Daylilies are one of the most excellent perennial plants you can have in your garden. If there was ever a sure thing in the world of perennials, it has to be daylilies. True to their botanical name – Hemerocallis – which means beauty for a day, most daylily flowers open in the morning, then close and die with nightfall. Each flower stalk, or scape, usually has more than a dozen flower buds; so one plant can literally bloom for weeks.
These rugged winter-hardy plants are great for borders, slopes or mass plantings. They are so adaptable that they will grow in almost any type of soil and in practically all light conditions. Plant daylilies just about anywhere. Any spot in your yard where you cannot get anything else to thrive could host daylilies. Try planting a few and watch the area quickly fill up with masses of green foliage. Avoid planting in wet or boggy soil as they may suffer from root rot.
There are literally thousands of types of daylilies and they can be grouped in a variety of ways. Some of the most common groupings are by bloom time (early, mid- and late-), flower color (every shade but blue), scape height or flower shape. By selecting your plants for bloom time, you can have daylilies blooming throughout most of the summer.
Daylilies are prolific and will grow quickly like a massive ground cover. You can divide them every three years by digging and separating in early spring or when they finish blooming. Cut the foliage back leaving about 5 inches and replant with the crown being one inch or so below the level of the soil. Freshly replanted divisions require some type of mulch, either leaves or straw, to protect them until they have re-established themselves. If you are not going to divide your plants, allow the foliage to die off on it’s own in the late fall. The bloom stems will resemble sticks as they die off and these can easily be broken off and discarded, leaving the lovely green foliage to continue growing.
Caring for daylilies really couldn’t be easier. Water, of course, is essential for good performance. Given enough of it, daylilies will give you as many and as large of blooms as possible. It is most important that daylilies get sufficient water in the spring when blooms are forming on the scapes, and in summer during bloom season. Daylilies are drought tolerant, but the price you’ll pay is a decrease in number and size of bloom. The general rule is to give daylilies an inch of water each week – three or four long waterings to let the water soak in deep.
Since daylilies grow just about anywhere, it’s difficult to suggest a fertilizer as they could be growing in a variety of soils. Daylilies are not terribly picky about their fertilizer and for most home gardeners a balanced fertilizer of 10-10-10 works well. Of course, organic is best, in my opinion. Mulch, of course, is beneficial to daylilies in a number of ways. It helps improve the soil by the addition of organic matter, helps retain moisture and discourages weeds. Wood chips, chipped bark, straw and pine needles are all possibilities.
Many growers of daylilies deadhead the faded blooms at the end of each day to give their gardens a tidier appearance. Because of the intense summer heat in our area, the foliage of daylilies can get a little ragged in appearance toward the middle and end of the summer. One practice that has been found useful is to trim the foliage. Some gardeners go at their daylilies with scissors or hand trimmers. Others utilize a weed eater and trim the foliage to about six inches. Naturally, you would not want to do this on plants that have not yet bloomed or on plants that are still bearing flower scapes. Trim to about 6 inches and promote fresh, new foliage, which will keep the plant looking nice until frost. It’s generally not a good practice to remove dead foliage in winter because to do so is to remove the plant’s natural cold insulation. You can, however, if you replace it with mulch to protect against frost.
As all gardeners know, there are no easy answers to weeds. Daylilies are good at keeping weeds down once they are established. Until then, mulch and hoeing are good weed control methods.
Daylilies are not very prone to pests, fortunately for us. The ones that do bother them generally do only minor damage. The common pests of daylilies are aphids, spider mites, thrips, slugs and snails. There are a number of good, organic remedies for use in repelling these pests. They may cause damage to the buds, discolored leaves, bent and twisted scapes and ragged edges or holes in the foliage. It is often difficult to determine which pest exactly is the culprit for visible damage. The tomato leaf spray described in a previous article works well for insect pests. Beer traps or diatomaceous earth work for slugs and snails.
For best results, give your daylilies at least six hours of full sun a day. Darker blooming plants may require less to discourage fading of the blooms, however if you plant them in too much shade, you’ll get more leafy growth with fewer flowers.
These hardy perennials excel at providing splashes of color in borders and perennial flowerbeds. They also make excellent ground covers on slopes where they contribute to erosion control. They look really great against fences, decks, patios, steps and even driveways. To allow them room to thrive, don’t plant them too close to the roots of trees. Plants range in height from eight inches to five feet and flower size can be as small as two inches to as large as eight inches. They usually bloom the first year they are planted, even if the plant of is relatively small in size. They will grow quickly to form dense clumps and tend to be long lived.
The reblooming daylily will have a longer flowering period or more than one bloom season. Some bloom early in May or June and will repeat the bloom in the fall. Other types have a succession of bloom periods, one shortly after another for several months. Removing the scapes after all the blooms on it have faded will encourage rebloom.
Daylilies are by far the easiest plant to grow in your garden. They will thrive for you without any maintenance requirements and will do their best when you don’t baby them with too much water or too much food.
These truly can be your “darling buds of May” that will show off in your garden all summer.
These rugged winter-hardy plants are great for borders, slopes or mass plantings. They are so adaptable that they will grow in almost any type of soil and in practically all light conditions. Plant daylilies just about anywhere. Any spot in your yard where you cannot get anything else to thrive could host daylilies. Try planting a few and watch the area quickly fill up with masses of green foliage. Avoid planting in wet or boggy soil as they may suffer from root rot.
There are literally thousands of types of daylilies and they can be grouped in a variety of ways. Some of the most common groupings are by bloom time (early, mid- and late-), flower color (every shade but blue), scape height or flower shape. By selecting your plants for bloom time, you can have daylilies blooming throughout most of the summer.
Daylilies are prolific and will grow quickly like a massive ground cover. You can divide them every three years by digging and separating in early spring or when they finish blooming. Cut the foliage back leaving about 5 inches and replant with the crown being one inch or so below the level of the soil. Freshly replanted divisions require some type of mulch, either leaves or straw, to protect them until they have re-established themselves. If you are not going to divide your plants, allow the foliage to die off on it’s own in the late fall. The bloom stems will resemble sticks as they die off and these can easily be broken off and discarded, leaving the lovely green foliage to continue growing.
Caring for daylilies really couldn’t be easier. Water, of course, is essential for good performance. Given enough of it, daylilies will give you as many and as large of blooms as possible. It is most important that daylilies get sufficient water in the spring when blooms are forming on the scapes, and in summer during bloom season. Daylilies are drought tolerant, but the price you’ll pay is a decrease in number and size of bloom. The general rule is to give daylilies an inch of water each week – three or four long waterings to let the water soak in deep.
Since daylilies grow just about anywhere, it’s difficult to suggest a fertilizer as they could be growing in a variety of soils. Daylilies are not terribly picky about their fertilizer and for most home gardeners a balanced fertilizer of 10-10-10 works well. Of course, organic is best, in my opinion. Mulch, of course, is beneficial to daylilies in a number of ways. It helps improve the soil by the addition of organic matter, helps retain moisture and discourages weeds. Wood chips, chipped bark, straw and pine needles are all possibilities.
Many growers of daylilies deadhead the faded blooms at the end of each day to give their gardens a tidier appearance. Because of the intense summer heat in our area, the foliage of daylilies can get a little ragged in appearance toward the middle and end of the summer. One practice that has been found useful is to trim the foliage. Some gardeners go at their daylilies with scissors or hand trimmers. Others utilize a weed eater and trim the foliage to about six inches. Naturally, you would not want to do this on plants that have not yet bloomed or on plants that are still bearing flower scapes. Trim to about 6 inches and promote fresh, new foliage, which will keep the plant looking nice until frost. It’s generally not a good practice to remove dead foliage in winter because to do so is to remove the plant’s natural cold insulation. You can, however, if you replace it with mulch to protect against frost.
As all gardeners know, there are no easy answers to weeds. Daylilies are good at keeping weeds down once they are established. Until then, mulch and hoeing are good weed control methods.
Daylilies are not very prone to pests, fortunately for us. The ones that do bother them generally do only minor damage. The common pests of daylilies are aphids, spider mites, thrips, slugs and snails. There are a number of good, organic remedies for use in repelling these pests. They may cause damage to the buds, discolored leaves, bent and twisted scapes and ragged edges or holes in the foliage. It is often difficult to determine which pest exactly is the culprit for visible damage. The tomato leaf spray described in a previous article works well for insect pests. Beer traps or diatomaceous earth work for slugs and snails.
For best results, give your daylilies at least six hours of full sun a day. Darker blooming plants may require less to discourage fading of the blooms, however if you plant them in too much shade, you’ll get more leafy growth with fewer flowers.
These hardy perennials excel at providing splashes of color in borders and perennial flowerbeds. They also make excellent ground covers on slopes where they contribute to erosion control. They look really great against fences, decks, patios, steps and even driveways. To allow them room to thrive, don’t plant them too close to the roots of trees. Plants range in height from eight inches to five feet and flower size can be as small as two inches to as large as eight inches. They usually bloom the first year they are planted, even if the plant of is relatively small in size. They will grow quickly to form dense clumps and tend to be long lived.
The reblooming daylily will have a longer flowering period or more than one bloom season. Some bloom early in May or June and will repeat the bloom in the fall. Other types have a succession of bloom periods, one shortly after another for several months. Removing the scapes after all the blooms on it have faded will encourage rebloom.
Daylilies are by far the easiest plant to grow in your garden. They will thrive for you without any maintenance requirements and will do their best when you don’t baby them with too much water or too much food.
These truly can be your “darling buds of May” that will show off in your garden all summer.
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