Today, I had 39 cultivators in bloom. I may miss the peak over the next week – but until I am retired and can choose to separate my summer camping trip from daylily peak . . .
Monarch Butterfly on Black Eyed Susan 7.5.20
I was looking at my cell photos and posting to Facebook when I remembered that I didn’t get a shot of Black Eyed Susan. I went back out front to get one and I got a surprise visit from a monarch. Camo colors.
Maya Cha Cha 7.5.20
I had 3 premiers today – two were Ned Roberts spiders back for another year. Maya Cha Cha is one of my favorite because it reminds me of my granddaughter, Maia. It is so beautiful – just like she is.
Twirling Pinata 7.5.20
Twirling Pinata showed up for the first time since 2018. Not sure that happened last year. Weirdly, Purple Grasshopper and Cricket Call are both scapeless this year. Not sure why that happens – sort of miss my purple bugs.
Pardon Me 7.5.20
And, a little mini that I like called Pardon Me. I have had her for a long time – way before I was collecting daylilies like I am now.
Wild Horses 7.5.20
I had two finales – Kokopelli and Wild Horses. See ya next year!
Kokopelli 7.5.20
Tomorrow, I have an early appointment with my nurse practitioner. Best log off. Tomorrow – more serendipity.
A different kind of 4th of July. I slept in – no parade. Then, after taking photos of the 28 cultivators in bloom, I decided it was too hot to take the dogs downtown. So, I puttered around the yard a little. Then, came the weather warning on my phone – big thunderstorm. I quickly finished lunch on the porch and brought the dogs in.
All American Chief 7.4.20
As the storm passed, I worked on my daylily business. I mean – I found an Oh Erica for my yard!!!! One daylily nursery had one listed as display only (not for sale) – but that must mean they have some if they aren’t for sale, right? Turns out, right. He was willing to sell me a couple of fans this fall. I’ll also be adding Dr Doom for a memory I have with my daughter.
Thin Man 7.4.20
Once the business was done, I headed out to pot some of the succulents that I have been rooting. I use orchid pots and fill the holes with decorative moss. It is cute and provides a lot of ventilation. Except, I ordered the moss a month ago and I can’t find where I put it. I had enough left over from last time for today’s project.
Purple de Oro 7.4.20
The thunderheads continued to pass over, which means non of my yard work that involves power tools got done. Other than daylily business, plotting my roadtrip, updating my GPS, and baking a silly 4th cake, I got nothing done. But, maybe that is balance.
Aztec Firebird 7.4.20
I had a few premiers today – Let’s start with an alltime favorite Ned Roberts spider – Aztec Firebird. I love this one – it is so colorful – really stands out in the garden for all who pass by.
Passionate Returns 7.4.20
Passionate Returns is back for another year. She is a favorite among my Facebook followers.
Bella Boo 7.4.20
And, little $5 special, Bella Boo, made an appearance. She makes a statement for a simple flower.
Ruby Spider celebrating her independence today 7.4.20
So, tomorrow, that means lots of yard work and getting ready for my trip. Maybe today is Groundhog day and we can just get stuck on a lazy day for awhile. LOL – Groundhog day in the daylily garden is my life . . . maybe if I do that or that differently next time, it will bloom.
Comanche Princess also looking like the 4th 7.4.20
Oh – one Finale from yesterday that I forgot to mention – Echo Canyon.
Echo Canyon finale 7.2.20
Happy 4th! PS – Fire Flowers are a synonym for fireworks. This year, my daylilies are the only fireworks. Hopefully, next year things are a little more normal, again. Wear your mask! Get one with daylilies on it!
Oh, daylilies. I was so clueless when I began collecting these circa 7-8 years ago that I did dumb stuff with them. I stuck them in shade with no water. I stuck them in the hard, clay soil. I put them in pots with no water source except when I remembered the watering can. It never rains here.
The mystery daylily that I almost killed but revived from seedling size. No idea on name so this year she is Nosferatwo because she reminds me a little of Nosferatu 7.3.20
A few years ago, it hit me that all I was doing was buying daylilies, watching them bloom for one cycle followed by watching them wither away. So, I put in irrigation and cut down trees. I broke a rib burying pots so the soil was more controlled. I put in more irrigation . . . and more, and more.
Stephanie Returns brightens the yard on her second day in bloom 7.3.20
I actually think I will have a decent bloom rate this year – and I think it is all in the water. Well, not all – but it is the desert.
Fooled Me
So, when I first xeroscaped portions of my front yard, I purchased 3 daylilies to be part of the design – Orange Vols, Lady Fingers and a cultivator named Fooled Me. The first couple of years, they all did fine. Then, Fooled Me started to fade. No bloom, shrinking (last bloom 2015). I know that spot gets dry. Two years ago, I put it in a buried put in the same place . . . it got bigger but no bloom. This year, with the added drip sprinkler, it bloomed – today, for the first time since 2015 -IT BLOOMED!!! I may know how to make daylilies fade, but I am also getting good at year-to-year resuscitation. NEVER GIVE UP!
Chokecherry Mountain 7.3.20
Other premiers today were Chokecherry Mountain – a Robert’s spider that reminds me a lot of Talon.
Route 66 7.3.20
And, my favorite early “Southwest name” daylily, Route 66. Roadtrip memories flood my mind when I see her. Love her classic colors.
Soco Gap in the gap between two big yuccas 7.3.20
Soco Gap – a big plant that was a bonus back when the Southwest garden was an experiment. I plunked the little fans in between two medium sized Yuccas thinking she was small. Well, she is a decent sized cultivator and the cactus have grown, too. No way I can dig her out and put her in a pot – but the Yuccas are likely pretty protective of her!
Purple de Oro 7.3.20
Little Purple de Oro also had a premier bloom. IDK how I ended up with her and she is likely one of my least favorites. I keep waiting to fall in love.
Early Bird Cardinal with her flag colored background 7.3.20
Tomorrow is the 4th and I hope for a big show in the yard because they will be my fireworks during the coronavirus year.
So many people wonder why I am so into daylilies. Afterall, they only last one day. I have orchids, but I am growing pretty bored and letting them go – maybe because the blooms last so long that, after a while, you stop noticing.
Primal Scream 7.2.20
Novel experience (as long as it is positive) boosts human wellbeing. We get a dopamine rush when we see something new! Novel experiences boost our memory and improve our longevity. I’m a creative – I need novel experiences to feel alive.
Pink Rain Dance 7.2.20
It is funny, because life was in a horrible rut before the novel coronavirus entered my life. Suddenly, the world turned upside-down. My onground job went online. My whole routine changed. Life was novel. Not to say that a novel virus (one that is a whole new experience to the human immune system) is good for us because it is not a positive kind of experience.
Hopi Jewel 7.2.20
So, yea, each bud opens and last a day (two in cold weather). But, if you get enough buds on enough plants, it plays this beautiful melody that is unique each and everyday.
Talon 7.2.20
I had 40 today. I’m beat going through photos, but had some great premiers. My strange and handsome Talon gave me a premier bloom for 2020 today.
Cherokee Star 7.2.20
And, Cherokee Star, who chose not to bloom last year, returned for a 2020 premier today. She looks like velvet.
Happy Hopi 7.2.1
Speaking of happiness, Happy Hopi showed up today for another bloom year. She has the most interesting shape – definitely NOT a trumpet.
Indian Giver 7.2.20
Indian Giver opened her first bud of the year today – a fun bonus daylily in the Southwest garden.
Prairie Wildfire 7.2.20
The front garden is coming to life a little more with some fun color – Prairie Wildfire showed up and looks ready for July 4th in Red, White and Blue.
Black Eyed Susan 7.2.20
Black Eyed Susan also came into view today – she adds some new color to my Stella pot.
Stephanie Returns 7.2.20
And, in my family garden, my Stephanie Returns returned. Maybe, someday she will return into my life. For now, the flower reminds me of her beautiful spirit.
Rocky Mountain Pals 7.2.20
Daylily Savings Time should mean we only need 4 hours of sleep so we have enough time for the peak. I guess there can be too much novelty. I read we need to balance it with daily routine . . . except, each bloom lasts only one day.
When I put in my Southwest daylily garden, I filled it with a lot of Ned Roberts spiders and other names that sounded like the Southwest in some way. I put most of the garden in about 4 years ago. I ordered from several different daylily hybridizers/gardens across the country. I planted them and labelled them.
Laughing Feather 7.1.20
Since then, I have dug most of them back up and put them in buried pots. I got new labels a couple of times – now they are metal. I made a map about 3 years ago – and it is pretty reliable except there are doubles of a couple and that doesn’t make sense because of how I organized them when I planted them.
Kiva Dancer 7.1.20
That brings me to today’s premier blooms. The mystery daylily that is a double of Kachina Dancer (bloomed yesterday) but in a different row and is clearly a different bloom – but same name on the label. So, what is it? Well, I also ordered Kiva Dancer about that time and looking at pictures from the web, I think that I just mislabeled the daylily. Kachina instead of Kiva. Anyway – she bloomed last year and I had the wrong name because Kachina Dancer had never bloomed before yesterday. That’s a long story, but Kiva Dancer (I think) had her first 2020 bloom this year.
Holy Sombrero 7.1.20
We started with yellow trumpets and today brought some showier yellow daylilies. Holy Sombrero is a very showy, big, ruffly bloom.
Cheddar Cheese 7.1.20
And, one of my older daylilies that is loving the place in the garden that I moved it a couple summers ago premiered today – Cheddar Cheese. I have a picture I painted of her in my room – one of my first paintings.
Heron”s Cove 7.1.20
Last, but never least, was a premier on Heron’s Cove. It was cold last night, so many of my blooms didn’t open right today. Hers is a little frumpy.
Here is a picture of Oh Erica from the American Daylily Society page
I have a request of my readers. I am looking for a daylily named Erica for my family section of the garden. I have both grandkids, my oldest daughter, my mom, my grandma . . . but I need to find one named Erica, like my youngest daughter. I like one called Oh, Erica by a hybridizer in Indiana named Bart Beck – but I can’t find contact. I also like “Erica’s Awake”. Anyway – if my readers know of any Erica named daylilies or how to contact Bart Beck – please leave a comment.
Colorado Kid Daylilies 