I’ve planted all sorts of daylilies that are supposed to be fragrant, but to my nose, the fragrance is barely detectable. Is there a trick to getting a fragrant daylily?
Fragrance can be a matter of some subjectivity, and it may also vary with different times of day and site conditions. Have you tried planting any of the varieties which have won the L. Ernest Plouf Consistently Fragrant Hemerocallis Award? The name of the award itself suggest that consistency of fragrance is an issue. A co-owner of B & D Lilies in Port Townsend, WA says that getting enough heat is the primary factor in producing a noticeable fragrance from your Hemerocallis.
How can I get my Stella d’Oro daylily to rebloom? It had a huge show the first 2 weeks of July, now it has stopped.
It has become a large plant. I probably should divide it. When should that be done?
Does it like or need fertilizer? I think it got run-off fertilizer from the roses, and that may be why it is such a large plant.
According to Stefan Buczacki’s The Plant Care Manual (Crown, 1993), you should remove individual flowers as they fade, and cut down flower stems with nothing but fading flowers left. This plant should be divided after three years (do this in fall or spring). This may help with flowering, as overcrowded clumps flower less profusely. Hemerocallis should be mulched in spring and early fall, and you can feed with bulb fertilizer or bone meal in early spring.
Here is a useful link to a factsheet on care for daylilies, from Clemson University.
I have a daylily that starts new plants from a flower stem. I have not seen this from any of my other 15 or so plants. Could you tell me what might be going on?
When you say “starts new plants from a flower stem,” do you mean a new baby plant develops atop the flower stem (similar to a multiplier onion)? If so, this could be caused by the seeds sprouting in the pod, which does sometimes happen with daylilies. There is also a phenomenon Diana Grenfell (author of The Gardener’s Guide to Growing Daylilies, Timber Press, 1998) terms ‘proliferations:’ “Proliferations are small fans of leaves occurring on the scapes,” [i.e., the flowering stalks] “usually where there is a node or bract just below the point where the scape branches. On some daylilies these proliferations can develop into baby plants…In theory, if the rooting part of the proliferation can be brought into contact with soil or a growing medium, the proliferation will develop into a fully fledged daylily genetically identical to the parent plant.”
We have the ‘Stella d’Oro’ daylilies, the Hyper Yellow variety. They are 9 years old now, going on 10. We divided them last year, and only had a couple of lilies. Where they are planted I don’t believe they have enough sun. When we divided them, instead of 2 plants, we now have 7. I have a huge planter, on a wheelbase, and was thinking of putting 3 of them in it, perhaps 4. They would be located on the sunny part of our deck, which I know would be much better for them. What can you tell me about daylilies planted in containers? The pot is so big, you could grow a tree in it!
Planting your daylilies in a large container should be fine. Here is some general information from University of Minnesota Extension on growing daylilies, in which they suggest growing repeat-blooming daylilies in your containers. In general, smaller cultivars would be good choices for containers.
If you keep them in the pot over the winter, you may want to protect them by covering with a thick mulch.
You may wish to consult the frequently asked questions page on the American Hemerocallis Society website, which includes cultural information, such as the best place to plant daylilies, excerpted here:
“You need to consider four things in determining where to plant your daylilies:
Sun or Shade
- Most daylilies do best in full sun. They will tolerate part-shade conditions, but require a minimum of six hours of direct sun per day.
- Light yellow cultivars, many shades of pink, and delicate pastels need full sun to bring out their lovely colorings.
- Many red and purple cultivars benefit from partial shade in the hottest part of the day because dark colors absorb heat and do not withstand the sun as well as lighter colors.
Type of Soil
- Any good garden soil is appropriate for growing daylilies. Daylilies will grow, however, in sandy soil or in heavy clay.
- If you have heavy clay soil, add compost, humus, peat moss, and sand to make it more friable.
- If you have sandy soil, add compost, humus, and peat moss to lesson its porosity and to increase water retention.
Drainage
- For maximum performance, daylilies should be planted in well-drained soil. One method of achieving adequate drainage in problem areas is to prepare raised beds, 3 to 6 inches above ground level.”
Can you recommend an evergreen daylily for this area? There are none listed with Greatplantpicks.org, but surely there must be some that thrive in this area. I’m trying to purchase bare root to save on costs, and haven’t had much luck.
There are several evergreen daylilies which should do just fine in our area. Here is some information (now archived) from University of Vermont Extension (where winter is more of an issue):
Excerpt:
“Catalogs list daylilies as D (dormant), SE (semi-evergreen), or E (evergreen). Dormant daylilies stop growing and drop their leaves when the days are short, much like deciduous trees. Evergreen daylilies are not affected by short days and hold their foliage until it is literally frozen off during the winter. Semi-evergreens are somewhere between dormants and evergreens. Many evergreen daylilies are perfectly hardy in the North, but the foliage may be somewhat unattractive in early spring.”
You might get some ideas from this archived article published in the Seattle Times by Valerie Easton. B & D Lilies, a Port Townsend area nursery lists several evergreen cultivars, and some are available as bare root plants.
For long lasting summer color look to dahlias and daylilies. Both of these perennials come in all colors except blue. Daylilies (Hemerocallis) are especially hardy and carefree. Both need sun and regular water to bloom their best. Dahlias must have excellent drainage or else must be dug and stored for the winter.