Hot and Sweaty

July 7, 2020Leave a comment

Today, I got up early to go to a doctor’s appt. It was early enough that buds weren’t open yet on my quick trip to the garden. By the time I got home a couple hours later, the UV was on high and I had a zoom meeting that lasted 90 minutes. By the time I got to go out to the yard, my daylilies looked like I did after standing out there for 5-10 minutes: Hot and sweaty.

I had some nice premiers today – Black Ice is my favorite dark daylily and is a Ned Roberts creation. Unfortunately, the sun leaves the dark ones really zapped.

Apache Bandana also had a premier bloom for 2020 – I like the pattern on this Ned Roberts spider

Treasure of the Southwest also had a premier today. These blooms are huge and very pretty. Nice bonus from a few years back.

Bela Lugosi also bloomed = man, the sun and dark cultivators. The good news is it looks much happier since I put in the sprinklers.

I also had some more finales today. Funny Valentine had a zillion buds and they are all done for 2020.

Pink Enchilada also had its finale today.

And stunning Mauna Loa is done – man, that corner is boring now!

The peak is on . . . I am falling asleep typing this. Ni ni.

Daylilies of Corona: June Blooms

July 1, 2020Leave a comment

Last year, I posted all my blooms each week on Sunday since it is too much to do daily. This year, I am going to try to do a recap at the end of the month. So, for June 2020, we had the following 50:

Drip, Drip, Drip

June 22, 2020Leave a comment

I will say one thing positive about the pandemic is that I have spent a lot more time in my yard and patio doing projects that I have wanted to do for some time.

So, today I extended my side yard drip system to the upper part of my front flower bed. I am guessing there are 50 plants in that area – so it took a chunk of time. I was nervous to hook it up, but it works fine. My sprinkler system is great for the lawn, but not for the flower pots. It is just not enough. So . . . I will come back to drip systems in a minute.

First, I had several premiers. Mauna Loa is a pretty Ned Roberts daylily that I added last year. It is one of his older ones, but the color is still vibrant.

One of my minis, Petite Petticoats, gave me a premier bloom today, too. I seriously almost missed her in a big bucket of minis.

Purple Many Faces showed her face for the first time in 2020 today. Another colorful Roberts cultivator.

Oh, and sweet Return a Smile. She was one of my very first daylilies and always makes me smile.

So, that is it for premiers today. Likely, this week, I will shift to premiers only. I have a couple honorable mentions today. I had 4 premiers this week that didn’t open right the first time. Now, they are back with their normal beauty – Kokopelli, Land of Enchantment, Jungle Queen, and Mildred Mitchell.

OK, back to the drip system. Last year, I put one in on the front part of the bed I did today. Again, it had a lot of plants and I was new at doing drip systems other than it a short line. So, I did it the same, and needless to say, the drippers at the end did not have enough pressure.

I decided to research it and you need to put the line in a continuous circle – so both the start and end of the tube connect to the tap. Earlier this spring, I went back and fixed the front so it worked correctly. And, I am seeing a difference in the plant health – we will see on bloom rate. So far, Stella is much happier. And, my poinsettias are in heaven!

I don’t have either of the newer drippers on a timer – other than my brain. It is still a lot easier to crank the hose and do something else for 30-60 minutes that haul water to all those pots.

I am wondering if peak will happen before my trip in 2.5 weeks. I know it will be busy with blooms. I just need to get away and have an adventure.

As the World Turns

June 21, 20201 Comment

It is the longest day of the year for another hour or so in Colorado. Summer is here – the season of the daylily explosion. And, now the world takes us slowly to that dark, cold December day a few days before Christmas.

It wasn’t a real exciting day in the garden. I had one premier – Wild Horses. I really like the shape and color of her blooms. She is one of my favorite on the back porch.

I also am so disappointed in myself for not watching my scape when I went to get some sedum cuttings and accidentally knocked 3 buds off Jungle Queen. Every summer I do something like that and it hangs with me for a bit.

The good news is that the new sedum garden looks good. It is a little garden made of wine bottles with a new mural of a Navajo Tree of Life. It is the back side of my garage so I never painted there before – but it is my view from where I sit to eat. So, it’ll be fun.

Tomorrow, I extend my drip system to an area where my pots only get sprinkler water. It isn’t enough during the hot, dry weather. At this point, it may be too late to influence scape formation, but it could keep my buds from drying up before they bloom.

Any, hey, I own mother nature 3 buds now. And, that is the way the world turns.

Freedoms

June 20, 2020Leave a comment

Today, I woke-up late because I worked until midnight on a supply list for one of our new programs. It is busy on top of COVID-19 – the world of nursing academics is and will stay upside-down.

I was foggy . . . but when consciousness returned, I realized it was Juneteenth. I knew nothing about Juneteenth until I lived in Galveston and read a book by the same name. It is a day worth remembering.

We live in a world that seems shaken by so much right now. But, I am free to go out in my yard and take photos of the 13 bloomers of the day. All are different colors, and I treat each the same. I am free to write the blog. I can put just about anything I want in this blog – that is freedom. I can be a crazy daylily lady – that is freedom.

The other cool thing about today is that my Nurse’s Stethoscope daylily bloomed her premier bloom. She is the one I suggested the name for through the Daylily Society. She is named for the Show Me Your Stethoscope episode of the View. Maybe COVID-19 has helped the world understand all of the capabilities of my profession.

I had a few other premiers – I do believe the peak is beginning to build. Canyon Colors had a premier bloom today. There is so much grass in her put that she didn’t put out many scapes. I was going to replant her in March, but couldn’t get out to buy the soil before she got too big.

Indian Love Call had a nice first bloom. She is loaded with buds.

Land of Enchantment had a premier bloom that looks almost as beat-up as Kokopelli did yesterday. I think it is bud damage from the big windstorm a couple weeks ago.

It is Friday, summer solstice is tomorrow. It just feels like a significant day.

My flowers today are dedicated to those who don’t know the same freedoms that I have known. And, they are dedicated to the frontline workers during COVID-19 – my Nurse’s Stethoscope seems to say “thanks” to my colleagues.

It’s my home weekend tomorrow. A few things planned around the yard. Solstice . . . Summer Solstice. And, I get a little sad knowing that the days will start shrinking, again.

Enjoy the show below . . . almost time to limit to just premier blooms in the daily blog.

The Big Parade

June 19, 2020June 19, 2020Leave a comment

I think that, in the song, 75 trombones lead the big parade. Well, in my yard, it is a handful of yellow(ish) trumpets. But, it is a big parade . . . Christmas in July.

Today was an odd day. It was cold last night – I crawled back under the covers because my bedroom window was cracked.

When it is cold the daylilies usually open later in the day. Today, it was noonish before some were open enough for photos. The problem with that is the lack of humidity in Colorado means the UV is intense. And, so some of my blooms looked frazzled by the time I could take a photo of them open.

I had three premiers today. Jungle Queen – one of my early Lily Auction adoptees – marched proudly in the parade. I have always thought her colors were some of the most stunning in my yard.

Jungle Queen with her big, showy flowers 6.18.20

The other two premiers looked like they would have been better off to stay in bed and sleep late. Oh, wait, they did. Anyway, Mildred Mitchell had beautiful near blue bloom that didn’t open until the sun got the best of it’s splendor.

Mildred Mitchell looking weathered on her premier bloom day 6.18.20

And, oh poor Kokopelli. This cultivator’s name comes from the Native American legend of a traveler, trader, and turner of seasons. I knew something was up with her bud. Maybe wind damage, maybe insects. IDK, but I hope the other buds do a little better. Kokopelli is such a favorite that this poor bloom makes me sad.

The saddest Kokopelli on the planet 6.18.20

Ojo de Dios was back, probably the star of today’s parade because the show went on despite the cool night.

Ojo de Dios shows resilience after a cold night 6.18.20

Mesa Verde had another couple of blooms. Those ruffles had a rough time wanting to open today.

Funny Valentine has nice, rich color this year.

And, the trumpets – Saratoga Springtime had a nice little clump of marchers.

Stella has grit – always putting on a show. Both Stella colors.

And, their cousin, Yellow Punch.

I wonder who will lead tomorrow’s parade?

Folders of Flowers

June 18, 2020Leave a comment

I remember a presidential debate several years ago where one of the candidates said he had binders of women. Instantly, it was the twitter trend. Well, I am not sure my folders of flowers will rate that highly, but there are similarities.

Laughing Feather – premier bloom 6.17.20

This time of year, I organize my flower photos in folders labeled by cultivator name, date, and then which photo # it is that day for that flower. So, I might have stella6.17.1 for my first Stella de Oro shot today.

I use Microsoft One Drive as my back-up for my camera photos. It always worked great until I switched computers . . . or maybe it’s the new camera . . . or some update. I have checked every setting and I can’t figure it out.

My yellow (vs golden) Stella de Oro and her premier bloom 6.17.20

It just isn’t backing up the photos I put on my computer. Now, I can upload the folder to One Drive – but I have to delete the one off my computer. And, then the one from One Drive shows up. It honestly took me hours to figure out a work-around. I think once a week is plenty for this little procedure.

Dream Keeper still livin’ the dream 6.17.20

So far, I have eleven folders of flowers for 2020. Last year, I had 161 total. I have more work ahead of me than what lays behind. And, I need to move my flower software to the new computer, too.

So, I had more premiers to add to my list of folders. Today, a couple of Southwestern named cultivators. Mesa Verde is one of my favorites – especially for a ruffly bloom.

And distinctive Laughing Feather has bloomed – one of my Robert’s spiders. It usually isn’t a particularly early bloomer . . . beat Kokopelli this year, though.

Oh, and my yellow (vs golden) version of Stella put our a premier bloom today, too.

My other cultivators are pictured above between my writing. Tomorrow, I think I will be adding more folders. Maybe Kokopelli. I didn’t have time to make bud rounds today so I am not really sure. I guess I’ll find out tomorrow.

Here Comes the Color

June 17, 20202 Comments

Yellow trumpet daylilies are like appetizers before a 6 course meal. They let you know that the season is coming but leave you wanting more. It always feels like I get 2 weeks of yellow trumpets, and then the action starts. Somehow, colorful spider Dream Keeper shows up with the yellow trumpets – ahead of her time.

So, today I had some colorful premier blooms. First, Funny Valentine. She is an older daylily that I keep on my porch. She budded at the same time as Saratoga Springtime, so I have been waiting for her appearance on stage.

And, another Robert’s spider joins Dream Keeper as a premier today – Ojo de Dios. I love the stately color combo of this neatly curled spider.

And, my first near-blue for 2020 gave a premier showing – Blue Beat!

And, there are still yellow trumpets blaring out their tune – Stella de Oro – the most popular trumpet in town.

Happy Returns, who looks almost like a twin to Stella this year.

And, Saratoga Springtime.

I think there will be more premiers tomorrow. Laughing Feather is close . . . so close. And, I am up to about 100 cultivators in scape. Hopefully, peak happens before my camping road trip next month. I just extended by a day.

Rode Hard and Put Away Wet

June 10, 2020Leave a comment

It is an expression about horses – rode hard and put away wet means running a horse so hard that it sweats. Well, looking at my daylilies today, the expression came to mind. The Derecho followed by 2 more days of intense wind – then down to near freezing last night – that is a lot to ask of a daylily. And, the foliage is bent and after two days of dust bowl wind, the last rain was “dirty” so to speak. So, my leaves have a little debris on them.

I still had 4 blooms today. I think Dream Keeper looks so sad and faded today after the storm.

Dream Keeper before the storm 6.7.20 – see the color difference?

And, Saratoga Springtime broke a petal.

Saratoga Springtime – After the storm 6.9.20

Stella, and her cousin, Yellow Punch (a primier bloom today) look pretty normal. Except the buds (other than Saratoga Springtime) did not fully open until this afternoon about 2 PM. It is a clear sign that blooms are partially heat driven.

What’s close – IDK, maybe Funny Valentine. I do have close to 70 scapes now. The wind is gone, like a case of Corona Virus is gone. And, it gets up to 75 tomorrow.

Oh, and my poinsettias are OK. Poinsettias will die if you expose them to temps under 50 in the winter, but I have found that during growing season, they are much more resilient.

The Daylilies of Winter

July 30, 2019July 30, 2019Leave a comment

The heat of July is upon us! I got stung by a wasp last night and I get a local, allergic reaction. So, my hand is red, swollen, blistered and itches horribly. Summer . . . one of my favorite seasons. Yet, those bugs . . .

So, to shift thoughts to times where wasps are non-existent, let me shift to our one and only Premier daylily bloom today. (I still had almost 60 in bloom). Her name is Candy Cane Dreams and I got her as a bonus with Santa’s Pants. I had no idea where to put her, so she is in the barrel planter with Black-Eyed Susan and Stella. She is kind of cool – she does look like Santa’s Pants!