How to Grow Lily

Lilium spp. · Zones 4-8

Lily is grown for its root. It's hardy across USDA zones 4 through 8. Its summer flowers are a moderate draw for honeybees, native bees, and butterflies, even though the root is the prize.

Lily — the short answer

Lily: grown in zones 4–8.

USDA zones
4–8
Manual horticultural correction (source not retained); NC State Extension and Missouri Botanical Garden, with the remaining rows from other published sources or Growable Ground compilation

Plant data: Growable Ground Plant Database, compiled from FAO ECOCROP, USDA PLANTS and university Extension sources — each tile names its own row's source, because per-field provenance varies.

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Score Lily on your exact land.

Zone averages can't see the slope, soil, frost, and sun that decide whether lily actually takes — and those shift from one yard to the next. Enter your address and we'll score lily against your land's real conditions.

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What Lily is

Lily reaches around four feet at maturity. It blooms in summer.

How to grow Lily

Lily grows in USDA zones 4 through 8.

USDA Zones

4-8

USDA PHZM 2023

Soil pH

Data pending

Sun

Data pending

Growable Ground plant catalog

Drainage

Data pending

Growable Ground plant catalog

Mature Height

4 ft

Growable Ground plant catalog

Frost-Free Days

0+

The frost-free stretch it needs start to finish — short-season areas may need an indoor head start.

Growable Ground plant catalog

  1. Sow directly

    Sow lily seed straight into the bed — root crops germinate fast and resent transplanting. Give them full sun.

  2. Match the soil

    Pull a soil test from your local Extension lab to confirm pH and drainage match lily's needs before planting.

  3. Water steadily

    Keep the root zone evenly moist through establishment. Match watering to the plant's drainage preference and your local rainfall.

  4. Harvest at maturity

    Pull while roots are young and tender — sweeter than oversized ones. Local Cooperative Extension guides publish timing tables.

Where Lily thrives

Lily is hardy across USDA zones 4 through 8. Zone is only the starting point, though: the soil pH, drainage, and frost dates on your specific land decide how well it actually does.

A USDA zone is a 10°F band of average annual extreme winter minimum, so zones 48 spans average winter lows from -30°F to 20°F (USDA PHZM 2023). Across the 50 states and DC, that band covers 25 outright and splits 26 more down the middle — and which side of that line your land sits on changes the answer.

Zones 4–8 highlighted on the USDA national hardiness zone map

Zones 4–8·Where Lily growsOpen map →

Where Lily stands, state by state

Lily is rated for zones 48 — a cold floor USDA puts at -30 to -20°F. Across the 50 states and DC, 25 sit fully inside that band, the line runs through 26 more, and 0 sit outside it — and inside every split state, the same line runs on at county grain.

Fully inside zones 4–8

25 states

3 of 25 shown

The line runs through

26 states

3 of 26 shown

Lily’s band covers part of each of these states — which side of the line your county sits on changes the answer, and each state page draws it.

State zone extents: USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map (PHZM) 2023. A zone is a 10°F band of average annual extreme minimum temperature, so a state that splits the band contains the boundary — its own page draws the county line, and a parcel report resolves which side your land sits on.

What grows around Lily

In rotation planning, lily counts as a Other — beds recover best when other crops don’t follow each other in the same spot year over year. (Growable Ground derivation — crop-rotation group from botanical family)

Good to know

One caution for pet owners — lily is toxic to cats (lethal severity). Keep it out of reach, and call ASPCA Animal Poison Control at (888) 426-4435 in an emergency. (Source: ASPCA.)

Lily offers moderate value to bees and other pollinators. (Source: Pollinator Partnership.)

Your land is one point inside Lily's range

This page resolves to the species. Your state page draws the county line, and a report reads the parcel — the soil pH, drainage, sun, and frost dates on your exact ground, which no species average can see.

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See if Lily will thrive on your land

Zone averages are a start. Your exact soil pH, drainage, sun exposure, and frost dates shape whether lily actually takes — we score it against the real conditions at your address.

Three things about your exact spot that zone averages miss:

Your soil pHYour frost-free daysYour sun & shade

We read public map data for this spot — soil, climate, flood, and parcel records. How we handle your address.

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How we know this about Lily

The figures above are cited per row, not per site: the pH band names this plant’s own source column, the three temperature figures each carry their own, and days-to-maturity cites the publication that actually lists it. All of it comes from the Growable Ground Plant Database — a compilation over FAO ECOCROP, USDA PLANTS, and university Extension sources, published openly with per-field provenance.

Grounded inUSDA PLANTS DatabaseUSDA PHZMASPCA

Frequently asked questions

Can I grow Lily in my zone?

Lily grows in USDA hardiness zones 4 through 8 (USDA PHZM 2023). Zone is one factor — soil pH, drainage, and frost dates on your specific parcel also shape whether it takes.

When should you plant Lily?

Time lily to your own season rather than the calendar. Your local frost dates set the exact window — a Growable Ground report reads them for your address.

What soil does Lily need?

Specific pH data for lily is pending. A soil test from your local Extension lab confirms what your site needs.

Does Lily attract pollinators?

Yes — lily's flowers are a solid nectar source for honeybees, native bees, and butterflies. (Source: Pollinator Partnership.)

Is Lily safe for pets?

Lily is toxic to pets (cats) with lethal severity. Keep it out of reach, and call ASPCA Animal Poison Control at (888) 426-4435 in an emergency. (Source: ASPCA.)