Do Calla Lilies Come Back Every Year? [What You Needs to Know]

Calla lilies are a great plant option to grow in your garden or indoors because they bloom into beautiful flowers. They are also easy to grow and do not require many specialized conditions. However, many new gardeners usually wonder what lifespan calla lilies have and how often they grow back.

Calla lilies are perennial plants that usually go dormant and come back every year. However, this significantly depends on whether or not you afford proper care, including placing them in appropriate conditions during winter.

If you want to know more about calla lilies, including whether or not they come back every year, their lifespan, and how to grow them back, keep reading.

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Why Didn’t My Calla Lilies Bloom This Year?

Calla Lilies are supposed to come back every year during their growing season. These perennial plants return for another growth cycle after a dormancy period. You might spot some flowery calla lilies when driving through Oregon or Hawaii during their blooming season.

However, as noted earlier, your calla lilies will not come back if the growing conditions are not appropriate and the lilies did not get a good dormancy period. These growth factors include excess nitrogen, inadequate sunlight, and lack of water. The lilies will also not come back if you use incorrect planting methods.

Let’s unpack some of the conditions that may lead to your calla lilies not coming back.

Excess Nitrogen

Excessive nitrogen from fertilizers is the first possible reason your calla lilies did not come back. Calla lilies don’t usually require many specialized conditions to bloom and thus can grow without additional fertilizer.

However, if you must add fertilizer because the soil needs it, ensure it does not add excess nitrogen content.

You can tell if your calla lilies have excess nitrogen content if you notice brown leaf segments or lush and quick-growing plant foliage. If you see this, the excess nitrogen has likely stopped your calla lilies from blooming.

Lack of Water

You should also check the amount of water your calla lilies receive if they do not return. Usually, a lack of water causes calla lily bulbs to dry, which stunts their growth and causes them to develop yellow, wilted leaves. This prevents the plant from blooming.

Low Temperatures

Calla lilies are also not well adapted to low temperatures. Temperatures falling below a certain level create a hostile environment for the plant. You must always take proper care of your plants during winter to allow them to survive until spring time when they start their growth cycle again.

If you do not provide proper care for your plants when the temperatures are low, they will not rebloom when the summer months come.

Incorrect Farming Methods

You also need to ensure you use proper planting methods, including providing your calla lilies with an adequate dormancy period. If your calla lilies do not go dormant, you can engineer artificial dormancy since the procedure is not complicated.

Therefore, if your calla lilies do not come back, you should check the above factors to see if they affected their growth.

For replanted calla lilies, you need to ensure the bulbs are not rotten and provide them with the right conditions to ensure they come back. With appropriate conditions during dormant and active seasons, you should expect replanted calla lilies to come back after 6-8 weeks.

How Can I Get My Calla Lilies To Grow Back?

If you want your calla lilies to grow back, you should ensure the growing conditions, such as sunlight and water, are appropriate. You must also provide your calla lilies with a dormant period to prepare for the growth period.

To do this, take your lilies to a cool and dark place for two months before returning them to light. During this period, do not water the plant until you return it to the light. Your calla lilies will start blooming shortly after that.

For your calla lilies to grow back, you must also use the correct planting methods and ensure the appropriate growth conditions are present.

Another crucial step that most new gardeners are unaware of entails providing your calla lilies with an adequate dormant period. If your calla lilies do not go into dormancy after completing the growth cycle on their own, you can create an artificial dormancy.

To do this:

Wait for the flowering period to end and stop watering the calla lilies. This will cause the soil to become bone dry.
Take the calla lilies to a cool, dark place and leave it for about two months. You should not water the plant during this period. You should also ensure the place you select is cool and not cold.
Take the plant back to the light and start watering it again. Your calla lilies should start flowering soon after.

What Is a Calla Lily’s Lifespan?

You probably want to know the average lifespan of calla lilies before planting them in your garden or pots at home. So, how long should you expect your calla lilies to last?

Calla Lilies are perennial plants that usually last many years. However, they must first undergo dormancy in preparation for the growing cycle before coming back again.

Your calla lilies will have a lengthy lifespan and live for many years provided you take proper care of them by providing appropriate growth conditions and using the correct planting techniques.

As such, the length of their lifespan largely depends on the care you afford them. For instance, calla lilies need extra care during winter because they are not well adapted to low temperatures.

You must also ensure your calla lilies receive the appropriate growth conditions, including adequate water, sunlight, and fertilizer, to extend their lifespan.

New calla lily gardeners should also note that they usually go dormant after their flowering season. This dormancy period can sometimes resemble a dying plant because of the wilting and browning leaves.

When this happens, confirm the plant is indeed entering its dormancy stage after flowering and not dying. If this is the case, leave it alone and wait for it to come back again.

Why Did My Calla Lilies Go Dormant?

Calla lilies usually experience a dormancy period after completing their growth cycle. This period is essential in helping the calla lilies prepare for another growth cycle. Without a proper dormancy period, your calla lilies will not bloom and complete their growth once their growing season begins.

Do not worry if your calla lilies go dormant as they should do so after completing a growth cycle. It is highly likely for people who have not planted calla lilies before to throw them out when they enter their dormancy period. This is because they think the plant is dead or about to die, given its symptoms.

Usually, dormant calla lilies begin losing leaves during the late summer with all the foliage dying back down. Therefore, you should not panic if you notice your calla lilies going dormant. This is a crucial stage at the end of the plant’s growing cycle and helps to prepare it for the next growth cycle.

Without a proper dormancy period, your calla lilies will not bloom again in the next growth cycle. Thus, ensure your calla lilies go through their normal cycles to guarantee they bloom the following next season. Moreover, do not mistake dormancy to mean your calla lily will never grow again.

Which Months Do Calla Lilies Bloom?

Calla lilies typically bloom during summer and fall. You should check the growth conditions if your calla lilies go through this period without producing buds or flowering.

You also need to take proper care of your calla lilies during the winter months for them to survive and bloom again when summer and fall come around.

Usually, calla lilies are planted in springtime and they grow moderately fast. This allows them to produce flowers by early to mid-summer and bloom throughout the season until early fall. Therefore, you should expect your calla lilies to bloom from May or June through August in the United States.

Some varieties, such as the Prolific Asiatic lilies, only bloom during spring after exposure to the cold winter periods. Therefore, you should also expect different varieties of calla lilies to bloom at various different periods within this timeline.

Not all calla lily types take the same time to develop and bloom. Thus, determine the type of calla lilies you have and learn about their cycles.

Conclusion

Calla lilies are a fantastic plant option for your garden or indoor flower pot because they are beautiful and easy to grow. However, growing them successfully and having them come back again every year depends on how well you care for them, especially through the winter months.

Therefore, always ensure your calla lilies grow in the right conditions and provide appropriate care during winter to prepare for the summer and fall months. Also, ensure your calla lilies undergo a dormancy period after blooming because this is essential for their next growth cycle.