Lycoris (Spider Lily)

Why Should I Grow Spider Lily?

Growing Lycoris, commonly known as the Spider Lily, can offer several benefits to your garden:

Late-Season Blooms: Spider Lilies bloom in late summer or early fall, a time when many other garden flowers are starting to fade. Their vibrant blooms can inject a much-needed burst of color into your garden just when it needs it most.

Easy Care: Once established, Spider Lilies require minimal care. They’re drought-tolerant and not particularly picky about soil, making them a low-maintenance choice for any garden.

Pest and Disease Resistant: Spider Lilies are resistant to most common garden pests, including deer and rabbits, thanks to their toxicity. This makes them an excellent choice for areas where these animals are common. They’re also generally resistant to most common plant diseases.

Attracts Pollinators: The bright, fragrant flowers of the Spider Lily attract bees, butterflies, and other pollinators, which can help to support local ecosystems and increase the productivity of any vegetable or fruit plants in your garden.

Unusual and Dramatic Appearance: With their spidery petals and tall, leafless stems, Spider Lilies have a unique and striking appearance that can add interest to your garden. They make excellent focal points in a border and can also be used to create a dramatic, late-season display.

Hardy and Adaptable: Spider Lilies are hardy plants that can withstand both cold winters and hot summers. They can adapt to a variety of climates and conditions, making them a versatile choice for gardens in many different regions.

Great for Naturalizing: Spider Lilies spread slowly by producing new bulbs, allowing them to gradually expand and fill in an area without becoming invasive. They’re excellent for naturalizing in a woodland garden or informal border.

In short, the Spider Lily is a hardy, easy-care plant that offers dramatic, late-season color, and can enhance the biodiversity of your garden. It’s a great choice for any gardener looking for a low-maintenance plant with a big impact.

Garden Design with Spider Lily

Incorporating Spider Lily, or Lycoris, into your garden design can add a unique aesthetic appeal, thanks to their vibrant, late-season blooms. Here are some design ideas:

Perennial Borders: Given their height and vibrant flowers, Spider Lilies work well in the middle of perennial borders, where their bright blooms can provide a stunning backdrop for other plants. Since they bloom late, they can extend the color display in your garden into late summer and fall when many other plants have finished flowering.

Container Gardens: Spider Lilies can also be grown in containers. This allows you to position them in optimal sun during their flowering period, then move the containers out of view once the blooms fade, giving other plants the spotlight.

Cottage Gardens: Lycoris adds vibrant pops of color to cottage garden borders and can be interplanted with late-blooming perennials, enhancing the garden’s quaint, lush charm.

Naturalized Areas: In naturalized areas, Lycoris thrive under deciduous trees or naturalized in grassy areas, offering stunning, spider-like blooms and creating a wild, organic appeal.

Mixed with Other Bulbs: Spider Lilies can be planted with spring-blooming bulbs like daffodils or tulips. The Spider Lily foliage will emerge in the spring and then die back, with the flowers appearing in the late summer or fall, giving you two seasons of interest in the same space.

When planting Spider Lilies, keep in mind that they prefer full sun to partial shade and well-drained soil. Also, their dramatic, sudden bloom can be a fantastic surprise in the garden, so consider their placement carefully to maximize the impact of this unique event.

Companion Plants

Companion plants for Spider Lily should ideally share similar cultural requirements and offer complementary features. Here are some suitable companions:

Hostas: These shade-tolerant perennials offer bold, textured foliage that can help to fill in the space left by the Spider Lily’s summer dormancy. They also provide a nice color contrast with the vibrant blooms of the Lycoris.

Ferns: Like hostas, ferns offer attractive foliage that can fill in during the Spider Lily’s dormant period. The delicate texture of the ferns provides a nice contrast to the bold, striking flowers of the Lycoris.

Grasses: Ornamental grasses can provide a great textural contrast to the dramatic Spider Lily blooms. Choose varieties that reach their peak in late summer or fall to coincide with the bloom time of the Lycoris.

Spring-Blooming Bulbs: Daffodils, tulips, and other spring-blooming bulbs can be planted in the same area as Spider Lilies. Their foliage will die back just as the Spider Lily’s leaves are emerging, and the spring blooms will give way to the Lycoris flowers in late summer.

Late-Season Perennials: Plants like Aster, Sedum, or Chrysanthemum that bloom in late summer or fall can create a wonderful color display with Spider Lilies. These can extend the flowering season in your garden and provide additional interest.

Groundcovers: Low-growing groundcovers can be used to fill in the area around Spider Lilies. Choose varieties that can tolerate the same light conditions, such as Ajuga or creeping thyme for sunny areas, or Vinca or Pachysandra for more shaded spots.

Remember, Lycoris or Spider Lilies have a unique growth cycle, with their foliage emerging in the spring and then dying back in the summer before the flowers emerge in late summer or early fall. So, it’s important to choose companion plants that can fill in during the Spider Lily’s dormant period or complement its dramatic, late-season blooms, such as coreopsis, hemerocallis, kniphofia, or rudbeckia.

Growing Tips

Choose the right variety: Some lycoris species are more suited to certain climates than others, so choose the variety that best suits your local climate.

Select a suitable location: Lycoris prefers sunny or lightly shaded locations, but the bulbs should not be exposed to full, intense sun, especially in warmer climates. They prefer well-drained soil and do not like waterlogged conditions.

Plant the bulbs: Plant lycoris bulbs in late summer or early fall. Dig a hole and plant your Lycoris bulbs with their necks at or just above the soil surface. Burying the bulbs below ground level would discourage flowering. If you feel you live in an environment that might be borderline for plant hardiness, place the bulb at a depth with the “neck” about 2 inches (5 cm) below the soil line. Not sure about your growing zone? Check here. Plant your Lycoris bulbs about 4 inches apart (10 cm). Set the Lycoris bulb with the pointed tops facing up. Cover the bulb with soil and water as needed.

Water thoroughly: After planting, water the bulbs thoroughly and keep the soil slightly moist until the first shoots appear. After that, water moderately during the growing season. Withhold water in summer and let the soil go dry when the foliage begins to wither.

Fertilize moderately:  During early spring, spider lilies can be stimulated for blooming post-dormancy by using a high-nitrogen fertilizer, like an 8-2-4. Following their flowering season in autumn, a high-phosphorus fertilizer such as a 3-5-4 is recommended to enhance their ability to withstand the winter chill.

Prune: After the flowers have faded, cut back the flower stalks but leave the leaves, which will photosynthesize and feed the bulb for the next season’s bloom. The leaves will die back naturally in late spring or early summer.

Divide if necessary: Lycoris bulbs will multiply and can be divided every few years if they become overcrowded. This is best done in summer when the plant is dormant.

Remember, Lycoris is a hardy plant that requires minimal care once established, and it can take a year or two for newly planted bulbs to establish and start blooming. So, be patient and wait for your lycoris to reward you with their unique and beautiful flowers.