Easter 2001 Schedule


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Easter Lily Bulbs

Easter Lily Forcing Schedule
For Easter April 15, 2001




Easter, this season, is April 15 th , 2001 which is considered a late Easter date. This schedule is a general guide for pot cooled Easter Lilies; for case cooled see paragraph below. This schedule is to be used only as a guide. Past experience and your style of growing should always be your primary guide.

Case cooled bulbs should be put in cooler or other cool place upon arrival and stored at 55F to 65F until October 26 th ,2000. They also need to be checked often for moisture, and wet down if needed. (DO NOT ALLOW BULBS TO WARM TO 70F OR ABOVE AT ANYTIME FROM TIME OF ARRIVAL TILL 5" TALL AS ERRATIC GROWTH AND LOW BUD COUNT WILL RESULT!) On October 26 th , 2000, vernalization begins. Lower temperature to 40F to 45F and keep watching moisture content as vernalization is a cool moist process. Also, sprouting needs to be monitored and if it becomes too heavy, drop temperature to 35F. Temperature should be brought up to 63F on December 7 th . Bulbs should be allowed to warm in the case two days. Cooling starts from the outside of case, and it will warm from the outside also, giving the same cooling time for bulbs in the center of the case as on the outside. Follow October 23 rd instructions for potting, then skip to December 7 th instructions and grow the same as pot cooled from here on.

As this is a late Easter date, this schedule has a two week temperature dip treatment to enhance bud count starting January 15 th. This is a good time to catch up if you are behind. If you are behind do not do the temperature dip until you have caught up. For example, if you are one week behind, only give one week of temperature dip, if two weeks behind do not do temperature dip treatment. Raise the temperature three days before you want to start forcing again, as it takes some time for the lilies to start responding after this cool treatment.

One last comment on vernalization, during this process bulbs are kept in tightly closed coolers. CO-2 levels can rise, as can ethylene gas levels. These both have detrimental effects on bulb crops. For ethylene control you need to have a clean cooler as anything rotting will give off ethylene gas, as will propane powered forklifts. As for CO-2 venting at regular intervals can help. But do not vent from an area were exhaust gas from a boiler or heater can contaminate the air.

There are notes on potting, drenching and other concerns at the bottom of this page. And as always, if you need further assistance please contact us or your supplier as early as possible. Most problems can be corrected with enough time.


Date:

Days to Easter:

Comments:
October 23, 2000 174 Bulbs have arrived by now. Upon arrival, plant deep in pot and drench bulbs immediately. Never let temperature rise above 70F. If rooting period is done in cooler, set temperature at 63F, to stimulate root growth.
October 26, 2000 171 Start cooling process (vernalization) at 40F- 45F. Keep moist as bulbs that become too dry will not cool properly. If bulbs start to sprout heavily, bring temperature down to 35F. Cool for six weeks (42 days).
December 7, 2000 129 Move pots to greenhouse; cooling is finished. If a crew is not available, turn cooler up to 65F. Bulbs can stay in the cooler if not sprouted; however if they have sprouted they need to be moved immediately to avoid stretching.

Start temperature in greenhouse at a constant 65F or if preferred 63F night 68F day which gives an average 65F. DO NOT GO OVER 70F AT THIS TIME, AS THIS WILL DELAY FLOWERING.
December 11,2000 125 Check roots for root problems, drench if necessary. Start feeding program.
December 18, 2000 118 First plants start to emerge.
December 25,2000 111 50% of crop emerged. Check roots for problems. Drench as necessary.
January 1, 2001 104 Most of crop should be up. Start insurance lighting if you know you did not have enough cooling. Start tracking for height control.
January 8,2001 97 Check roots for problems. Shoots should be 2 inches tall.
January 15,2001 90 Buds should now be forming. Shoots 3 - 5 inches tall. If you feel you have time, you can start temperature dip treatment to enhance bud count. This year we have allowed a two week temperature dip because of the late Easter. Some people may prefer to force regularly to finish out earlier and put plants in cooler at the end to free up their greenhouse for bedding plants. However if you are on time and want to finish normally start temperature dip now by lowering temperature to 50F night 60F days or an even 55F day and night.
January 22,2001 83 Plants should be growing very slowly and not be under very much stress, so now would be a good time to apply a fungicide for root rots as next week the temperature is going back up and plants will need a good root system.
January 26,2001 79 This date is three days before our 2 weeks is up, but it takes some time for lilies to respond to the warmer temperatures you are going to give them. Set temperature to a constant 65F or if preferred 63F night and 68F day.
February 5,2001 69 Shoots 5 - 6 inches tall. Start leaf counting and adjust temperature accordingly, space lilies and check roots.
February 12,2001 62 Shoots 6 inches tall. Adjust temperatures for timing and height control.
February 19,2001 55 Check roots and continue monitoring temperatures. Shoots 8 inches tall.
February 26, 2001 48 Some plants may start showing buds. Shoots 9 inches tall.
March 5,2001 41 Half of crop has visible bud. Watch roots closely from now to the end, as the plants are growing very fast now and any root problems will cause lower leaf yellowing. Also insects will become more prevalent on the tender buds now coming out.
March 12,2001 34 Bud 1 inch long now. Use bud stick. Watch height and pests. Shoots 11 inches tall.
March 19,2001 27 Buds 2 inches long. Shoots 12 - 13 inches tall.
March 26,2001 20 Buds 4 inches long. Shoots 13 - 15 inches tall. Some buds may be in white puffy stage. These may be moved to cooler at 40F.
April 2,2001 13 Shoots 16 inches tall. Watch roots and pests. Monitor temperature, as there is not much time left.
April 9,2001 6 All lilies should be shipped.
April 15,2001 0 Easter Sunday. Happy Easter!

 

Potting:

 

Potting should be done as early as possible to allow root growth. The bulb should be placed deep in the pot as Easter lilies grow mostly from their stem roots. The pot should also be as deep as possible, not a 3/4 or azalea pot. The soil should offer good drainage, as root problems are one of your main concerns.

 

Drenching:

 

Drenching for fungus (Pythium, Rhizoctonia, and Fusarium) and bulb mites at planting is highly recommended. Oregon State law prohibits us from making any chemical use recommendations. You can contact your extension agent or state university for such recommendations.

 

Insurance Lighting:

 

Insurance lighting is to be used if bulbs did not receive enough cooling in the vernalization process. To start insurance lighting give plants 15-foot candles incandescent light from 10 pm to 3 am, maintaining temperature about 65F. One night will substitute for one lost day of cooling.

 

 

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