I don't know what is wrong, but I am not convinced it is you. When you buy them, are the pips healthy? Because I am thinking that maybe they have dried out too much and died in the bag. When you take them out of the bag, do the pips feel solid and whole when you squeeze one between your fingers? Or, do they feel either excessively dry and hard OR mushy and soft? Do they smell like they've rotted?

I planted lily of the valley in hard, black, barely-improved clay soil in Ft. Worth in 1986 and they grew just fine and, trust me, I had no idea what I was doing with them. (I was so much better with veggies and annual flowers back then.)

Is your source local? Mail order? Let us know.

Dawn

A friend gave me lily of the valley starts 20 years ago and I have been giving them away for the last 15. If they were alive when you put them into the ground, they should have grown--and multiplied. Get back with me in a month and I'll send you a few.

I haven't been very successful with them either. I do have a few that are living, but they are certainly not running rampant.

Lisa

I have seen them on the north side of houses where the soil is clay. They seem to grow very thickly where they are happy. I have not been able to grow them. I have rocks porous, well drained soil. They may live a while but they don't take off and make a patch. Maybe I should try them on the side of the barn where the water runs off.

Dawn, when i thought about it, the first batch did seem like they may have dried out before i got them in the ground. but the second batch seemed pretty healthy! i was here and posted for some helpful info to make sure i wasnt doing anything wrong and got a good website that suggested soaking them first. so i did that and put a few in some soil in a pot. but they dont seem like they like me! the source for the first batch is unknown to me they were gifts from an estranged aquaintence. my boyfriend got me this second batch from lowes, i found out! :-/ so ill try these last plants, but i may end up taking mulberry up on that offer in a month! but if you guys have anymore suggestions please let me know! should i try our everyday-oklahoma-clay soil instead of potting soil? thanks for all the help!

When did you plant them? And how long was it before you decided they weren't coming up? Lily of the valley don't break dormancy til Mar/April depending on just which zone you're in, so if you put some in the ground this fall/winter, they may still come for you.

mulberry, i planted the first batch last spring. this batch i have inside the house in a pot a few weeks ago, with no new growth. could it be that im being impatient? lol. it wouldnt be the first time!

Probably not. The ones from a year ago were surely dead when you planted them if nothing came up. I've never grown them in the house but if it's warm enough this year's should be coming up. I was given some lovely pips when they emerged several years ago and came straight home and planted them on the north side of the house where they have lived and bloomed ever since. If you get nada, let me know and I'll send you a few as they always come up in the walkway each spring.

ill keep an eye on them and let you know! thank you so much for all the help!