Abstract: Lily is the fifth important cut flower. China is rich in lily resources. Approximately 55 species are distributed throughout China. Collecting, evaluating, utilization of lily resources and innovating germplasm always have attracted wide attention at home and abroad. The present research on lily resources in China from introduction, morphology, cytogenetic, molecular biology was reviewed. The research advances of lily hybridization, cell engineering, induced mutation breeding, polyploid breeding and gene engineering breeding were summarized. The key to innovating germplasm, the author thinks, lies in the protection, collecting and ex situ conservation of germplasm. The research should also be made on phylogeography, modern biotechnology such as polyploidy breeding, microprotoplast fusion et al.