So yesterday a guy at a corner nursery have me a mess of plants that can come back in spring. They were going to dump them if I didn't take them. They are:


Asiatic lilies


hyacinths


Yellow tulips


Red tulips

So, not wanting to interrupt them during flowering or energy storage, is it ok to leave them in pots until they go dormant and fish then out to be planted as fall bulbs later?

Nice score...

I think either way would be fine.

If you can keep them in the containers until the foliage yellows, then plant them.

Meanwhile, that would give you a bit of extra time to prepare the beds.

If you plant them now, they would also be fine. They just may not deliver blooms the first year.

Those do not look like Asiatic Lilies, they are Easter Lilies(Lilium longiflorum). Those used for potting and sales for easter are supposedly infected with a virus that makes them grow short. I would keep them away from other lilies, to avoid spreading the virus. They are not as cold tolerant as Asiatic Lilies, so keep that in mind.

Your goal will be to keep all of these potted bulbs growing for as long as possible. I would fertilize them a couple of times in the beginning and try to keep the soil moisture and temperature even, until they show signs of wanting to go dormant. For small pots it might actually be beneficial to sink the whole pot in the ground to achieve this, but it isn't absolutely necessary.

Lilies prefer to keep their bulb and roots cool through the summer, so if you can prevent the sun from shining directly on the pot (sink the whole clump into ground or place it in an extra isolating pot) it will be benificial. Replant the lilies as soon as they are dormant.

Tulips and Hyacinths prefer a dry summers rest, so once dormant the best place for them will be dry in their pots. Replant Hyacinths early in the autumn and Tulips later once the soil cooled down a bit.

In my haste to post, I had Asiatic lilies on the brain. Thanks for the correction as well as all the help. Much appreciated