The daylily garden doesn't have a lot to offer this time of year. Blooms are typically small and sporadic with colors faded by the heat. The plants are getting smaller due to shedding their outermost leaves in order to balance the amount of moisture transpiring through the foliage with the amount of water the roots can supply. Still, I usually walk the garden each morning because there's always the chance for a pleasant surprise. This season has been no exception.

Seeding 16-050

Seedling 16-050 was blooming this morning. Yes the color is faded (it's usually much pinker) and the bloom smaller than in May but it's still lookin' good IMHO. Scroll down to June 4th post to see a picture taken back in May.

I always produced more daylily seeds than I needed to ensure that I had enough to meet my planting quota (typically around 1000 seeds). This is the time of year when the seed harvest was usually completed and the sorting and organizing took place. All the seeds for each cross were consolidated and counted. In other words, an inventory was taken of each cross. From this I could select the best crosses with the plumpest seeds to produce a planting plan for the fall. Then back in the refridgerator they would go, waiting for planting day.

Sunshine Kisses (Jarvis, 2010)

Sunshine Kisses opens nice and flat and is a robust grower but it doesn't have a particularly high bud count (20). Because of this, I initially didn't use it in my hybridizing. Eventually I realized that the small red edge revealed possible potential with my edges program and I crossed it with Fashion Police resulting in Soaring Splendor (posted May 29, 2021). I made the same cross again and the result was seedling 14-079 (posted June 17th, 2021).

While there are still lots of daylilies showing no signs of rust, rust has appeared around the garden and is spreading. It was nice while it lasted but all these weeks of rain and cooler than normal temperatures were perfect for rust and the inevitable is now at hand. I'm not planning on spraying again until the fall. The wet weather pattern looks to finally have broken and lots of mid to upper 90's are now in the forecast. Most rust goes dormant when temps are too hot.

I haven't taken many pictures recently but this morning there were a couple of blooms that cried out "take my picture!"... so I did and added them to the 'to-be-posted' folder.

Seedling 13-069

Seedling 13-069 has 6" blooms on 29" scapes. It comes from the cross (Orange City X Caribbean Magic). The red eye and edge set off the bright gold petals. In direct sun, the blooms really stand out.

The oak leaf mulch in my beds appears to be breaking down a little faster than last year. I'm sure it's because of all the rain as the mulch hasn't really been able to dry out for weeks. Fortunately, I still have a number of bags of the shredded gold and have been adding it over the existing mulch. The front yard was finished pretty quickly but the back is taking longer because it's full sun in the morning and in the afternoon when the beds get some shade, it's been raining.

Seedling 13-056

Seedling 13-056 has 6" blooms on 25" scapes and comes from the cross (Carefree Sunset X Steve Martin).

All the recent rains and several days of cooler than normal temperatures resulted in a pleasant surprise in the garden this morning. Most of the blooms looked especially good for this time of year. The colors were good, the blooms were large, and they opened nicely. They looked more like early June blooms instead of mid July blooms.

One of the reasons for the slightly cooler temperatures is the presence of an african dust cloud over this area. Unlike many years during this occurance where the dust just blows on by, we had a nice rain to wash some of the dust out of the air. Oh boy, free fertilizer!

Peppermint Spring (Jarvis, 2006)

Peppermint Spring is one of my older registrations, but remains a favorite. It has 5" blooms on 28" scapes and comes from the cross (Rouge and Lace X Strawberry Fields Forever).

It looks like we are going into another rainy period. There's been about 2.5" in the past couple of days and the forecast is for 60% chance of T-storms for the next 4 days. Daylilies are very happy but so is the rattlesnake weed. I noticed last night that it's coming up all over the backyard garden again. The good news is that it's easy enough to remove what's above ground but the bad news is that it's practically impossible to remove all the tubers and runners underground so it will aways be a problem.

The recent rain has made for some nice blooms for this time of year. Usually the blooms are smaller in July but the rain is plumping them up at least for the time being. Enjoying it while it lasts...

Seedling l6-052

Seedling 16-052 has 6" blooms on 24" scapes and comes from the cross (Celtic Moonglow X Rose Sensation).

As I've said before, I'm no longer actively making crosses and producing new daylily seeds. June and early July was typically when seeds would have been harvested so I suppose it's only natural to be a little nostalgic around this time. Each pod filled with plump black seeds was harvested and tagged with the parentage. Then it was placed in the fridge awaiting fall planting. It was yet another time to dream about what might come from those new seeds.

Nostalgic yes, but it was still the right choice. The process of planning dozens of crosses, making them, harvesting the seeds, planting, weeding, and fertilizing 1000 to 1500 seeds each year didn't leave much time to enjoy the other fun things in life. I have to admit that I've been tempted to make 'a few' crosses from time to time but so far I've resisted temptation by making sure I don't have any place to plant the seeds (smile).

Seedling 10-087

Seedling 10-087 has 5.5" blooms on 24" scapes and comes from the cross (Open My Eyes X (Hedwig's Eyes x Spacecoast Gold Bonanza)).

This morning I gave the daylilies in the back yard their "snack" (see yesterday's post). As I worked from clump to clump, I noticed that some cultivars that usually rebloom almost immediately after the first scapes finish, were only now sending up rebloom scapes. This has indeed been a most unusual year!

Yesterday I failed to mention how I was applying the fertilizer. I made my own "fertilizer shaker" using a 32oz plastic Texmati rice jar. It has a wide mouth screw on plastic cap. I drilled a bunch of holes in the cap that were one and a half times larger than the time-release pellets. The result was a small hand held shaker that was easy to maneuver around the base of the clumps spreading the fertilizer evenly. The amount of fertilizer is determined by the amount of shaking. I love making my own tools!

Seedling 14-013

Today's image is seedling 14-013. It has 5" blooms on 23" scapes and comes from the cross (Mississippi Memento X Wild Cherry Round Up).

This morning I started spreading a small amount of time release fertilizer in the front beds. For year I didn't fertilize during the summer but last year I decided to apply a small amount to see what kind of results I would get. The result was encouraging with plants a looking a little better than usual in the early fall. I'm still concerned with fertilizer pushing the plants too much during the hottest part of the summer but I now believe a LITTLE 'snack' to be beneficial in helping the plants cope with the stresses of blooming and the summer heat.

Springtime Romance (Jarvis, 2011)

Springtime Romance has 5" blooms on 27" scapes and comes from the cross (Dream Runner X J.T. Davis).

I'm still amazed to see a pretty much rust free garden. The foliage looks so much better than at the same time in years past. The outer leaves in the front bed that had exhibited a little rust damage earlier have died away leaving only clean foliage. If only this would last!

Seedling 12-078

Seedling 12-078 has 5.5" blooms on 27" scapes and comes from the cross (What Love Can Do X Sweet Tranquility).

Yesterday as I was removing spent scapes from the front yard, I realized that there were fewer reblooms than usual for this time of year. I suspect this is another result of the late freeze.

Seedling 02-021

Seedling 02-021 is one of the oldest seedlings I grow. It doesn't perform well enough to be registered (bud count tops out in mid-teens) but the color has secured its place in my garden. It has 5.5" blooms on 30" scapes and comes from the cross (Great White X Strawberry Fields Forever).

As I was filling the bird bath this morning, I realized that while there were still some daylilies blooming, they were being overshadowed by the forest of bloomed out scapes. I don't like to remove these until they are dry enough to easily remove without cutting but I "gotta keep the front yard lookin' good" (like the Chuck Brodsky song). So tomorrow weather permitting, I'll cut the dead scapes in the front yard. The back yard can wait until they can be easily removed.

Seedling 14-005

Today's image is seedling 14-005. It has 6" blooms on 30" scapes and comes from the cross (Hedwig's Eyes X Shipwreck Cove).

The neighborhood Cooper Hawk eyas has fledged and is now being taught how to hunt. Yesterday I was sitting on my patio enjoying the late afternoon breezes. I closed my eyes and drew a 3-dimensional picture in my mind of the activities surrounding me. I find this to be a really good relaxation technique. From the calls between parent and child, I've concluded that just like last year there's only one eyas. I suspect that there's just not enough food in the hawk's territory to support more than one offspring at a time. I opened my eyes just in time to identify the culprit that's been taking my green tomatoes - my old nemesis the squirrel (LOL).

Seedling 14-079

Seedling 14-079 has 6" blooms on 29" scapes and comes from the cross (Sunshine Kisses X Fashion Police). This is the same cross that produced SOARING SPLENDOR but the the cultivars have significant differences. For example, seedling 14-079 has a wide double edge resulting in a much bolder bloom than SOARING SPLENDOR. However, it has shorter scapes (29" vs. 37"), a significantly lower bud count, and produces smaller plants making it a less desirable garden plant.

I have never intentionally hybridized for doubles. While I like double daylilies well enough, to hybridize in a relatively small garden means concentrating resources (garden space) toward my main objectives. That doesn't preclude getting seedlings that double from time to time however. They can be a nice variation in the garden but typically these seedling only double a relatively small percentage of the time.

Seedling 16-049Seedling 16-049 double form

Seedling 16-049 is one of those that tends to double from time to time. I haven't actually tracked the double ratio but I'd estimate it to be 20-25% (some years more, some less). It has 5" blooms on 25" scapes and comes from the cross (Barbara Morello X Priscilla's Smile).

I spent some time looking at the underside of daylily foliage that was showing some signs of rust damage. I was looking for active rust but didn't find any. That's good and actually what I expected to find. With daytime temperatures well into the 90's, rust pretty much goes dormant waiting for the next few rainy days where temps stay in the mid 80's or below.

Having experienced a pretty much rust-free spring due to all daylily foliage freezing back to ground level, I find myself wondering if I intentionally cut off all foliage at ground level during the middle of winter, would this at least delay the onset of rust until after bloom season? And if so, would removing all the foliage mid-winter result in a reduction of blooms like we experienced this year because of the freeze? So many questions... (smile).

Seedling 14-047

Lavender is not my favorite daylily color but seedling 14-047 has earned a place in the garden. Typical blooms are only 5.5" on 24" scapes but the bloom is quite eye-catching. It comes from the cross (Piping Rock X (Spacecoast Cranberry Breeze x Dream Runner)).

I walked the garden this morning removing any seed pods that had managed to form. If not intentionally trying to produce seeds, it's a good idea to remove pods because it takes plant resources to produce and mature seeds. I'd rather these resources go toward strengthening the plants. It was not the first time I've removed pods this year but I still found a good handful. The bees have been busy!

At the same time, I also checked to see how rust was progressing. I was pleasantly surprised to find very little rust with probably 95% of the cultivars still rust free. Rust typically isn't active when daytime temperatures are in the 90's so this is probably why the small amount I'm seeing isn't spreading.

Serengeti Moonlight (Jarvis, 2020)

This is Serengeti Moonlight. It has 6" blooms on 28" scapes and comes from the cross (((Larry Grace x Spacecoast Gold Bonanza) X Lacy Dusk).

The early summer heat (low 90's) is starting to take its toll on the daylily blooms. Colors are generally less intense and petals are getting narrower. The number of blooms worth taking a picture of has dwindled to only a few each day. If I get 2 or 3 days in a row with no blooms worth capturing I'll know it's time to start sorting through the season's images. I like to keep several of the best pics of each cultivar and also images that show features of the bloom that I want to keep track of. The rest will be deleted.

Seedling 16-064

Seedling 16-064 has 6.5" blooms on 25" scapes. It comes from the cross (Cimarron Rose X Rose Sensation).

As bloom season is winding down, I'm able to spend some time organizing some of the data I've gathered. Yesterday I entered this year's first bloom dates in my database. I previously posted about tracking 'FBO' dates in my May 15th 2021 post. Due to variances in weather, FBO dates for any individual cultivar can be quite different in some years. This year's freeze is a good example. Tracking this data for multiple years allows me to identify when a seedling normally blooms in relation to all the other daylilies in the garden. This make it easier to determine what 'bloom season' (early, late, etc...) to use when submitting a registration.

Seedling 15-061

Seedling 15-061 has 6" blooms on 27" scapes. It comes from the cross (Bella Vita X Frank's Hot Tamale). This seedling is a prime example of FBO date variability. It has FBO'd as early as April 8th, and as late as May 8th.

From the 'down the rabbit hole' department... Yesterday, I noticed a fuzzy looking moth on a fence post. I've always enjoyed identifying bugs & critters I haven't seen before so I headed for the computer. With Google's help I identified it as a Southern Flannel Moth. Ugh! this is the parent of the notorious Asp caterpillar which is known for its powerful stings. A couple of hours later I passed by the same fence post and noticed the moth had been attacked by a Spined Soldier Bug. The empty carcass later told me that there wouldn't be any future Asps from this moth. Nature doing what nature does best (smile).

Seedling 08-020

Seedling 08-020 is one of my older seedlings. Flower size can vary from 5-6" depending on how much the bloom recurves. Scapes are typically around 30". Bud count seldom exceeds the mid teens and it probably will never be registered but it performs well in the garden. I particularly like the contrast between the clean pink petals and the bright red eye and edge. It comes from the cross ((Rouge and Lace x First Knight) X (Great White x Strawberry Fields Forever)).

Every year I have a few seedlings that may not bloom. If a seedling fails to bloom multiple times, out it goes. There are some registered cultivars that are known for 'not liking to be disturbed' so occasionally skipping of a bloom year is not necessarily the death knell if I can tie it to some logical explanation. Examples might include 'typically doesn't like to be disturbed but does ok after settling in again', or it 'overblooms one year so it takes a longer recovery time before it's ready to bloom again', and 'physical damage to the plant leading up to bloom season' like a late hard freeze. This year it was the combination of transplanting some of the smaller seedlings the previous fall and the late hard freeze so the number that are not going to bloom (10) is higher than usual.

Sometimes it can happen without any logical explanation. Back in the early 90's APPLE TART (Hughes, 74) didn't bloom one year. There wasn't any apparent reason... it was a single fan but the fan looked to easily be large enough to support a nice bloom stalk. I was a little puzzled by this so I probably tended to baby the plant with a little extra fertilizer hoping it would bloom the following year. As time went on, the fan grew larger and larger. It didn't split or send up additional fans like most daylilies but remained a single fan all the way until the next bloom season. By then the fan was huge and it put up a magnificant scape. It had more buds and branching than I had ever seen on a daylily before. As the club daylily show date approached, it looked like it was going to open its first bloom around the same time. I was SO EXCITED. When it finally bloomed it opened four at the same time spaced perfectly - a certain show winner! Unfortunately, this happened the day before the show and on show day there were not any blooms open (sigh...). The total buds on that scape were over 60. After that year it went back to normal blooming with bud counts in the lower 20's.

Seedling 15-006

Seedling 15-006 has 6" blooms on 27" scapes and comes from the cross (Mississippi Memento X Thomas Tew).

The lower freeze related bud counts have resulted in a much more rapid drop off in blooms than in other years. In addition, there does appear to be a significantly lower rate of rebloom, probably also freeze related. At least there are still some blooms to enjoy every morning (smile).

Seedling 16-091

Seedling 16-091 has 7" blooms on 32" scapes and comes from the cross (What Love Can Do X Sarah Starchak). This particular cross produced a number of interesting seedlings.

It has rained 11 out of the past 20 days and in 7 of those days we received over a inch of rain. The result is a profusion of mosquitos. They make it quite uncomfortable to be out in the early morning or early evening and on cloudy damp days they can be active throughout the day. They rest on the outside of the back door as if they're waiting for someone to open the door to let them in.

The only previous time I've seen them this bad I had to take radical action to reduce their numbers. I discovered that many of them were spending their days in the shade of the daylily foliage. During the daytime when I'd walk between the daylilies, clouds of mosquitos would be disturbed. Knowing that Malathion was safe to use on daylilies, I mixed some in a small sprayer and walked through all the beds spraying the clouds of mosquitos as they flew up. I also sprayed the entry doors and the area around the hose bibbs. While it didn't eliminate all mosquitos, it did make a significant difference.

Seedling 16-147

I have always liked yellow daylilies. They stand out in the garden and there are many cultivars with outstanding growing habits. Seedling 16-147 is one that is doing quite well in my evaluation bed. Blooms can reach 7" althoug 6.5" is more common. Bud counts can be in the upper 20's on 27" scapes. It comes from the cross (May I Have This Dance X Sarah Starchak). It usually produces a few 'poly' blooms (4 petals) each year.

Another 1.7" of rain yesterday and last night. This type of weather pattern is good for the daylilies but it's a hybridizer's nightmare. Wet pollen is useless as it seldom if ever will set seed. Furthermore, rain during the hours after a cross is made could prevent the cross from taking. Imagine having the 'best ever' planned cross but every time the planned parents are both blooming on the same day, it rains. Been there... done that... (smile).

Seedling 16-033

This year's 'most photogenic' award goes to seedling 16-033. A very high percentage of its blooms opened perfectly. Blooms can reach 7" with 6.5" being the norm. 23" scapes can have bud counts in the mid 20's. It comes from the cross (Cimarron Rose X Rose Sensation).

All the rain this year has prevented me from making a garden tour video. Water droplets on a bloom detracts from the true beauty of the daylily (IMHO) and cloudy conditions lead to dull colors. I just didn't get enough good footage to make it worth while. Fortunately, I was still able to get some pictures to post here.

Seedling 16-050

Today's image is seedling 16-050. It has 6" blooms on 27" scapes and comes from the cross (Celtic Moonglow X Rose Sensation).

Early on in my hybridizing, I would run to the garden each morning to see what was blooming and then make split-second decisions about which daylilies to cross. This worked fine and I did it for years. Then I heard that the 'big hybridizers' spent a lot of time deciding in advance what crosses they would be making during the upcoming bloom season. So I decided to try it. What I discovered was that I had been missing one of the more fun aspects of hybriding - imagining how seedlings from different parents might turn out. Each year I spent more and more time thinking about potential crosses. I eventually called this process "Daylily Dreaming".

A few years ago I made a short video about parent plants and the resulting seedlings to present to the Houston Hemerocallis Society.

This video has sound. Please click the video to start.

There hasn't been any rust in the garden since the late spring hard freeze killed off all the daylily foliage. Yesterday I noticed the first signs of rust appearing on a few daylilies. The weather over the past few weeks has been perfect for rust development - lots of rain moderating temperatures and keeping the garden on the wet side. So far the rust has shown up only in the bed closest to the south side of the house. The bed is somewhat sheltered and the daylilies are planted close together. In addition, most are medium size clumps. This further keeps the daylily foliage wet longer because it impedes good air circulation. No rust has been nice but I can't say I thought it would last forever. It probably won't be long before I'll have to drag out the sprayer.

Seedling 14-058

Seedling 14-058 has 6" blooms on 26" scapes. It comes from the cross (What Love Can Do X Priscilla's Smile). The yellow petal edging jumps out especially in the sunshine.