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.
Desert Icicle 7.19Moon Over Chimayo 7.20Iktomi 7.20Carlotta 7.20
The next two posts are a listing of the daylilies that have bloomed ANYTIME during July – even if they started in June. It is a large list but also a colorful one. I believe only 3 of my cultivators were totally done in June – Saratoga Springtime, Scorpio and yellow Stella de Oro.
If you like Ned Roberts cultivators, you have come to the right place because I have about 70 of them, and most (except Navajo Curls and Adios Albuquerque) that are going to bloom the year have bloomed sometime during July.
I went to the rodeo here last night, so I am all practiced-up and ready to go.
Alabama Jubilee 6.26-7.10All American Chief 6.22-7.9Apache Bandana 6.30-7.10Autumn Jewels 7.16-presentAztec Firebird 7.8-7.31Baby Blue Eyes 7.6-7.27Baja 7.10-7.29Bella Boo 7.2-7.16Bela Lugosi 7.4-7.26Big Red Rhyme (NOID) 6.22-7.11Black Arrowhead 7.6-7.30Blackthorne 7.6-7.13Black Eyed Susan 7.4-7.19Black Ice 7.4-7.18Blue Beat 7.9-7.17Buttered Popcorn 7.7-7-25Candy Cane Dreams 7.1-7.19Canyon Colors 6.15-presentCatherine Irene 6.24-7.13Chaco 6.27-presentCheddar Cheese 7.3-7.17Cherokee Star 7.9-8.1Cheyenne Eyes 7.6-7.19Chief Four Fingers 6.12-7.15Chokecherry Mountain 7.5-7.27Chorus Line 7.6-presendClassy Lady 7.6-7.29Coburg Fright Wig 7.11-7.30Comanche Princess 6.18-7.11Coral Taco 7.2-7.16Cricket Call 7.3-7.17Cripple Creek 7.19-presentDancing Maiden 7.16-presentDesert Icicle 7.26-presentDr Doom 7.30-presentDream Catcher 7.14-presentDream Keeper 6.11-7.1Early Bird Cardinal 6.27-7.13Echo Canyon 6.21-7.10El Desperado 7.17-presentFairytale Pink 7.11-7.17Feather Woman 7.5-7.9Fine Time Lucille 7.10-7.17Fol de Rol 7.4-7.17Fooled Me 7.10-7.16Frans Hals 7.15-present“Fringe Benefit” 6.27-7.12 (mislabeled bonus)Funny Valentine 6.20-7.8Ghost Ranch 7.12-7.17Glen Eyrie 7.25-7.30 (started while I was on vaca 7.19-24)
Golden Eclipse 7.16-present
Happy Hopi 7.7-7.31Happy Returns 6.27-7.12Heavenly Curls 7.5-7.17Heirloom Heaven 7.25-presentHesperus 7.12-presentHoly Sombrero 7.7-7.25Hopi Jewel 6.27-7.17Iktomi 7.9-7.29Indian Love Call 7.13-7.27Indian Sky 7.13-presentIndian Giver 6.30-7.17Inwood 6.22-7.12Jungle Queen 7.1-7.19-24? Finished during vacationJust Plumb Happy 7.4-7.15Kachina Dancer 6.30-7.16Kokopelli 6.25-7.19Lacy Doily 7.3-7.16Lady Fingers 6.23-7.19Land of Enchantment 6.23-7.11Lime Frost 7.11-7.16Lobo Lucy 7.13-7.31Longlesson Showoff 7.5.7.18Lullaby Baby 7.7 to presentMama Cuna 7.11-presentMarque Moon 7.13-7.19 (ended 7.19-7.24 during vaca)Mauna Loa 6.27-7.10Maya Cha Cha 7.4-7.19Medicine Feather 7.5-7.18Melon Balls 7.6-7.15Mesa Verde 6.15-7.13Mini Pearl 6.26-7.31Mount Echo Sunrise 6.28-7.19
What an interesting year! Not only have I reached semi-retirement age, I am having an amazing daylily bloom year. The drip systems with miracle grow soil replacement paid off in spades. It is honestly overwhelming because it takes an hour just to photograph them. I spend about 5 hours a day (not counting the painting) on daylilies right now.
I would not call this a peak – because on 7/3 we hit 60. It has been in the 50s and 60s each day since. And . . . drumroll . . . today I had 63. Last year, I charted the peak and it was clearly one day at 40, the other days were 20s at best. Granted, I was on vacation the last 2 years this week, but I think the numbers are an accurate reflection of a short, less intense peak. This isn’t a peak, it is a Southwest Mesa – and a grand one, at that.
I had 6 premiers today. Laudy. Here they are:
Quilt Patch 7.9 – I am headlining this one because I got her on the auction at the same time I got Kokopelli. The start of being a serious hobbiest. I put her in a different pilot garden and she almost died – she became a seedling in size. I moved her to a pot out front after a year out there and put her in the front garden. Each year, she gets a little stronger. Today, the first ever bloom came. Now I see why I had to have her!Blue Beat 7.9 – One of my early near blues. I must say it is my near blues that need repotting once we get over the Grand Mesa and things settle down. They are not at their best this year. Cherokee Star 7.9 – A pretty velvet cultivator that fits with my Southwest collection. She is from the local nursery.Iktomi – This is a classic Robert’s spider. I see his DNA in so many of his hybrids. Reminds me of Chaco Canyon but I also see Apache Bandana and Black Arrowhead.Rocky Mountain Pals 7.9 – Another Roberts cultivator. I understand it was named for his cancer treatment team in Denver.Rosie’s Red – Another cool bonus bloomer who is usually one of the later bloomers in the front garden. This year, she is at the top of the Mesa with everyone else.
That’s all folks! Off to paint some daylilies in the basement while the temps reach 100 today.
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Hi all – When it is Saturday and it hasn’t been the fun day that I planned. COVID had driven the world mad – and they seem to all be mad at me. So, how about a little Ned Robert’s daylily therapy? I fell in love with Ned’s southwestern named daylilies after finding Kokopelli on Lily Auction 5 years ago. I have a collection of 70 ish now. I am including a few from 2019 if they didn’t bloom this year. Comment with your favorite! Direct from Montrose, Colorado . . .
Adios Albuquerque 2019Apache Bandana 2019Apache Beacon (w Dream Catcher) 2019Aztec Firebird 7.19.20BlackArrowhead 7.19.20Black Ice 7.21.20Chaco Canyon 7.29.20Cheyenne Eyes 6.30.20Chief Four Fingers 2019Chokecherry Mountain 7.20.20Comanche Princess 6.26.20Coral Taco 6.30.20Cricket Call 2019Coyote Laughs 7.20.20Cripple Creek 7.21.20Dancing Maiden 7.20.1Desert Icicle 8.8.20Dream Catcher 7.28.20Dream Keeper 6.6.20Feather Woman 2019Fox Ears 2019Ghost Ranch 2019Echo Canyon 6.25.20Glen Eyrie 7.21.20Golden Eclipse 7.30.20Happy Hopi 7.3.20Iktomi 7.21.20Kachina Firecracker 7.30.20Kachina Dancer 7.20.20Kiva Dancer 7.1.20Kokopelli 7.20.20Land of Enchantment 6.20.20Laughing Feather 6.26.20Lobo Lucy 7.19.20Mama Cuna 8.4.20Mauna Loa 6.26.20Maya Cha Cha 7.17.20Medicine Feather 2019Moon over Chimayo 8.8.20Mount Echo Sunrise 6.23.20Navajo Curls 8.4.20Navajo Grey Hills 7.23.20Navajo Rodeo 2019Ojo De Dios 6.23.20Papa Longlegs 7.18.20Pink Enchilada 7.5.20Pink Rain Dance 7.2.20Purple Corn Dancer 8.5.20Purple Grasshopper 2019Purple Many Faces 6.24.20Purple Thunderbird 8.5.20Raspberry Propeller 7.17.20Raven Woodsong 8.8.20Rocky Mountain Pals 7.17.20Santa Fe ChristmasShape Shifter 7.27.20Skinwalker 7.29.20Spirit of the Morning 7.23.20Star Over MilagroTaco Twister 7.20.20Talon 7.27.20Twirling Pinata 7.27.20Wild Rose Fandango 2019Winds of Love 7.22.20Zuni Eye 2019Zuni Thunderbird 7.22.20
I spent some time today trying to re-orient myself to the new lot of daylilies that are in bloom since I got home from my road trip. I got the spent scapes cut off and tried to make a list of finales. I would like to make a list of all the ones with scapes not yet bloomed and all the ones that aren’t trying.
Anyway, I went back through the 7.8 and 7.16 photos and found more premiers. Plus, there were 5 premiers today (at least first bloom since I got home). The total is 114 that have bloomed. That’s a 67% bloom rate. To hit 80%, we will need 37 cultivators to bloom. Twenty-three more. That’s tight but we can hope. I’ll count unbloomed scapes tomorrow.
And, to backtrack, here are the premiers from 7.16.20 that I finally had time to look at today. I always come home to rain – so these guys look like they just showered.
Autumn Jewels looks sad but she bloomed 7.16.1Desert Icicle 7.16.20Indian Sky 7.16.20Just Plum Happy 7.16.20Lime Frost first and last bloom 7.16.20Papa Long Legs first and last bloom 7.16.20
So, that is it . . . back to a normal pace except work starts Monday. However, I am suppose to have July off so I plan to work from home unless they demand otherwise. Plus, I am waiting out the two-week COVID risk.
I worked on transplanting succulent cuttings and transplanting a few succulents into larger pots. I don’t have tons of love left for my orchids . . . so I use those pots but fill the holes with moss. It takes a while but it is relaxing.
Just for the record, here is a list of all of the finales so far for 2020: Apache Uprising (I missed this one but it did bloom), Ruby Spider (today), Lime Frost, Return a Smile (unless she reblooms), Early Bird Cardinal, Prairie Wildfire, Catherine Irene, Thin Man, Comanche Princess, The Colorado Kid, Blue Beat, Mildred Mitchell, Mauna Loa, Mesa Verde, Heron’s Cove, Canyon Colors (today), Jungle Queen, Wineberry Candy, Just Plum Happy, Raspberry Propeller, Santa’s Pants, Red Mystery, Bella Boo, Nosferatwo, Coral Taco, Pink Enchalada, Pink Rain Dance, Zuni Eye (I missed this one but it did bloom), Papa Long Legs, Land of Enchantment, All American Chief, Purple Many Faces, Indian Love Call, Laughing Feather, Coyote Laughs, Kokopelli, Hopi Jewel, Mount Echo Sunrise, Holy Sombrero, Ojo De Dios, Rocky Mountain Pals, Kachina Firecracker, Kiva Dancer, Echo Canyon, Indian Giver, Funny Valentine, Wild Horses, Inwood, Primal Scream, Lacy Doily, Nurse’s Stethoscope, Canyon Colors (today), Kachina Dancer (today), Apache Bandana (today). Not bad for 6 weeks!
Only 40 something daylilies today and no Premiers. So, it leaves time to talk about some of my daylily categories. I have talked a lot about my Ned Roberts spiders. I originally started collecting them after seeing Kokopelli on the Lily Auction – I love the Southwest and had to have her (I got the bid)! From there, I added more = lots more. At first, it was all fully Southwest names. Then, I gathered some animal and insect names to my Ned collection. And, some stellar names. IDK, is Dancing Maiden a name from the Southwest?
So, tonight, I will show you my purely Southwest named daylilies – the obvious names from the Southwest. But, first, Mildred Mitchell had an extra petal today – a genetic flaw that made her look pretty cool.
OK – Here are my Southwest Ned Roberts spiders. (These are the ones that have bloomed the last two years. Mostly this year, except Kokopelli did not bloom this year – which is unusual).
Life changes. This summer is so different from last year. Jobs, schedules, weather. So, I returned from Utah yesterday afternoon to an overwhelming thunderstorm that wiped out a lot of yesterday’s blooms. I decided to start fresh today, kind of. I leave for a work conference in Atlanta on Wednesday. Next Sunday, I can start my regular routine for daylily season. Lol.
So, a lot of Premier blooms (to me) today. Let’s start with my Ned Roberts spider collection:
That’s like almost 40 new cultivars since I left 9 days ago! Overwhelmed doesn’t say it with another trip coming up. I have no clue on bloom rate, but the cold, wet spring mostly seems to have helped.
Reruns:
Yellow Punch 7/14
Comanche Princess 7/14
Return a Smile 7/14
The Colorado Kid 7/14
Papa Long Legs 7/14
Land of Enchantment 7/14
Canyon Colors 7/14
Hopi Jewel 7/14
Ojo de Dios 7/14
Echo Canyon 7/14
Indian Love Call 7/14
Treasure of the Southwest 7/14
Yellow Stella 7/14
Funny Valentine 7/14
Petite Petticoats 7/14
Purple Many Faces 7/14
All American Chief 7/14
Ok, that’s enough. Battery is dead. Several Finales while gone: Saratoga Springtime, Dream Keeper, Chama Valley.
If you are going to miss the start of peak bloom, Utah is a great place to do it. Also amazing colors.
The days grow August-quiet. It seems a dream that I had nearly 60 blooms per day just a month ago. So, today, we will do finales. And, then, a roll-call of my Ned Roberts spiders.
Finales:
Chorus Line 8.5
Rosie’s Red 8.6
So, maybe if I do the Ned Roberts spider roll-call it will entice one more into bloom this year. My Ghost Ranch is a fall bloom, but I am having a rough time getting her to thrive here. Maybe some fish fertilizer? Our temps are still above average with little rain.
Ned Roberts Spiders for 2018 Season:
Adios Albuquerque
Apache Bandana
Aztec Firebird
Black Arrowhead
Black Ice
Chaco Canyon
Cheyenne Eyes
Chokecherry Mountain
Comanche Princess
Desert Icicle
Dream Catcher
Dream Keeper
Fox Ears
Happy Hopi
Iktomi
Kachina Firecracker
Kokopelli
Laughing Feather
Mama Cuna
Moon Over Chimayo
Navajo Curls
Navajo Rodeo
Papa Longlegs
Pink Rain Dance
Pueblo Dancer is her label, but she doesn’t look like that one. So???
Purple Corn Dancer
Purple Grasshopper
Purple Many Faces
Purple Moonrise
Purple Thunderbird
Raspberry Propeller
Raven Woodsong
Rocky Mountain Pals
Santa Fe Christmas
Shape Shifter
Skinwalker
Taco Twister
Talon
Twirling Pinata
Wild Rose Fandango
Zuni Eye
Zuni Thunderbird
Out of interest, here are my Ned Roberts spiders that bloomed last year but did not bloom this year:
Coral Taco 2017
Glen Eyrie
Pink Enchilada 2017
And, we had a few in 2016 that have not bloomed again:
Chief Four Fingers 2016
Ghost Ranch
Winds of Love 2016
I have around 64 of Ned’s spiders in my garden. I had 42 bloom this year or about 65%. Last year, I had 13 (about 20%) bloom. Marked improvement. All total, to date, I have had 48 (or 75%) bloom. That is a long way from 100%. But, marked improvement. I think some of the ones that bloomed in 2016 were put in that year (still flourishing from the nursery), struggled last year in the clay soil, and are recovering (growing new roots) this year in their pots. I am sure that the drought had an impact, as well.
So, for fun, here are the ones I have that have never bloomed (photos from the web):
Apache Beacon
Coyote Laughs
Cricket Call
Cripple Creek
Dancing Maiden
Echo Canyon
Feather Woman
Golden Eclipse
Kachina Dancer
Kiva Dancer
Land of Enchantment
Maya Cha Cha
Medicine Feather
Mount Echo Sunrise
Navajo Grey Hills
Ojo de Dios
Orchid Moonrise
The Real Pueblo Dancer
Spirit of the Morning
Star over Milagro
Truchas Sunrise
Wildwood Flower
We made improvements, but we have aways to go. That’s life
It is time for Sunday roll call. But first, a couple cool new Roberts Spiders. Meet Mount Echo Sunrise – She is a big spider that reminds me of Dream Catcher. This is her first-ever bloom in my yard – I put her in a couple years ago.
Then there is Sante Fe Christmas – And she looks like a Christmas bow. Red, green with curly petals. I really love her – too bad she lost her other buds. Despite the improved bloom rate, the drought has taken a toll.
Next up – Finales. Of course, Santa Fe Christmas is a finale today 😦
Primal Scream is another finale.
Primal Scream 7.10Â
Jungle Queen had finale blooms on both pots I have of her.
Jungle Queen 7.12
Iktomi is another finale. I have enjoyed seeing the patterns in her offspring.
Iktomi 7.9
Happy Hopi gave a finale bloom today. I really enjoyed her big, bold, blonde blooms.
Happy Hopi 7.12
Now, on to our roll call. These are the blooms from 7/9 through today. But, first, we have about 12 with unbloomed scapes remaining and mid-50s with no bloom/no scape. We are at 107 cultivators (+/-). Add 12, and we get close to 120. I am still hoping for 130 total this year.
