By Don and Alice Klamer, Blue Sky Nursery

Originating in China, daylilies are a very exciting perennial because of the beautiful colours that recent hybridizers have produced. Linnaeus named the daylily 'Hemerocallis' from the Greek 'Hemero' meaning 'one day,' and 'callis" meaning 'beauty' or 'beauty for a day." Individual blooms last only for a day, but the flowerscapes may have blooms for up to six weeks. There are early (May to June), mid-season (July) and late (August to September) flowering varieties.

     There are also diploid and tetraploid forms of daylilies. The diploids, with a normal chromosome count of 22, have a graceful, grass-like plant form. The tetraploids, with double the amount of chromosomes are bigger plants with blooms that are generally larger and stronger in colour.

     Daylily foliage forms comes as evergreen, semi-evergreen, and dormant. Most evergreens and semi-evergreens are too tender for use in Canada unless they are well mulched. Daylilies should be planted in full sun or partial shade but should receive at least six hours of sun. They are tolerant of any type of soil, as long as it is well drained. Soil pH should be 5.5 to 7.0 for best performance.

     There are many beautiful selections and choosing six favorites is impossible; instead we've chosen six out of many favourites. Be careful as it's easy to get hooked!

Hemerocallis 'Chicago Apache'
(James Marsh, 1981)
Mid-season / Tetraploid / Dormant / 70 cm flowerscape
'Chicago Apache' has 13-cm blooms with wide, ruffled petals. Colour is a striking scarlet-red with a yellow-green throat.

Hemerocallis 'Fairy Tale Pink'
(Charles Pierce, 1980)
Mid-season / Diploid / Semi-evergreen / 60 cm flowerscape
The particularly lovely form of 'Fairy Tale Pink,' winner of the 1990 Stout Medal Award, has 14-cm pale pink blooms with a green throat.

Hemerocallis 'Strutter's Ball'
(Steve Moldovan)
Mid-season / Tetraploid / Dormant / 70 cm flowerscape
'Strutter's Ball' features very fine 15-cm full purple blooms with a small, silvery white water mark above a small, lemon-green throat.

Hemerocallis 'Royal Palace Prince'
(Roy Klehm, 1989)
Mid-season / Tetraploid / Dormant / 75 cm flowerscape
'Royal Palace Prince' features lovely 12-cm antique rose-lavender blooms. The tightly ruffled petals are edged in creamy beige and have a frosty mid-rib. The throat is yellow to apple green.

Hemerocallis 'Mariska'
(Steve Moldovan, 1984)
Mid-season / Tetraploid / Dormant / 65 cm flowerscape
A strong, elegant grower, 'Mariska' boasts large, full, flat 15-cm blue-pink blooms with orchid undertones and a lemon-green throat.

Hemerocallis 'Frances Joiner'
(Enman Joiner, 1989)
Mid-season, repeating / Diploid / Dormant / 60 cm flowerscape
The double blooms of 'Frances Joiner' are 14 cm wide. The rose colour of the outer edges blends into rose-apricot toward the green throat. Very unusual in colour, form and beauty.