Drizzle

July 29, 2017July 29, 2017Leave a comment

It’s Friday! So, after work, I dashed out to continue the daylily potting project. Ran out of potting soil after the first two, so ran to Home Depot. Came home and was working on another two when the rain started. It is a nice rain . . . drizzle, but enough to cool things off and wet the garden.

No new faces today. Tiger Kitten lost his only bud 😦 For tomorrow, I think maybe Nearly Wild might bloom. At any rate, I decided to make a collage like I did every day last year during the peak. I don’t have enough time do to that this year, but wanted something to show for the last of the big bloom days of July.

The rain on Wednesday bought mushrooms to my Southwest garden . . . guessing the mushroom compost come to life. Weird, in the desert.

Tomorrow, the journey continues. I wanted to be camping, but decided to plan 3 camping trips for August this weekend AND STICK TO IT!!!! But, for now, I am making good progress on the daylily potting. And, not camping in the rain. I have so much to do before freeze and Amazon is slow with my second order of pots. Oh, well, like the daylily, all we really have is this moment.

Sun-Day!

July 17, 2017Leave a comment

It is so good to be home. However, I found the need to catch-up on a little sleep took priority over the garden work I had wanted to do. Work travel weekends are a little awkward in the summer.

At any rate, I had several new kids in the yard today.

El Desperado is a favorite. It is so odd, because he didn’t bloom much last year. This year, lots of scapes and buds. I moved him 3 feet. Right next to him is Canyon Colors, who bloomed like crazy last year but did nothing this year. I think I will divide it this fall and see. Time to start giving away extra roots!

Lime Frost is my only real off-green daylily. I love this one with its big, fluffy near white blooms. And, it sounds like a treat from Dairy Queen. (Same bloom with and without the sun shining on it.)

Mini-Pearl is in my yard because my grandma’s name was Minnie Pearl (she hated in and dropped the Minnie). My car is named Mini Pearl, too.

Razzmatazz is a cool little purple flower that reminds me of Purple de Oro.

It was kind of a low bloom day – less than 20. Last year it peaked again the 3rd week of July. I am hoping!

Praise for the Sweetness of the Wet Garden

August 4, 2016Leave a comment

The rain came. Finally. Not much monsoon activity this year . . . so the big, cool storm is welcome. I got up reasonably early and several of the flowers had not bloomed all the way. Cool, wet weather. It is a nice break.

I’m two months into this daylily journey 2016. I hope for another two. It won’t peak again, but plateaus are good, too. And, then, comes the paintings. The cool weather and the presence of my granddaughter put me in the mood, a little. Ah, but alas, homework calls. Because the grandkids will be back through Sunday on their way home and due dates loom.

Enjoy the collage for today! This weekend, I am also going to try to sink some of my smaller potted daylilies into the ground. The rain will be good prep for that chore.

From L to R: Top Row – Stella de Oro, Orange Flurry, Prelude to Love, Royal Palace Prince, Marque Moon. Second Row – El Desperado, Primal Scream, Apache Uprising, Purple de Oro. Bottom – Pizza Crust.

Morning Has Broken

August 4, 2016Leave a comment

Today was an early day in the garden before a hike with my family. I love having my daughter and grandkids in Colorado so I can see them every couple of months. Grandkids are the best blooms of all.

The morning brought two very first blooms to my yard. The first is Nona’s Garnet Spider. Sadly, Nona only produced one viable bud year. (So far – keep hoping!) She was another small root planted last fall. I really like her. I hope Nona brings more buds next trip.

Nona’s Garnet Spider – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

Apache Uprising was also added late fall and was pretty small. I added a couple of intentional late bloomers. It’s a pretty flower.

Apache Uprising – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

It was also a day of hiking and swimming, so I am beat. But it is making me smile to have 13 blooms on an August day. My dream is May – October. This year started early June. Let’s see where it ends. (71 blooms so far – so I made my 50% goal.) I have noticed Heirloom Heaven with brand new scapes forming. Plus Tiger Kitten and Frans Hals are growing scapes. I may hit 74. And, who knows, I may have another scape or two join the show.

From L to R: Top Row – Lime Frost, Fine Time Lucille, Nona’s Garnet Spider. Row Two – Royal Palace Prince, Purple de Oro, Marque Moon, Stella de Oro, Orange Vols. Bottom Row – Apache Uprising, El Desperado, Pizza Crust.

Like a Box of Chocolates!

August 2, 2016August 2, 2016Leave a comment

So, today I applied for two more jobs and tomorrow my family comes. After that, it is some catch-up work with school. I can’t believe I am done in 6 weeks – I’ll have my Doctorate in Nursing Practice! It’s wonderful and frightening. The downside of online school is that it can be isolating. It seems especially pronounced now that we are almost done.

So, I promise myself one trip away from the dogs every couple of days. It gets me out with real humans and no leashes. Now, I love my dogs but I also enjoy feeling human. So, today I visited a local nursery that is having a plant sale. Four dollar daylilies – cool. I’ve decided to put Stellas in a couple more of my containers so they have season long bloomers. It may be good motivation to water them more – and get more blooms from the more specialty plants.

So, welcome to the yard Orange Flurry (in bloom today with scapes and buds):

Orange Flurry – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

And, another couple of Stellas. I thought it might be interesting to show the ones I got over the weekend with the new one. The new one is definitely more orange tone.

The other new ones have buds and scapes, but not in bloom today . . . so we wait. And one is a mystery label one, so like Forest Gump said . . .

Other blooms are Pizza Crust:

Pizza Crust – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

Lime Frost:

Lime Frost – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

Marque Moon:

Marque Moon – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

Prelude to Love:

Prelude to Love – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

Orange Vols:

Orange Vols – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

El Desperado:

El Desperado – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

Royal Palace Prince:

Royal Palace Prince – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

With any luck, I’ll have blooms until Jack Frost shows. Here is to hoping I have a job by then, too! And, by next spring there will be more flourishing at my home than ever!

Pizza Crust for Lunch

July 31, 2016Leave a comment

Pizza crust is what I had for lunch. I shared a bite with my doggies . . . and then I found my daylily, Pizza Crust, in bloom. This is a brand new baby to my yard. I really love the mottling. The colors are neat – and it is tall enough to go perfect in a back space in my flower garden. You see, I planted the daylilies in that garden last summer, then dug out the old red concrete bed in the fall. The bed is bigger than I thought, but the grass had grown over the edge. I added bricks to the outside of the bed so that should not happen, again.

Pizza Crust – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

Another new bloom today is Royal Palace Prince. It is a nice one that was a gift plant last summer. I have found that my gift plants have had a higher rate of bloom this year (in my main garden) than the ones I picked. I am guessing the hardy ones are generally the ones the sellers use as bonuses.

Royal Palace Prince – Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

Here are the other bloomers – the two small orange gals, Mini Pearl and Mellon Balls:

Lime Frost – I wish it was a lime Frosty:

Lime Frost – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

Primal Scream:

Primal Scream – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

El Desperado:

El Desperado – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

Ghost Ranch:

Ghost Ranch – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

Marque Moon:

Marque Moon – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

Soco Gap:

Soco Gap – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

And, by golly, Miss Stella. I am still chuckling at the poor nursery person who was trying to be nice and explain daylilies to me. I said, “Yea, they are cool. I have 130 varieties in my yard.” Oh, the look on his face. He went immediately back to watering. Here is Stella:

Stella de Oro – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

And, my mind is now thinking of where to put the gift plants that I put in pots and they didn’t bloom. I have ideas . . . now, wait for September.

Return a Smile :-)

July 29, 2016July 29, 2016Leave a comment

Today, no new blooms. I am impressed, however, that Return a Smile returned. It’s the one I divided into the front garden last year. It has never rebloomed in the container. That is cool. The old gal has grit.

Return a Smile: Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

In my positive psychology course, we are talking about how we tend to mimic the faces of those who we make eye-to-eye contact with. Smiling does usually get returned. And, they are calling this a form of love. So, I will credit my daylily for reminding me of that lesson today.

I decided to update my collage of Roberts daylilies that bloomed this year, as I think Ghost Ranch may be the last. I am still hopeful for late bloomers, but no scapes yet. This can always be updated. If I get 80% next year, It will be 40 or so cultivators.

Ned Roberts Spiders as of 7/29/2016 L to R: Top Row – Winds of Love, Black Ice, Aztec Firebird, Chief Four Fingers, Desert Icicle. Center: Skinwalker. Bottom Row: Ghost Ranch, Kokopelli, Dream Catcher, Zuni Thunderbird, Dream Keeper.

And, here is the collage of today’s blooms. Gratitude . . . Love, joy, and gratitude. A garden of positive emotion.

7/29/16 L to R: Top Row: Fine Time Lucille, Lullaby Baby, Dream Catcher, Baja, Return a Smile. Bottom Row: Orange Vols, El Desperado, Ghost Ranch, Marque Moon, Prelude to Love.

Winding down . . . a little

July 28, 2016Leave a comment

The daylily peak has come, and gone, for another year. With my intense focus on savoring it during this summer of my doctorate, I am almost glad. Heavy on the almost. As with all things, we assimilate over time. If I did not get my daylily withdraw pains from November through March (yes, fans count!), I would not have time to think creatively about daylilies in a new way. Last year, I made tile coasters, tiled tables, self-watering jars, and solar lit mason jars all with the images of my daylily heavy summer.

Dream Catcher – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

If I have any regrets about this year, it is not the yard improvements that I have made. It is that some of my regulars did not bloom . . . or had much-reduced bloom. I am not sure why . . . well, probably water and sunshine. I am sure I played into it by putting pots in places that were too shady or not pre-watering enough in the spring. But, there is something bigger, because two of my three clumps of flamingo grass also did not bloom. Strange.

El Desperado – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

I’ve already made changes in the last couple of weeks. Amended soils, moved pots, changed watering systems. It’s a long quality improvement cycle until next spring. Oh, how I wish daylilies could talk. That said, I have a few sending up scapes for later blooms – one that last bloomed 2 years ago. At any rate, last count I have had 64 of 135 bloom this year. That’s 47%. I have 4 more with scapes that have not bloomed yet. If they all survive, I will hit 50. That’s good, but leaves room for some quality improvement to make sure all my new additions this year can flourish. Look out, 2017!

From L to R: Top Row – El Desperado, Dream Catcher. Second Row – Marque Moon, Lime Frost, South Seas. Third Row – Primal Scream, Soco Gap, Melon Balls.

The Fruit Doesn’t Fall that Far from the Daylily

July 26, 2016Leave a comment

Today, I got the coolest bouquet from Mother Nature. And, while I am a little sorry to be cutting so many finished scapes, I welcome some great fall bloomers. Today, a favorite that joined my yard last year – El Desperado.

I bought this one last year because it still had unbloomed scapes when I walked through the nursery one Sunday. I wasn’t sure where to put it, so I potted it and put it in the center of the yucca garden. That was the beginning of my idea to make a southwestern garden out of that space. I love the yucca, but the space needed more color, more inspiration. And, from there I got into Ned Robert’s blooms.

El Desperado – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

I obviously love daylilies. But, I don’t know if I could ever be a hybridizer. I do, however, sometimes looking at the genetic similarities of the blooms. And, El Desperado is the parent to another bloom that showed up today, Autumn Jewels.

Autumn Jewels – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

It doesn’t take much imagination to see the genetics at work. So, for fun, I looked up the other parent, Calico Jack, and found this picture. What do you think, does baby look like its parents?

Calico Jack – Google Image

The other eye-catching blooms in my yard today where Primal Scream (amidst the Potentilla).

Primal Scream – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

And, Zuni Thunderbird. Break out the paint brush. The buds are getting used up . . . one left?

Zuni Thunderbird – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

So, here is the collage. I’m at 13 today. Without the additions of last fall and this spring, I believe I would be at two. I can live with that. Viva La Daylilies!

L to R: Top Row – Marque Moon, Soco Gap, Isaac. Second Row – Prelude to Love, El Desperado, Primal Scream, Autumn Jewels, Zuni Thunderbird. Bottom Row – Skinwalker, Mini Pearl, Orange Vols, Melon Balls, Lime Frost.

First Frost! (and 26 daylilies)

July 23, 2016July 23, 2016Leave a comment

No, it’s really 88 degrees. It would be warmer if the monsoon clouds weren’t providing some shade. No real rain yet, but cooler than the last few weeks. In fact, cool enough for frost. Well, Lime Frost.

When I arranged daylilies last summer, I put plant labels and entered each location in my software. However, it doesn’t really sink in what is where until they bloom and then you remember to color. So, when I was checking for buds last night, I was surprised that Lime Frost looked full-term. This is booked as a very late season bloomer, but it is still mid-July. Oh, well, we had Desert Icicles so welcome to our delusion of cold weather.

Lime Frost – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

Another brand new face is Autumn Jewel. This was a gift plant – this spring. A later gift plant, even. I love the bloom. It is a relative of El Desperado. It’s slated as another late bloomer. But, here it is anyway.

Autumn Jewel – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

Fine Time Lucille is another brand new face today. I ordered her last summer when I was first learning the online order thing. The name sold this one . . . I have been humming the song all day.

Fine Time Lucille (with Primal Scream) – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

And, Skinwalker showed up in my Southwestern garden today . . . these first blooms are sometimes a little rough looking. Hoping for more soon from this one!

Skinwalker – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

Of mention is that Electric Lizard, having been fertilized, put in another pale bloom. I now wonder if it has too much sun. I am getting some more fans at a summer sale, as I think it would look better a little fuller.

Electric Lizard – Photo by Colorado Kid Daylilies – C. Hartt

So, here is the collage with all 26 blooms. I tried for rainbow order, as I had both a near-blue and a green in bloom today.

From L to R: Top Row – Baja, Indian Love Call, Ruby Spider, Thin Man, Soco Gap. Second Row – Orange Vols, Primal Scream, Aztec Firebird, South Seas. Third Row – Mini Pearl, Mayan Poppy, Pick of the Litter. Fourth Row – Skinwalker, Electric Lizard, Dream Catcher, Lullaby Baby. Fifth Row – Lime Frost. Sixth Row – Blue Beat. Seventh Row – Stephanie Returns, Prairie Blue Eyes, Return A Smile, Fine Time Lucille. Eighth Row – Blackthorne, Zuni Thunderbird, Purple de Oro, Autumn Jewel.

As peak lingers, I begin to think of next year. I want to do more work with the Southwest garden. Maybe some compost or manure around each plant. Loosen the soil around the roots and add the amendments. That area has been sterile of plants so long, it probably could use some bio additives. Pots, yes, some need to be relocated. Others need pebbles in the bottoms. It will be fun moving them inside the porch this winter – the evergreens. I have had 57 different cultivators bloom so far this year. Next year, 100 by this time! Let’s do it!

Colorado Kid Daylilies

A Blog About My Western Colorado Daylily Adventure

Tag: El Desperado

Drizzle

Sun-Day!

Praise for the Sweetness of the Wet Garden

Morning Has Broken

Like a Box of Chocolates!

Pizza Crust for Lunch

Return a Smile :-)

Winding down . . . a little

The Fruit Doesn’t Fall that Far from the Daylily

First Frost! (and 26 daylilies)