Spring is here and this means another daylily season is not far behind. Our very earliest daylily is Vic's 'Ballerina On Ice', with 'Stella de Oro' a close second. Neither is usually damaged by cold weather. "Ballerina" is a Tet and we crossed it with the converted "Stella" and we got some interesting results. It is always good to look to the future!
In the fall of 2014 we moved our selected seedlings to a display area for 2015 viewing and selecting. Weather conditions in 2015 prevented any of the above. We did choose three for introduction in 2016, a yellow diploid and two "red" tets.
The diploid is yellow with a cool, greenish cast. The color comes from 'Calypso Green', the pod parent. Its sturdiness comes from Bud Bennett's great 'Polar Fizz'.
The two Tets will be called "reds", but they are so much more than merely red. 'Live From New York', has good height and a bright red eye, which covers most of the flower, making for a dramatic image. 'Lipstick Shadow' is a red and rose-red blend. The photo only begins to show how distinctive the flower is.
We have begun to add some bearded iris to the garden, and the colors are beautiful. Since they bloom a month or two before the daylilies, there is a continuous show.
So far we have been able to handle the iris borer which devastated the growing of iris in the area in the 1960's. An early application of insecticide and fungicide as soon as the iris leaves begin to show growth in the spring followed by another application 2 weeks later seems to have done the trick.
The summer of 2015 was probably the driest that we can recall. Rain was scarce and the waterlines kept leaking. A leaking waterline can flood a huge area rather quickly.
Nothing bloomed with "Gusto". It was a year of "if only...
We do hope to get the garden in "shape" by bloom season. Do come to visit this season. The iris and other special perennials are beautiful this year and we have lots of daylilies available! You will also see lots of large pots - we have started to do our vegetable gardening in pots. Easy weeding, watering, and fertilizing and less bending when it comes time to harvest.
Snowflake has become the leader when touring the garden. He loves to be out front and let us "follow" him.