Protecting Our Tall Flowers From Wind Damage

Every year our little display of Oriental Lilies gets better. They give us so much pleasure, fill the garden with beautiful scent, and each year there are more of them. 

The downside is that most years the display is somewhat spoiled by some of the lilies falling over as soon as we have a windy day. And the taller they get, the more vulnerable they are to the wind.

Even if they don’t break completely they often start to lean precariously forwards and away from the shelter of the fence. So this year, we decided to step in and provide the Lilies with some support. 

Different types of support

I have plenty of bamboo stakes. So one option is to simply put stakes into the ground and tie the stems to them with garden twine. But I felt this would be both fiddly and not exactly attractive. 

Also, I always worry about someone falling onto a bamboo stake and spearing themselves! (Unlikely, I know, but worrying is my thing). 

Another option was to run a length of rope or garden wire around the entire group, fastening it to the fence at each end. 

Metal plant supports

In the end, I decided on a third option. I splashed out on some purpose-made flower supports. The type with a hoop at the top of a long metal stake that goes into the ground.

They come in a range of heights. As some of my Lilies are over 6 foot tall, I went for the tallest supports at 35 inches.

The supports took a few days to arrive in the post, meanwhile we had some windy weather to contend with so we tied some rope around the group to keep them safe. Not very pretty, but it did the trick!

Pros and cons of plant supports

Cons:

They were definitely a more expensive method than rope or string. And the very biggest lilies had stems that were so thick, they wouldn’t go into the hoop on the support. 

Pros: 

The supports were great for the smaller lilies with thinner stems. Which works well because those were the ones that really needed the support. 

I was surprised at how unobtrusive the supports were. And they looked a lot better than string! 

Verdict:

I’ve never used metal plant supports before, and they weren’t cheap. But I think they look pretty good, and don’t detract too much from the display.

Other wind proofing strategies

We did plant these Lilies on the leeward side of a tall fence, and generally this a good way to reduce wind damage to tall or delicate plants.

A hedge or wall can work too, though of course a hedge will compete with your flowers for some of those juicy nutrients! And it’s worth considering that a wall or dense hedge can result in some turbulence on the leeward side.

You do need to be careful not to deprive the plant of sunlight or rainwater when planting up against a barrier. I think we have got the situation right for our Lilies as they are clearly thriving. 

If you don’t have a suitable fence, or wall, wicker hurdles can make a nice windbreak and backdrop for tall flowers. Or simply planting larger, sturdier plants behind them. You can also plant flowers in heavy containers, but even these can be vulnerable in strong winds. (Check out Sarah Holloway’s great article on how to stop your container plants tipping over)

Mulching and close planting

We also mulch our lilies thoroughly from our well rotted compost pile in the spring. Mulch doesn’t just provide nutrients, it also helps to secure the roots nice and firmly. 

Another helpful strategy is to plant the bulbs fairly close together so that they support one another and form a bit of a windbreak.

If you’ve never grown Oriental Lilies, I recommend them. Despite looking exotically delicate, they are surprisingly easy to grow and apart from wind protection need very little work. 

I’ve long ago lost the label for ours, but from looking at pictures, I think the variety is ‘Pink Explosion’, which seems appropriate! If you recognize it as another variety please let me know in the comments below!

The inset in that photo is me standing next to the lilies. I’m 5 foot 9, and that’s an 8 foot fence. So you can see just how tall they grow.

I hope your garden is doing well this summer, and if you grow oriental lilies let me know how you protect them from the wind!  You can post photos of your garden on our facebook page, we love to see them!