Q.My Lily has 70 flowers on it this year and a thick stem.
Why has my Lily this year got over 70 flowers on it and a thick stem,
If I split it in the winter ,will the new bulbs be the same ,or will they revert back to normal?
Certified GKH Gardening Expert
Wow. Spontaneous Polyploidy! Quite interesting to see in nature.
This has a complex answer, and I won't bore you with the details.
Sometimes what happens is that some stress, or chemicals, will cause a genetic disruption in plant cells. Instead of splitting into separate cells, all genetic material from cell division gets packed into cell. So the plant is now what is known as "Polyploid"
This will not harm the plant, and can likely die off, never to return, at some point. If you get lucky, you will get seeds from those flowers, which some may be polyploid. This means they have the potential to carry on the genetic mutation.
This document will help explain the concept: http://plantbreeding.coe.uga.edu/index.php?title=6._Polyploidy
