Frozen Trumpet Lilies: Will they come back?
- 3 days ago
- 1 min read
Updated: 3 days ago
Q: My trumpet lilies were up and growing beautifully until the freeze a few weeks ago killed them to the ground. What should I do? Will they come back?
A: Yes — in most cases your lilies should come back just fine. A hard spring frost often damages the tender above-ground growth, but the underground bulb will survive.
The leaves and flower buds turn black, mushy, or collapsed after the frost. Cut the damaged stems off at ground level. Don’t pull them. The bulb underground remains alive and will often push up new growth within a few weeks. This year’s blooms may be reduced or delayed because the plant lost energy-producing foliage.
One important distinction. True lilies (Asiatic, Oriental, Trumpet, etc.) usually recover well. Daylilies are even tougher and almost always bounce back quickly after frost.
Read our Q & As with Keith Funk answering common Colorado gardening questions here. See his website: gardenwiseguy.com and hear him on the
