Cavan Reflections

By: Anne Corke

Jul 20 2011

Tags: daylily, gardening

Category: Gardening

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Have I mentioned that I love daylilies? Well, anyone who loves daylilies, loves July, when they are at peak bloom. It may be hot as hell (and indeed it is this year!) but at least I can wander the gardens early in the morning admiring my daylily collection. What started innocently enough back in 1995 with a visit to a daylily garden open house, is now a consuming passion for all things hemerocallis. My daylilies now number over one hundred and forty and I appear to have run out of room, but if a particular one catches my eye at this weekend’s open house, I’m sure I can find room for it somewhere, even if it means digging up another plant! So, why daylilies, you might ask. Well, daylilies are one of the easiest perennials to grow. If you dig a nice hole and throw in some of that yummy compost that’s been rotting in the back forty for a few years, and plant and water your daylily lovingly, you will be rewarded with years of bloom and additional plants in the future, should you wish to divide it. And although each flower only lasts for one day (hemerocallis means beautiful for a day in Greek), a mature plant may have tens or even hundreds of blooms. Once the plants are established, they are quite drought tolerant but they will flower more profusely if watered regularly. During drought periods, such as this one, I have been known to put the sprinkler out in the daylily beds, especially if the plants are about to bloom or are in bloom. New plants, of course, are watered regularly until they are well established. Daylilies come in a rainbow of colours and a variety of forms. No matter what your colour scheme, there is a daylily which will fit the bill. The only colour not yet available is true blue, but there are many daylilies which have shades of blue in their flowers. Most daylilies have simple flowers, but there are now many double varieties, as well as spiders and other unusual forms. Daylilies are rarely troubled by garden pests, unlike true lilies which I have had to remove from my garden because they were being ravaged by red lily beetles. In a difficult economy such as today’s, it’s also reassuring to know that you can also eat your daylilies if things get really tough. Yes, go ahead, throw a few of those buds in your salad! And so, you see, daylilies really are one of the best perennials for your garden, so why not check them out and add one or two, or maybe a hundred and forty, to your garden. Give a daylily a good home, and you will have the luxury of more time to spend admiring your flowers rather than tending to them!

Copyright 2011 Anne Corke