Daylily Software: Streamlining Cultivator Management and Tracking Bloom Cycles

June 25, 20241 Comment

The daylily bloom season continues to dribble along. I have nearly 80 scapes (or cultivators with scapes). Still, many early bloomers have not put out scapes. I am unsure what to do – I might try some high-bloom fertilizer before the monsoons hit full force. But just a little bit of fertilizer because the timing isn’t optimal. I rarely intervene like this, but after two years of high bloom rate, I feel the soil may need a little nutrition. I also don’t like to use much fertilizer when the temps are getting so high, but the rains would help.

I had one new cultivator today: Orchid Moonrise. I was surprised, as this one is usually not a super early bird. I love the purple color of this Ned Roberts spider. My fourth Ned spider this season, the others were Burgundy Crab, Kokopelli, and Fried Green Tomatoes.

I got a new computer last spring (2023) and I discovered tonight that I never moved my daylily software from my old computer. Yes – I have a software program just for my daylilies. Last year, I didn’t use it! The shift from a regular career to a “retirement” small business takes a lot of energy. I got it moved over tonight and trying to update all my cultivators. I have lost some the last two summers – and I need to take those out. I added a couple new ones last year that need to be added.

I have a system where I add a photo from each year labeled with the year. That helps me keep track of what is blooming and what is struggling. The software also lets you put a location – plus I have a daylily map of my main gardens. It also needs to be updated. This is super handy if you lose the plant pot label.

If you grow daylilies and are interested in affordable software – check out this website. They also have a Facebook page and Kent, the software developer, is very responsive to customer service requests. It is seriously awesome. There are also videos on the website if you are interested in more info.

The other good thing about the software is that I can tell when a cultivator normally blooms in my yard each year. Last year, the peak was mid-July to early August. There is hope that things may pick up this year.

Don’t forget that I have my “Until the Last Daylily Blooms” sale on daylily art in my Etsy shop all summer. Check out these prints of my handpainted pictures of my daylily collection! Great wall decor for the daylily lover! Visit this link or click the photo to visit the listing.

Alberto Reigns and Rains

June 22, 2024June 22, 2024Leave a comment

Today was one of the stormiest days I remember here. The remnants of Tropical Storm Alberto have been hitting the Four Corners and San Juan Mountains hard. My ditch lilies are likely pretty happy about all the moisture.

I had 3 “first of 2024” cultivators in bloom today. Fried Green Tomatoes had her first-ever bloom (in my yard) today. I really like the color combo. Of course, with the drenching rain and wind, everything is a little waterlogged.

The other firsts for this season are Kokopelli and Indian Love Call.

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I am a little uneasy with the slow state year and the number of scapes. Perhaps Alberto will do some magic! I didn’t go out and count today – but I will tomorrow when the sun returns to duty. Daylilies require an inch of rain/week. Montrose gets less than an inch a month. So, Alberto reigns.

Welcome to Summer 2024: A Flair For Florescence!

June 21, 2024Leave a comment

Hello, fellow daylily lovers,

It is summer, again. I have had 3 daylilies bloom this season: Saratoga Springtime on 6.6, Burgundy Crab on 6.10, and Mesa Verde today. I have about 60-70 scapes. My bloom rate may be down this year because we didn’t get much local snow/groundwater last year. The mountains got a lot, but that doesn’t help my pots if I don’t turn on the hose.

I feel that selling my beautiful begonias at Country Flair in Montrose, CO is creating some gardening burnout for me. A few of my daylilies are really struggling – I mean I may lose them. Others have grass or weeds in the pots and I didn’t repot this spring. I’m an artist first and foremost (after being a retired nurse/nurse-midwife and a wellbeing practitioner.) Oh, and rescue dog mom. Time flies and plants take time. Looking forward to the daylily blooms has always been a joy – but now that the begonias are a year-around job, I just don’t get the same dopamine fix.

Camping with my rescue dogs last weekend – Kachina, Cimarron, and Kokopelli

That creates a quandary about what to do with the blog this summer. I only posted for a month last year. Really? Why? Because I needed my time back for my business – plus camping, hiking, my travel blog, etc. I will try the Instagram reels, again, because that seemed to work OK. I always say I can keep going until the last bloom – I’ll try, again!

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The good news is that I’m also going to be plugging some of my stunning daylily artwork that I sell in my Etsy shop. I am running a 25% off sale “until the last daylily blooms” – so come check that out! I have cards, wall art, clocks, and pots with daylily designs – all handmade!

Anyway, things are heating up – although today was cool and rainy. Not sure who is next. Maybe Kokopelli?

Psychrophilic Daylilies of 2023

July 2, 2023July 4, 2023Leave a comment

It’s been a weird year. Not just the weather, but definitely the weather. Cold, wet spring. It felt like winter until it was summer – then BAM we get into fire weather with high winds and low humidity. I also lost my beloved soul dog, Sazi, in March. I adopted a new special needs senior in April and she had major surgery in May. Oh, and my art/houseplant business, Art from the Hartt, changed locations in May.

My dog, Kachina, and her new sister, Kokopelli

So, daylilies have been on the back burner. But, hey, it is July 1, and only 6 cultivators have bloomed so far this season, anyway. Mostly Saratoga Springtime – who bloomed on June 7th and is now finished. I lost almost all of the daylilies that I added last fall plus a couple old timers 😦 I added a few new ones from local nurseries to fill gaps – I am also using coleus as pot savers. I ordered a few new ones for fall, but I think I am out of space to nurture too many more.

Comanche Princess began blooming today (7.1)

I can’t believe it has been nearly 11 months since my last blog. One would think I had 4 other websites and a bunch of social media to run. . . Wait, I do. LOL. Plus, it was past peak when I stopped blogging last year in early August and we are no where near peak today. Anyway, enjoy my list (with pictures) of cultivators that have come through the cold spring and into bloom. I call them psychrophilic.

All Hell is About to Break Loose!

June 24, 20225 Comments

No new daylilies in bloom today. What IS new is that I’m now officially retired. But, that’s not why all hell is going to break loose. Well, maybe.

I have ~185 daylilies. I have 8 that are currently in bloom. About 5%. I have ~140 with scapes or in bloom – about 75%. That’s the hell that’s about to break loose. One day, I’ll wake up to 50 in bloom or something.

I’ll show off the 3 Ned Roberts spiders that were in bloom, again, today.

I’ll also show off my gorgeous prickly pear bloom and my cool bromeliad bloom. My broms live on the front porch all summer, so they are part of my outdoor garden.

I wonder if all hell will break loose tomorrow?

Kokopelli and the Summer Solstice

June 22, 2022June 22, 2022Leave a comment

Kokopelli is one of the most intriguing and widespread images surviving from ancient Anasazi Indian culture. He is depicted as a humpbacked flute player, and is widely believed to bring well-being to the people. He was the one who would change the seasons and bring about a good harvest. Allie Prater

Kokopelli came today, bringing with him the change of seasons. Kokopelli, my Ned Roberts spider daylily that is. This cultivator is my gateway to my collection of Neds. Spied at the lily auction back when I was first considering a Southwestern Visions garden.

My other premier today is Apache Bandana. Another Ned Roberts spider.

I have 120+ in bloom or scapes. Two days left until retirement starts and 20% cell battery. See you tomorrow. My others are still blooming, BTW.

July Daylily Roundup A-M

August 1, 2021August 1, 20212 Comments

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.

“Fringe Benefit” 6.27-7.12 (mislabeled bonus)

Glen Eyrie 7.25-7.30 (started while I was on vaca 7.19-24)

Golden Eclipse 7.16-present

Jungle Queen 7.1-7.19-24? Finished during vacation

Marque Moon 7.13-7.19 (ended 7.19-7.24 during vaca)

July Round-up N-Z – click here for more beautiful July blooms!

Please contact my business – Art and Nature from the Hartt for sales questions/availability.

. . . And Washed the Spiders Out

July 14, 20214 Comments

Today, the rain came. And, our predicted high is only 77 today. What a shift after 90 something degrees every day. It will stairstep back up by Saturday, but next week (when we are camping) it looks like it only gets above 90 a couple of times.

The walk through the garden was in drizzle. I didn’t use my cellphone at all for fear of getting water in the charging port. My camera is more resilient to moisture. Some flowers were like the cellphone – sort of weighed down by the rain. Thin man was on the ground, passed out. I had to tie him up. Other cultivators seemed to come to life with brighter colors – doing a rain dance.

Dream Catcher 7.14 – premier bloom today in the rain. But, not such an itsy bitsy spider!

And, there were only 54 cultivators in bloom today. Only 1 premier – Dream Catcher. A nice Ned Roberts spider that was one of my 3 pilot daylilies in the Southwest Garden, along with Kokopelli and Aztec Firebird. Interestingly, those are three that grew pretty well in the ground with the tree roots, and all. Not sure if they like the pots as well yet.

Soksabai, my 16 YO calico kitty, has to come help me inspect daylilies every morning. Even in the rain.

Speaking of Ned Roberts, I have had the chance to chat with his wife and daughter via Facebook recently. They live about 5 hours away from me. I need to meet them sometime – they want to come see my garden.

Art and Nature From the Hartt – Succulent Painting Coaster Tile

Today is a good day for a short blog. I think I will try painting a begonia today. Yesterday, I finished my succulent. I will get back to daylilies – just trying to challenge myself a little. Remember to watch for the announcement when our Etsy store opens. I plan to have daylily fans available in limited number this fall . . . plus the artwork!

Grand Daylily Mesa, Colorado

July 9, 2021Leave a comment

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.

Click photo to visit our business page with updates about daylily plant and artwork for sale.

June Daylily Blooms A-Y (no Z yet)!

July 3, 20211 Comment

I’m back! My house is cleaner and I feel like I can pick-up the blog, again. Don’t worry, I spent my usual amount of time with my daylilies in the AM. I love getting photos of them – something to get out of bed for. After three years of a stressful job and a commute, I just had to clean because my poor home has been like a neglected garden. I needed to pull weeds and plant some new seeds.

I am going to show off my June blooms (A to Z) for June in this post. I am going to have a good bloom rate this year and it sort of scares me what peak will be like with all my plants so happy. Good thing the house is clean. I count 51 cultivators for June 2021. Last year, it was 50 in June – so close. I think I have about 180 cultivators now – almost 30% have bloomed.