A question for PBS members/Lilium bolanderi growing
Jane McGary (Wed, 29 Feb 2012 11:35:11 PST)

Stephen wrote,

I joined towards the end of 2011. Is the membership valid a calender
year from the date one joins of is renewal required Jan 1st?

Answer: Stephen joined in November 2011, so he doesn't have to renew
until January 2013. People who join after October 1 are considered to
be paid through the following calendar year, but thereafter they need
to renew each January. For example, someone who joined in July 2011
needed to renew in January 2012. This policy has to do with the
mailing schedule of the print newsletter, which is the largest
ongoing expense paid for by dues.

Secondly, I was lucky enough to come across a group of Bolander's
lily setting seed in September in Josephine County, OR. It seemed to
me it was certain to be Bolander's as it was growing in full sun on
a serpentine ridge..
Does anyone have any tips as to the raising of this species from
seed? How long until the seedling bulbs are potted individually?
What are some dangers to be on the look out for? Seed to flower years?

I haven't succeeded in flowering Lilium bolanderi, which is
notoriously difficult outside its native range, but I have raised
plants that lasted about 4 years. My advice is not to disturb the
seedling bulbs for two years, and when you do move them on, take the
whole ball of soil from the seed pot with as little disturbance as
possible and put it right into a larger pot, unless you have a large
number of small bulbs.

Note that plants often seen on serpentine (ultramafic rocks and their
soils) do not require this type of soil; they are tolerant of it and
are thought by some botanists to grow there by preference because
many other plants can't tolerate the high level of magnesium, so
there is less competition. Another theory is that the unusual mineral
composition helps the plants resist disease. I don't know if either
of these theories has been scientifically tested. Serpentine is
common in the Siskiyou Mountains of southern Oregon.

Jane McGary
Membership Coordinator
Portland, Oregon, USA