I was talking with someone that grows lots of lilies. I asked him if he had any advice for Martagons. He suggested shade in the afternoon and planting them into raised beds because they drain better.

Shelley

Martagons are not the only lilies with whorled leaves. Did you see it flower? How tall is it?

I didn't get a good look at the flower, as the one in bloom was across the yard. But the flowers were small and a reddish brown color. It wasn't overly tall, but she'd only had it a short time. The foliage is different from all my lilies. I thought it looked like a martagon, mainly because of the foliage and number of buds. I could be mistaken, though.

I would find a permanent home now. They like to be planted 4" deep in either full sun or partial shade, not full deep shade. Add a good layer of sand placed under the bulb at planting time will be beneficial in heavier soil. They will do well in most any soil as long as it is well drained.
If you pot and sink it this fall and then dig it up again next spring, keep in mind that it may sulk for another year as they don't like to be transplanted.

Sharon

Your meager flower description, believe it or not, I think is enough. I can't think of any other whorled leaf lily that can have small maroon flowers except a martagon.

My martagons are in full sun, even here near Minneapolis, Minnesota. By the end of the season they usually look worn out, but they bloom better. Part sun will be great for them too. Full shade usually sees them increase ever so slowy, and sometimes slowly peter out.

Defined layering of any soil types in nearly all situations is not a good thing. But Sharon has the right idea and probably didn't explain what she really meant. Sitting the bulb on pure sand is fine, but you must provide a gradation of sand to soil below. So dig your hole, mix sand with the soil n the bottom, top the bottom of the hole with sand, and then the bulb. Not only will drainage be better, roots will penetrate more freely also.

Now don't forget the layer gradation above the sand too! This will provide better drainage around the bulb in addition.

This all has to do with cappillary action and the force it holds on fine particles versus large particles. Soil physics is an interesting subject, although I have trouble convincing people of it.

Martagons are tricky IMO, but when you get your first up-close look at it in bloom, you will fall in love. I think their delicate features look best in shade, but as noted by someone above, that isn't their ideal growing condition. They really hate being moved, so don't be surprised if yours doesn't bloom for a year or three, but when it does bloom you will appreciate it all the more.
-Don

My martagon, in full shade except for 1-2 hours of sun/day:
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Don, do you know the name of your martagon? It is very pretty.

Brenda

Brenda, I'm almost certain that it is the variety named "Mrs. R.O. Backhouse". Fortunately, that's one of the more common and least expensive martagons, though it's still pretty pricy.
-Don

I only have a few martagons (most of them from the Lily Nook last week) and so, they haven't bloomed yet...actually, they are not even planted yet. Before last week's purchases I had one martagon, Autumn Color, that blooms for me each year. I also purchased a few martagons last fall at the MRLS (Manitoba Regional Lily Society) sale, but of course, they haven't bloomed either.

Mrs. R.O. Backhouse is one I do not have....yet.

Don, do you have any other martagons?

Brenda

Brenda, Your martagon collection is bigger than mine. I only have three R.O. Backhouse martagons that I bought after taking a one-day course on growing lilies :) They didn't bloom for several years, each spring putting up some whorls of leaves, then stopping growth at less than a foot tall. I figured they were on their way out. Then to my surprise two years ago, two of the plants bloomed (one with about 20 blooms, the other just 4 or 5). I have no idea why they became invigorated - that part of the garden has gotten much shadier in recent years as shrub/trees like Amur maple have grown up. So instead of full-day sun, the martagons now get almost full-day shade, and maybe that helped the martagons?. This year, they came back even slightly better, which was another surprise since I let them go to seed the first year they bloomed (this year I cut off the flowers after blooming). I planted a bunch of the seeds near the parents this spring, but I don't see any sign of germination, maybe they need to go through a winter to break dormancy?

I haven't done much with that part of the garden for the past few years, so it's due for a makeover. I will definitely be looking at moving toward more shade-tolerant plants, and martagons could be a part of that. But that's not going to happen this autumn, maybe next year?
-Don

When I was at NALS in Edmonton last July, we saw rows and rows of martagons planted out in full sun. It was boiling hot. The lilies -and many other things - all looked wonderful.

We also visited another garden, in semi-shade.
Full of martagons too. Lots of bloom in both lily patches.

inanda