Psychrophilic Daylilies of 2023

July 2, 2023July 4, 2023Leave a comment

It’s been a weird year. Not just the weather, but definitely the weather. Cold, wet spring. It felt like winter until it was summer – then BAM we get into fire weather with high winds and low humidity. I also lost my beloved soul dog, Sazi, in March. I adopted a new special needs senior in April and she had major surgery in May. Oh, and my art/houseplant business, Art from the Hartt, changed locations in May.

My dog, Kachina, and her new sister, Kokopelli

So, daylilies have been on the back burner. But, hey, it is July 1, and only 6 cultivators have bloomed so far this season, anyway. Mostly Saratoga Springtime – who bloomed on June 7th and is now finished. I lost almost all of the daylilies that I added last fall plus a couple old timers 😦 I added a few new ones from local nurseries to fill gaps – I am also using coleus as pot savers. I ordered a few new ones for fall, but I think I am out of space to nurture too many more.

Comanche Princess began blooming today (7.1)

I can’t believe it has been nearly 11 months since my last blog. One would think I had 4 other websites and a bunch of social media to run. . . Wait, I do. LOL. Plus, it was past peak when I stopped blogging last year in early August and we are no where near peak today. Anyway, enjoy my list (with pictures) of cultivators that have come through the cold spring and into bloom. I call them psychrophilic.

The Last of the Spiders

August 8, 20221 Comment

WOW! I am do far behind blogging this time. July 26 was almost 2 weeks ago. The old porch is painted and my autoimmune thyroid is kicking me in the butt a little.

I’ll start with the last of the Ned Roberts spiders for this blog. How about that?

Adios Albuquerque is a nice, mid-late spider that reminds me of many New Mexico road trips.

The very next day, Cripple Creek bloomed. Named for the Colorado gold mining town.

Skinwalker, Kachina Firecracker, and Navajo Curls arrived on 7.29. Great array of color. Love the late spiders.

On the 30th came Purple Thunderbird and Fox Ears. Fox Ears hasn’t bloomed in a couple of years so I am especially excited to see her back.

August 2nd brought the last of my Ned spiders to have a first bloom this year. My beloved Purple Corn Dancer. She always closes out the season in my yard. She is the last first of all my blooms.

I’m adding a couple of later bloomers next year (and 3 new Ned Roberts spiders). No more than 200 in my yard because of size and water. I’m also adding a little Coneflower garden as a fur kid memorial garden. I got most of it in yesterday. Both Echinacia and Rudbeckia (Black-Eyed Susan family) should add a little fall interest to the yard.

I’ll be back with more! Peak daylily season with a major DIY project. Add autoimmune thyroid and a new business venture downtown. So much for retirement! Lol.

Look What the Rain Brought With It!

July 26, 2022July 26, 2022Leave a comment

Hey, Guys, I’m super tired after a long day. Want to share my newbies from today.

Spirit of the Morning is a unique cultivator. I absolutely adore her. She earns her name. These blooms are wasted by noon.

Raven Woodsong is a gorgeous near black. It is such a stunning color and form. (That makes 57 Ned Roberts spiders so far this summer).

El Desperado is actually the first daylily I put in the Southwest Visions garden area a few years before I put in the garden. Wasn’t well planned out for irrigation and he moved back closer to the house. Then, I lost him a few years later and immediately replaced him. Definitely, a late bloomer.

Bloom rate headed for high 80s, but the Southwest Visions garden is nearly 100%. Except Truchas Sunrise, Navajo Gray Hills, the other 70 something have bloomed or have scapes.

Stay Tuned For The Late Show

July 25, 2022Leave a comment

I can’t believe I haven’t blogged in 4-5 days. I’m revamping my old porch that’s 80 years old with a 50 year old extention. And, part of it was DIY to begin with. It’s been an adventure.

My old porch stripped of paint that covered the previous owner’s names. I’ve owned my home for 25 years.

Meanwhile, the daylilies keep blooming. I’m even starting to get late bloomers. My daily count has dropped from 70 to 40. It’s slowing down but definitely not done.

7.21 saw Golden Eclipse, Shape Shifter, and Purple Grasshopper. All Ned Roberts spiders.

7.22 saw Zuni Eye, Coyote Laughs (which I think is a different Roberts spider but was sold to me as CL), Pizza Crust and Memories of OZ.

7.23 saw Dancing Maiden. My 55th Ned Roberts spider. I have 8 more with unbloomed scapes. Still hoping Navajo Gray Hills will throw a scape.

And, today, two bloomers that signal that the season is winding down: Royal Palace Prince and Heirloom Heaven.

I’m still working on the porch but hopefully done in a couple of days. I had no idea what I was getting into.

The Heat is On

July 21, 2022Leave a comment

It’s just too hot to enjoy my harden after 11 AM. And my daylilys often look like melted wax by then, anyway. What happened to our cooling monsoons?

The flow of new daylilies begins to drop. It won’t be long until I’m counting non-blooming pots instead of blooms. I think I only have 4 left to bloom in front (unless I get a late scape). I have one on the porch and several in the Southwest Visions garden. It’s like late afternoon on Christmas Day when you realize that the day won’t last forever but there is still dessert to eat.

So, my premiers for yesterday and today included three Ned Roberts spiders and a beautiful bonus cultivator. I think I’m up to 48 Ned Spiders now. I think I have at least 10 more with scapes and there could still be surprise late scapes. So, 140 total cultivators have bloomed so far. 75% bloom rate. Hoping to get to mid 80s if more buds don’t dry up.

So, here we go.

More Spiders in My Bed

July 19, 2022Leave a comment

Spider daylilies in my flower bed, that is.

I had 3 new Roberts spiders today. That makes 45 Cultivators from Ned Roberts so far.

Dream Keeper was one of my first 3 Roberts spiders when I started the Southwest Visions garden 6 years ago. Love the whispy shape and colors.

Mama Cuna reminds me of the painting I did last fall. She is planted right next to my huge banana yucca and looks like a weird bloom from the succulent. Mama Cuna is a signal that the season is moving on. She is mid-late.

Santa Fe Christmas was my favorite today for some reason. The colors are shape are unique and caught my eye. Not many buds this year, so savor every one of them.

Also, little Tiger Kitten (funny, I sell begonias with that name) opened one of its few buds for the first time today.

134 have bloomed so far. So, bloom rate in the 70s with lots left to go. Purple Corn Dancer is starting to put out scapes. She is always the last one.

The Firebird Returns

July 18, 20221 Comment

Aztec Firebird, that is. This was one of the first Ned Roberts spiders in my collection. Somehow, I found Kokopelli on the lily auction. I wanted a Southwestern named daylily garden so I had to have it. It was a little competitive but I wanted it!

I was new as a daylily collector back then and didn’t know much about how online growers worked. But, I quickly figured out enough to add Aztec Firebird and Dream Catcher to my pilot garden. It worked great having them out with the yucca as long as I watered enough.

I started upscaling. I enlarged the garden and planted a lot of daylilies the next couple years. Only 12 bloomed the first year. Ugh. A few died. I put tons of topsoil but when I dug one up to see what was happening, it was embedded in our adobe dirt that apparently swallowed the top soil like quick sand.

The other thing I found was tree roots crowding out the daylilies. This is the desert and they were hungry for the water I was applying daily. Eventually, I potted and buried all 70+ or them. I broke my rib pulling back on tree roots. The nursery pots didn’t do enough to keep tree roots out. So, I went to nicer pots and placed weed guard under each. And, this year, the bloom rate I believe will be the best ever. Welcome back, Firebird.

Here are today’s other premiers:

Adapting the desert to a daylily patch is a labor that love.

The Summit is Just the Halfway Point

July 17, 2022Leave a comment

The thought that half or more of my scapes are still unbloomed is staggering. Especially days when there are a dozen premiers in one day. And, I’ve ordered 3 new daylilies plus replacements for 2 of mine that died last winter. It’s like raising the altitude of Everest a thousand feet when you are struggling to reach the summit. I’ll need to add on to my drip system.

I had some cool Ned Roberts spiders blooming for the first time today. 73 total in bloom and 67% of all my cultivators have bloomed so far.

Here we go!

We will see what tomorrow brings.

All Hell Broke Loose While I Was Camping

July 16, 2022July 16, 2022Leave a comment

I have no idea where to even start with premiers. I’m buried in catching up with daylily photos. I’ll give it a shot. Thank heaven I post to Facebook every day. Sometimes I do miss things, though.

7.11: Lobo Lucy, Laughing Feather, Happy Hopi, Chokecherry Mountain, Apache Uprising, and Soco Gap

7.14: Ruby Stella, Hesperus, Orange Flurry, Purple Many Faces, Kachina Dancer, Kiva Dancer, Cherokee Star, Papa Long Legs, Western Sandstone, Classy Lady, One of my new OZ daylilies that need labels (I believe).

7.15: Glen Eyrie, Scorpio, Route 66, Fooled Me, Echo Canyon, Twirling Pinata, Medicine Feather, Star Over Milgro, Black Ice, Winds of Love, Nearly Wild, Rosie’s Red, Mildred Mitchell, Fairytale Pink, and Navajo Rodeo

And, whatever I missed. And, my one bud on Lacy Doily bloomed when I was gone. So, if lighting strikes but no one is in earshot, is there thunder? Yes. To the bees and butterflies.

I need a stiff drink before I finish. Lol. That’s 31 new faces since I posted on Sunday. Sometimes, I wish we could flatten the curve of peak a little. Gonna be crazy for a bit.

Sunday Morning Creeping Like a Nun

July 11, 2022Leave a comment

I guess even #daylilygardens need a #dayofrest – less than half of yesterday’s number but so many still unbloomed. Only 3 premiers. I’ll probably have hell to pay tomorrow. And, I’m leaving to go camping for a couple days.