Linda Kumin, Mark and Adam have both given you excellent tips and advice.

I would add that it seems pretty self evident now that one of the biggest
mistakes growers of all geophyte bulbs, indeed virtually all plants, make
or have made (moi included) is to fail to research their native
habitats---soils, rainfall patterns and ambient temps both max & minimum.

However here's a wee tip from a hairy Highlander in Scotland, so far
touch
wood, we do not suffer from attacks by virus, botrytis, nematodes, etc.
unless found on bulbs whose first stop over is at the small quarantine
unit. Wherever possible there is simply no alternative to disease control
from virus initially than to grow from seed, an opportunity of course not
available to all of us all of the time, virus is not known to be
transmittable from/through seed. I do not ever use the now limited range
of chemical controls, except from weed clearance from the garden's path
system where Roundup is now the only practical legal option following the
removal of others here in Europe.

You could try to use the 'Hot Water Treatment' system on newly arrived
bulbs before you plant them, this is very effective at destroying over
wintering nematodes, fusarium and other nasties. One other method is to
use a highly dilute domestic bleach in warm water for around a few
minutes
and then rinsing them in clean warm water again for a few minutes, very
rarely can fungal, virus or parasites such as nematodes manage to
survive
that treatment which for lilies is really good but for jacketed bulbs
like
tulipa more care needs to be taken to ensure total control.

One of the best controls and protections from disease and other
'problems'
is to plant on appropriate sites with appropriate soils, Lilium which I
do
most work with should almost always be planted on free draining ground,
preferably on a slope too if possible, certainly not on or in clay as
that's a fast track for losses. All our bulbous plants, whether Lilium,
Iris, Tulipa, etc, etc grow on and in pure sands and gravels derived from
acid granite rock, everybody has different approaches but so far so good.

Some of the Tulipa species which you mention are infected by a disease
called Tulip Breaking Virus which gives them the pretty patterns and
colours however this virus is catastrophic for most Lilium and easily
transferred between these genera by sap sucking Aphids such as green fly
which are most troublesome when there is high humidity and poor air
circulation. One control in a sense of limiting infestations, and length
of, are cold winters however I would imagine in areas of e.g. coastal
California it must be very frustrating on account of sea fogs and warm
air
during the summers because very often once the plants have ended
flowering
folk tend not to look out for Aphid colonisation however they will keep
on
transferring virus right on into Autumn as long as there is green foliage
of any sort to suck.

Miss Kumin you say you are new to gardening, so is everyone, there are no
experts in gardening, perhaps a few deluded fools who think or fancy that
they are, but we all make mistakes, usually often and always year in year
out, welcome to the club, happy gardening but try not to mix Lilium with
non species Tulipa. The 'greigii' type tulips are most often than not
hybrids of one sort or the other based to varying degrees on the true
species Tulipa greigii, the others using that name are a bit like Heinz
57
varieties. The other lilies you mention by name, except Tulipa tarda per
se which is a true botanical species, if sold true to name, sometimes a
big 'IF' all the others mentioned are either clones or hybrids grown
under
intensive systems majored on by the Dutch growers and they are now so
reliant on chemicals due to over intensive agriculture even their ground
water is contaminated with soluble nitrates from various forms of farming
including intensive pig rearing. Best of lu
ck with your organic systems which are infinitely superior if you can
make
it work, admittedly it isn't easy and makes very often for extra work but
far more satisfying if not exactly financially rewarding in commerical
terms under the present regimes governments around the world permit.

Incidentally did you know that your name Kumin, as more often spelt in
the
old countries as 'Cummin' or here in Scotland Cumming, and variations
thereof, is derived from the Cumin plant, a herb often used in cookery,
but was used as a so called Plant Badge by that family to distinguish
themselves during battle. More titbits of useless information.

Iain

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