Multiply Your Lilies for Free: Bulblets, Bulbils & Scaling

Get Exponentially More Lilies Without Spending a Penny

I grow lilies everywhere—pots, beds, even my kitchen table. Asiatics, Orientals, trumpets, tree lilies, tiger lilies, double rose lilies. They're spectacular. Lilies grow from spring- or fall-planted bulbs and never fully dormant; they need year-round soil presence and minimal winter watering.

If bulbs are affordable, you'll have flowers year one. But lilies multiply eagerly—here are three free propagation methods.

Natural Multiplication Methods

Bulblets (baby bulbs): Some lilies (especially Asiatics) form clusters of bulblets at stem bases. I planted 5 bulbs; next season, 40+ stems emerged—overcrowded! Many flowered year one. As foliage dies back, I dig and replant bulblets in clusters with less competition.

Bulbils: Stem-borne mini-bulbs, especially on tiger lilies. Once they develop tiny roots, they drop or can be carefully removed and potted. Flower in 2–3 years.

Scaling: If bulblets/bulbils are scarce, remove outer scales from a healthy bulb (late summer–fall or spring). Each scale can produce a new plant. Up to 6 scales per bulb without harming the mother—half a dozen bulbs = 36 potential plants. New plants are clones, unlike seed-grown variables.

Step-by-Step: Bulblets

Baby bulbs nestled around main stems, some already sprouting.

Detach gently, preserving roots.

Plant several in a small pot, roots tucked in, covered with soil—no deeper than their height.

Water, label, place in shade. Water weekly (weather-dependent). They're tough; leave them alone.

Step-by-Step: Bulbils

Remove bulbils once they have root nubs. Pot like bulblets, water, leave for a year before potting on.

Step-by-Step: Scaling

Healthy Asiatic bulb with a bulblet (removed separately). Only scale firm, disease-free bulbs.

Snap 3–6 outer scales off near the base.

Method A: Place scales in a sandwich bag with damp potting soil. Shake gently to coat, seal (don't remove air—scales need it). Keep in a dark, warm kitchen spot ~8 weeks until tiny bulblets form at scale bases. Pot up.

Method B: I've also planted scales directly in shaded pots in spring—works fine. Choice is yours.

Result: 8 bulblets from 3 scales in a few months.

Repeat each season, and you'll have a lily field. How gorgeous would that be?