Easter lily · Lilium longiflorum
An Easter lily fills a room with fragrance and pure white trumpet flowers. Kept cool, it blooms for two weeks or more indoors, and afterward it can be planted outside, where it often blooms again in early summer for years.
Before anything else, if you have a cat, please read the warning in the next box. Easter lilies are one of the most dangerous plants there is for cats.
Easter lilies and all true lilies are extremely dangerous to cats. Every part of the plant, including the pollen and even the water in a vase or saucer, can cause kidney failure in a cat. If you have a cat, it is safest not to bring an Easter lily into the house at all. If a cat may have touched, chewed or licked any part of it, take it to a veterinarian right away, before any symptoms appear.
Cool, bright, and never sitting in water
Keep it in a bright spot out of direct sun, in a cool room, around 60–65°F. Warmth and hot sun make the flowers open and fade fast.
Water when the top of the soil feels dry, and take it out of its foil or poke holes in it so the pot can drain. Lilies sitting in water yellow quickly.
Finding the right spot
A cool, bright room, away from pets.
- Bright, indirect light, such as a few feet from an east window.
- Out of reach of pets, and in a room a cat cannot get into.
- Away from heat vents, sunny glass and ripening fruit.
- Cooler nights, around 55–60°F, help the blooms last.
Everyday care
Easter Lily
Lilium longiflorum
- Light
- Bright, indirect light indoors. Full or morning sun once it is planted outside.
- Water
- When the top of the soil is dry. Drain the foil or saucer every time.
- Temperature
- Cool: 60–65°F during the day indoors.
- Pollen
- Pull off the yellow pollen tips (anthers) with a tissue as each flower opens. It stops staining and makes the flowers last longer.
- Spent flowers
- Snip off each flower as it fades, but leave the stem and leaves.
- Feeding
- None while it is blooming.
Extremely dangerous to cats: every part, the pollen and the vase water can cause kidney failure. If a cat has touched any part of it, call your veterinarian or an emergency vet right away, without waiting for symptoms.
Planting it outside after it blooms
Easter lilies are hardy in Johnston County, so you can give yours a second life in the garden.
- Once frost danger has passed, usually mid-April here, plant it in a sunny spot with well-drained soil. Afternoon shade is welcome in our summer heat.
- Set the bulb about six inches deep, keep the leaves and stem, and water it in.
- When the stem turns yellow and dies back, cut it to the ground. New growth may appear the same summer.
- In the garden, Easter lilies bloom in early summer, not at Easter. Mulch them for winter.
- Remember: lilies in the garden are just as dangerous to outdoor cats.
The eastern North Carolina year
What to do through our Johnston County seasons.
| Season | What to do |
|---|---|
| SpringMarch–May | Bloom time indoors. Plant it in the garden after mid-April. |
| SummerJune–August | Garden lilies bloom in early summer. Water in dry spells, then let the stems die back. |
| FallSeptember–November | Cut dead stems to the ground and add a few inches of mulch. |
| WinterDecember–February | The bulbs rest underground. Nothing to do. |
Repotting
An Easter lily doesn’t need repotting while it blooms. Its long-term home is in the garden, planted after it finishes flowering.
Quick fixes
Flowers opening and fading fast
Too warm or in direct sun. Move it to a cooler spot.
Yellowing lower leaves
Water sitting in the foil, or too little light. Drain it and move it brighter.
Orange pollen stains
Dab with tape or a dry pipe cleaner, don’t rub. Remove the anthers on new flowers.
Buds drying up
Dry soil or hot, dry air. Check the soil more often.
Drooping plant
Usually dry. Water it and it should recover.
No flowers in the garden the first year
Normal. Most bloom the following summer.
Common questions
Are Easter lilies poisonous to cats?
Yes, extremely. Every part, including the pollen and vase water, can cause kidney failure. Get a cat to a veterinarian immediately if it has had any contact.
Are Easter lilies safe for dogs?
They are not the kidney danger to dogs that they are to cats, but eating them can still upset a dog’s stomach.
Can I plant my Easter lily outside?
Yes. They are hardy in Johnston County. Plant it in a sunny spot after mid-April.
Should I remove the pollen from lilies?
Yes. It prevents stains and makes the flowers last longer.
More plant care guides
Potted Hydrangea
Hydrangea macrophylla
The thirstiest plant we send. Water daily, keep it cool, and plant it in morning sun.
Read the guide →Amaryllis
Hippeastrum
Bright light, a little water, and turn it so the stem grows straight.
Read the guide →Peace Lily
Spathiphyllum
Medium light, a drink when it droops, and filtered water for clean leaf tips.
Read the guide →About pets and plants: The pet notes in this guide are general plant knowledge from our florists, not veterinary or medical advice. If a pet chews or swallows any part of a plant, contact a licensed veterinarian right away, or call the ASPCA Animal Poison Control Center at (888) 426-4435. If a person swallows any part of a plant, call Poison Control at 1-800-222-1222.
“So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase.”1 Corinthians 3:7
Questions about your plant?
Call or text us. We are always glad to help, whether you bought it from us or not.
Call or text (984) 250-7771 Clayton Florist · 11440 Clayton Blvd, Clayton, NC 27520claytonncflorist.com