H2O

August 26, 2017Leave a comment

Water, the giver of life. Usually. I watch Hurricane Harvey and think of my days living in Galveston, Texas. Eighteen years ago? Where did the time go? Well, anyway, those days taught about having so much water that it becomes life threatening. Tonight, my thoughts are with those affected by the storm.

Coral Taco

I live in the desert, so our rain is never close to what they get on the Gulf Coast. Generally, my daylilies beg for more water, not less. Still, I hold my breath as I try both pots and a drip system in the Southwestern garden. I worry that they are too dry. I worry that they are too wet and going to get root rot. I have 3 makes of pots out there, too . . . so one may be OK and the other not. In the spring, I will put them all in plastic pots with drainage inserts = that should also keep the tree roots out. If they all survive the storm.

Passionate Returns

Water. Life giving. Most of the time.

Yellow Punch

The Stages of Daylily Obsession

August 25, 2017Leave a comment

Today, I got a package with daylily roots from one of my favorite places –Shady Rest Gardens. Well, Doris always sends huge fans . . . and she included some extra fans of two that I ordered. Two of the ones I ordered were to thicken up some of mine that shrunk in the Southwestern garden. So, it becomes too much daylily for the pots. I divided both the new ones into two and put the existing small ones with the smaller division of the new ones.

Pink and Cream

So, now I need to make room in the front or side yard for the extras. I am giving away a couple that I have doubles of to make room. And, so it begins . . . which to keep and which to give away? Is variety better than focusing on favorites? I have a feeling this problem could get worse before it gets better. In a way, though, it is nice because you can see how the same cultivator behaves in different conditions in your yard.

Yellow Punch

So, I decided to come up with some stages of daylily obsession:

You consider daylilies the perfect perennial enough that you favor them when you pick out nursery plants for your garden.
You start noticing more little things about the daylilies you pick . . . like size, shape, and name.
You decide to have daylilies as the dominant plant in at least one garden.
You discover that roots are a cheaper way to fill the space, with more selection.
You discover the auctions and find several reputable daylily root nurseries.
You start to favor some type of bloom or hybridizer. In my case, it was the Southwestern names of the Ned Robert’s cultivators that caught my eye.
You realize there are billions and billions of the type you want . . . you start collecting. You have to make fairly major garden revisions to host so many.
A year or two later, you have all the ones you want. They need to be divided and find new homes. It seems weird to have too many.
(I am not here yet) You become a hybridizer and/or farm them to sell.

Coral Taco

Oh, it is my mom’s 100th birthday today. I wish she could be here to see the Easter Lily Cactus blooms today. Like daylilies, they only last one day. I love all their biological features.

Easter Lily Cactus

Shift Happens

August 24, 2017August 24, 2017Leave a comment

I am so excited to be ALMOST done with the buried daylily pots. I have 48 done (in the Southwestern garden), 4 to go. Well, if you don’t count the 20+ that I am not potting this year. I have to tell you that potting the front garden and potting the Southwest garden are day and night different. One is an easy dig, pull weeds out, put in a pot, and easy dig to replace the pot. The Southwestern garden is hard dig with root clippers, shovel, trowel. I feel like a surgeon doing open heart surgery of something! Seriously. I dig enough heavy clay dirt and roots out of each hole to nearly fill one of the big Home Depot buckets (times 48). Then, I bag it and have to dispose of it when done. Fitting in nursery pots is harder than decorative pots because they are not tapered. My carpal tunnel gets so crazy it feels like I am getting shocked.

I am hoping to see new growth on the transplants soon. It seems a bit slow. I will fertilize once I finish the last 4 pots. This weekend . . . finished. This has been the biggest garden project of my life, especially if you count the veggie garden.

Anyway, I had four cool visitors today.

Anasazi had a bit of a double bloom.

Heirloom Heaven bloomed her last bloom of 2017.

Passionate Returns continues to be awesome. I honestly had no idea I would like these blooms so much! Love the shape and color.

And, good old Pink and Cream, my big box re-bloomer still putting out new scapes.

The kids have returned to the bus stop on my running route. Soon, there will be daylily-less days. I still hope to have a few through the first freeze. We are only 2-3 weeks away from putting the Amaryllis and Poinsettias into hibernation for winter bloom. When the spring comes again, we will see if the pots really made a difference. Shift Happens.

No Words

August 23, 2017Leave a comment

Eclipse!

August 22, 2017Leave a comment

Today brought the solar eclipse . . . and the first ever Anasazi bloom in my yard! There is a connection between the Anasazi (Ancient Pueblo Indians) and total solar eclipses. The eclipse of 1097 likely mplayed a part in the Ancient Pueblos leaving the Four Corners area. It was one of many celestial events that may have made this civilization decide that they were being given messages to leave.

I saw a video this AM of a Navajo talking about how the eclipse is seen as spiritual by their tribe. They see it as a time of new beginnings . . . a time to make resolutions. Like New Year, he said. My resolution is a big long pause on some things in my life that were not good for my spirit. I love them too much to ever do harm to them . . . or to ignore harm being done. That is a BIG resolution for me. I am glad I won’t have to do that for another 100 years 🙂

I wish I had realized how the sun reflects in the drops on the petals of the daylilies. I missed my 100-year chance to capture the eclipse within one of the daylilies in my yard. This photo was taken several minutes before the peak. If you look closely in the background, you can see some crescents in the shadows of the tree leaves. It was weirdly dark . . . but I never thought of focusing on the drops. Dang!

I nursed Anasazi from a 3.50 cent fan to a blooming size pot . . . it took 2 years. She is in a pot, of course. I smile for my progress. I had Heirloom Heaven and Cherokee Star also today. Somewhat sad to say this will be my last new bloom for the year . . . unless I get a surprise.

It’s Late

August 21, 2017August 21, 2017Leave a comment

Camping weekend, but still time for an afternoon of fun putting daylilies in underground pots. My carpal tunnel is acting up from the trowel, my back hurts from the shovel. So, I switch back and forth. Five more moved. I have 7 more pots – so that is all I am doing this fall. I should be done by next weekend. In fact, the whole fall daylily thing should be wrapping up soon. I prefer the blooms to the digging. And, having more time to savor camping. 🙂

Here are a few from the last few days.

Coral Taco, Heirloom Heaven, Pink and Cream, Passionate Returns, Indian Sky

And – Three weeks after I discovered the scape, Anasazi is looking ready to bloom. Now, how cool if a flower with that name blooms on the eclipse day? I need to sleep first!

Daylily Legacy

August 18, 2017August 18, 2017Leave a comment

Perhaps it is all the digging and paying for pots for almost every daylily in my yard, but for the first time I feel like I have too many daylilies. I never thought this day would come. I even think the yard looks a bit cluttered with pots now that there are pots buried in the flower beds. I have an idea for a daylily “shelf” in the front yard to break it up a bit. Next year.

I have wondered what I will do when my favorites from the Southwest garden need to be divided – will I give away some of my others to make room for more than one in my yard? I have so many ones that were free gifts . . . now they seem like part of my summer, so I feel bonded. I honestly am overwhelmed. Next year, I hope to be digging more flowers not more dirt.

So, I ordered one more today . . . and, honestly, it is almost nauseating to me to be buying more cultivators now. But, if I have any legacy in the world of daylily hybridizers, it is that I suggested a name and someone ran with it! It was back when the “Show me your stethoscope” deal was happening. I suggested “Nurse’s Stethoscope”. One of the hybridizers was a medical professional . . . and she liked it. It is a beautiful daylily, and I paid more than I normally do for a plant. I have no idea where I will put it, either. Oh, boy, another pot! But, you know, it also seems like I should have it in my collection. And, that is it . . . the inn is full. I will be building the “shelf” come spring!

Catch 22

August 17, 2017August 17, 2017Leave a comment

I swore I would not work putting pots in the Southwest garden again today. I lost the bet with myself. Because there was an area on the thriving side that looked sad and I was curious. What did I find? Lots of tree roots. Even the daylily that I put in a half pot a couple months ago had roots growing up into the pot – but the daylily was doing better than without the pot.

Such findings make me feel a little nauseated, really. I made an investment in daylilies after doing a pilot out there. All my pilot plants did (and do) beautifully. So, I make a bigger garden spot there. The problem is that I think the scale is drawing the roots. In the pilot, I hand watered. But, now I have to mass water and fertilize. The half pot I dug up had roots woven around the outside of the pot in its exact shape. They dominate.

So, now I think I may have to do real garden pots (as opposed to nursery pots) out there, after all. The reason is that if I cut big enough holes in the pot bottoms to protect from root rot, I get root invasion. Catch 22. The real (decorative plastic) pots that I used in the front garden have a second bottom piece to help with drainage – so I can have a large drainage hole and roots can’t really grow up into the daylily space. Oh, I will work with the nursery pots for this year. But, I see the future. I am feeling like a farmer now.

I also divided several more daylilies. Little by little, the fall work is getting done. I am really ready for a boring split shift where I walk the dogs downtown. I feel overwhelmed with daylilies. Seriously. Am I ready to be a farmer?

Anyway, enjoy my blooms from today. I’ll worry about the tree roots.

Sick Day Bouquet

August 15, 2017August 15, 2017Leave a comment

Today, I ended up taking half the day off as a sick day. It makes me feel guilty to write a blog with the smattering of photos I managed this AM. But, believe me, the 4 hours of hard sleep and other viral symptoms are as real as the beauty of the flower. My first sick day in the year I have worked there . . . well, almost a year. I’m sure my crazy shifts in the yard added to the exhaustion.

Of course, there are no new blooms today. I sort of like the fall in daylily-ville, because you don’t have to look as hard to be sure you didn’t miss one.

This weekend is camping weekend. I also hope to get the daylily roots washed for my coworkers so I can mail them on Wednesday next week. I have a few more divisions to do . . . some of my co-workers down South will do better with the evergreens. I just haven’t gotten that far yet. And, I have a musical pots thing that needs to happen. But, before that MORE garden soil to buy. Jeez.

In thinking of next year, I think I will pull two of my three Stellas completely out of their pots and add divisions of Pink & Cream and Yellow Punch. They have earned their stripes as pretty rebloomers this year. The color and shape is better than Stella.

With all these pots, next year I may have a daylily yard sale. I love to give them away. And, if the pots do well, I will have more than enough for that. So, maybe a little one-day sale or something. I need to think about it. Anyone with any experience out there? Or is online better?

For winter, I want to blog more about my poinsettias, orchids, and Amaryllis. I actually may look at other Christmas bloomers. I got the coolest Mexican pottery at . . . Walmart. It was a few weeks ago . . . amazing prices. Anyway, thinking of some winter wonder bloomers in there. Ah, it is time to sleep, again.

Just A Flower I Can Help Along

August 14, 2017Leave a comment

Today was the day I finally got the Southwestern Garden mostly redone. What a lot of work . . . seriously, my back is DONE digging for a bit. I thought it might be fun to show a couple photos. So, this side is the one I have been working on. All but a handful of daylilies now rests within a nursery pot that is buried under ground. These ones have been trimmed so that they can focus on some new roots before freeze.

And, this is the other side, where the daylilies are blooming size. Much happier than the other side. There used to be a pine tree out there, then a new sewer where I think they used a sandier fill dirt on the side with the happier daylilies. Perhaps water, too. Today, I got my soak hose system in. I am pretty jazzed. I think it will prove to be the best system I have ever had. It is amazing how the clay soil is always hard and dry, no matter what.

So, today I had some great blooms. I barely had time to notice them, but they did remind me that the backbreaking work will pay off in blooms (I hope). (In order – Featured photo is Heirloom Heaven; Pictured first below is Passionate Returns, then Western Sandstone, Pink and Cream and Pardon Me.

I also divided daylilies for friends. That was kind of fun, actually. Beats digging holes in adobe clay soil with roots. I could make a good mud house with that stuff, though. I went through 8 big bags of soil this weekend. Crazy!