Prized for their showy, often fragrant flowers, and ease of cultivation, lilies are among the most popular of garden plants. You can purchase and plant bulbs in spring or fall. Most lilies do best in sunny locations with well-drained soil. For a nonstop flower show, combine early bloomers like Asiatics with mid-season Orientals and late-blooming trumpet lilies.
Lilium ‘Forever Susan,’ Zones 3 to 9
If you love bold blooms, then this lily will definitely meet those needs with its orange and burgundy hues. These plants have a long flowering life, and they do great in both full sun and partial shade. They’ll grow up to 36 inches, and they also make excellent cut flowers.
Why we love it: They are one of the earliest blooming lilies out there. The show begins as soon as the daffodils and tulips fade, and they stay flowering for
weeks.
Lilium martagon, Zones 3 to 8
This European native adds exotic flair to the perennial garden when it blooms in early summer. It can be slow to establish, but be patient. When mature, the vigorous plants will throw up clumps of 4-foot stems that can be topped with as many as 50 fragrant flowers!
Why we love it: Gardeners adore this striking lily, but so do the swallowtail butterflies. Support these native pollinators by tucking a few bulbs in the perennial border.
Lilium ‘Magic Star,’ Zones 3 to 8
Double Oriental lilies are among the most flamboyant of the summer bulbs with layers upon layers of ruffled petals in a range of colors. The enormous flowers of Magic Star are particularly dazzling with pink petals striped in red, edged in white and dotted with crimson freckles.
Why we love it: Did we mention it’s super fragrant? And the lack of pollen means the blooms are very long lasting, especially as cut flowers.
Lilium regale, Zones 4 to 8
Regale is a mid- to late-summer showstopper with massive, deeply perfumed flowers. Established plants can grow very tall (up to 8 feet) but heights of 3 to 5 feet are more common. Feed annually with compost, and water in dry spells if you want to encourage colossal-sized plants.
Why we love it:Regale’s enormous, trumpet-shaped blooms are simply spectacular. The white flowers will grow 8- to 10-inches long, and have pink-tinged outer petals and golden throats.
Lilium ‘Tom Pouce,’ Zones 3 to 8
Named after a Dutch pastry, Tom Pouce lily is a treat, with each candy pink petal brushed with a stripe of bright gold. The upward-facing blooms grow in clusters of four to eight and flower in July. The blossoms are very robust and make long-lasting and exceptionally fragrant cut flowers.
Why we love it: The semi-dwarf plants grow to 3 or 4 feet tall, making Tom Pouce a good choice for containers, as well as the garden, though they may require
staking.
Lilium ‘Stargazer,’ Zones 4 to 8
Stargazer was introduced almost 40 years ago, and it still remains one of the most popular lilies in cultivation. Why? Just look to the flowers, which are a breathtaking blend of crimson, pink and white, with dozens of bright red freckles spilling across the petals. They’re extremely fragrant and borne on sturdy plants.
Why we love it: Stargazer is an easy lily for beginners with tremendous payback—weeks of glorious color and dizzying scent.
Lilium ‘Yelloween,’ zones 4 to 8
This lily was developed in the Netherlands to be a superb cut flower, even in cooler temperatures. It definitely accomplishes this task. Once it’s established, this plant can reach heights of 8 feet, and you could easily get 10 to 15 blooms per stem.
Why we love it:This bloom is like pure sunshine. It’s one of the most striking lilies available with bright yellow petals, which will brighten up any backyard space.
Lilium ‘Silk Road,’ Zones 4 to 8
Orienpet lilies are a cross between oriental and trumpet types, offering the best of both worlds. They bear very large, heavily scented flowers, are long-blooming and form hardy, vigorous plants. Silk Road is an outstanding selection with white blossoms and cherry red throats on plants 4 to 6 feet tall.
Why we love it: Silk Road seduces with its powerful aroma and stunning color combination. Plus, the stalks are bursting with large flowers.
Lilium ‘Lollypop,’ Zones 3 to 8
The white and cherry-pink blooms of Lollypop are as sweet as candy. The stocky plants grow 2 to 3 feet tall and begin blooming in early summer. Tuck them among sun-loving perennials or grow them in large tubs on a sunny deck or patio.
Why we love it: It’s hard to beat Lollypop’s jolt of color! Plus, it’s very easy to grow and thrives with minimal fussing.
Lilium ‘Casa Blanca,’ Zones 3 to 8
For sheer wow factor, you can’t beat Casablanca, an Oriental lily that grows up to 4 feet and bears massive white, star-shaped flowers. It’s captivating in the sunshine, but also a favorite in moonlight gardens where the pale blooms seem to glow. It grows well in most garden soils, but requires full sun in order to produce its heavenly scented flowers.
Why we love it: Casablanca is extremely popular among gardeners who appreciate its exceptional vigor, pure white blooms and intoxicating fragrance. It also makes an excellent cut flower.
If you want to know the different types of lilies, here’s a cheat sheet to help you out.
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Martha Cole says
Where can I get these top 10 Lillie’s at
Lois says
I have ordered from all these and received large, healthy blubs: K. Van Bourgondien, BD Lilies, The Lily Garden and Gilbert Wild & Sons. Gilbert Wild & sons and K. Van Burgondien also sell daylilies, peonies, iris, phlox along with their lily bulbs
Poonam Dhesi says
Beautiful one.
Dee Marotta says
Caution! Lilies are DEADLY to cats. All lilies and all parts of the plant. It’s too bad, because lilies are beautiful.
Sue says
Our cat lived for seventeen years and she never bothered the lilies along the outside area of our pool. We lived in that home for 6 years.
Julia Buehler says
if you have problems with deer be aware that they love to eat lilies spraying with deer repellent as soon as buds appear helps some
Ruth Blakely says
I’m told there is one lily the deer is not likely to eat, but I’ve forgotten the name. Can you help me?
Granddad says
I’d sooner have deer eating them than to spray that smells to high heaven spray. Sprayed once – learned our lesson. Couldn’t go in the yard for nearly 3 months.
MargaretHoulihan says
You should try a different spray. I have used DeerOut for many years. It has a peppermint odor that is actually a rather pleasant smell. The deer have not eaten any of my lilies, roses, hostas and anything else they like. Search it online. I buy the gallon concentrate, have lots of gardens and I’m on my third season with the same gallon. I’ll be buying more next year.
Susan sutton says
I plant purple coneflowers, snow black eye Susan’s around my lillies, no problems with deer!
CAROLYN says
Where can I purchases these 10 types of lilies? I have some but looking for different types.
Frank Mosher says
I have hundreds of lilies. The main issue is the bright red Lilly Beetle. Google same. Unless consistently hand picked off daily, they will always decimate you lilies, eat them to shreds. There is no other effective treatment for this problem-none!
Brenda Chauvin says
I found them by a web search Holland bulb farms .com
Just have to add these to my lily collection.
Lucy says
Don’t plant oriental lillies near daylilies, they will kill daylilies.
Barbara Ells says
Deer do not bother day lilies. The wild type grow alll over the place near the deer. Daffodils repel the deer, as does pepperspray. If you have hot pepper sauce, you can dilute that and spray it around your plants to repel them. Planting garlic or peppers will repel them also.
Ward Wensch says
NOTE: Quite a few places say Deer will not eat Hosta. WRONG!! Deer will eat Hosta if there is nothing else in the garden to eat.
marie ash says
is it true that STARGAZER lily is actually now known to be poisonous to bees? I have several in my garden and am wondering whether to get rid of them.