots and obtain a diagnosis. |
| Streaking, distorted growth | Possible virus: isolate the lot, monitor aphids and seek confirmatory testing. |
| Bud loss / uneven height | Check drying, temperature, light, spacing and any growth-regulator history together. |
Specify pot diameter/volume, bulb count, cultivar/colour, height measurement datum, minimum sound buds, colour stage, packaging and lot label in the order. Do not guarantee shelf life or transport temperature without cultivar/route validation. Growth-regulator doses are not prescribed here.
| Calculation | Formula |
|---|---|
| Saleable pots / batch | Net area × pots/m² × (1 − loss fraction) |
| Required bulbs | Pots to plant × bulbs/pot; receipt losses added separately |
| Theoretical annual capacity | Batch capacity × 365 ÷ (growing + turnaround days) |
| Cost / saleable pot | (Bulbs + pot/media + labour + water/feed + energy + packaging + allocated overhead) ÷ saleable pots |
| Unit contribution | Net selling price excluding VAT − variable cost/pot |
Example: 100 m² net area × 30 pots/m² × 95% saleability = 2,850 pots/batch. Area, density and 5% losses form a planning scenario, not a production commitment. Monetary profit needs current bulb, pot, energy and sales quotations.
Matrix Asiatic pot production; undated grower guide.
Series-specific conditions; not a prescription for every Oriental.
Substrate, nitrogen feeding and root development.
Historical cultivar and pot reference, pp.18–21 and 36–37; not evidence of current stock or prices.
Home/patio container care and winter dormancy.
Watering, feeding and after-flowering care.
Fungal and viral symptoms, hygiene and healthy bulb selection.
PPFD–photoperiod–DLI calculation; does not specify a pot-lily optimum.
Lilium product safety for cats.
