Look What the Rain Brought With It!

July 26, 2022July 26, 2022Leave a comment

Hey, Guys, I’m super tired after a long day. Want to share my newbies from today.

Spirit of the Morning is a unique cultivator. I absolutely adore her. She earns her name. These blooms are wasted by noon.

Raven Woodsong is a gorgeous near black. It is such a stunning color and form. (That makes 57 Ned Roberts spiders so far this summer).

El Desperado is actually the first daylily I put in the Southwest Visions garden area a few years before I put in the garden. Wasn’t well planned out for irrigation and he moved back closer to the house. Then, I lost him a few years later and immediately replaced him. Definitely, a late bloomer.

Bloom rate headed for high 80s, but the Southwest Visions garden is nearly 100%. Except Truchas Sunrise, Navajo Gray Hills, the other 70 something have bloomed or have scapes.

Stay Tuned For The Late Show

July 25, 2022Leave a comment

I can’t believe I haven’t blogged in 4-5 days. I’m revamping my old porch that’s 80 years old with a 50 year old extention. And, part of it was DIY to begin with. It’s been an adventure.

My old porch stripped of paint that covered the previous owner’s names. I’ve owned my home for 25 years.

Meanwhile, the daylilies keep blooming. I’m even starting to get late bloomers. My daily count has dropped from 70 to 40. It’s slowing down but definitely not done.

7.21 saw Golden Eclipse, Shape Shifter, and Purple Grasshopper. All Ned Roberts spiders.

7.22 saw Zuni Eye, Coyote Laughs (which I think is a different Roberts spider but was sold to me as CL), Pizza Crust and Memories of OZ.

7.23 saw Dancing Maiden. My 55th Ned Roberts spider. I have 8 more with unbloomed scapes. Still hoping Navajo Gray Hills will throw a scape.

And, today, two bloomers that signal that the season is winding down: Royal Palace Prince and Heirloom Heaven.

I’m still working on the porch but hopefully done in a couple of days. I had no idea what I was getting into.

True Colors Shining Through

June 11, 2021Leave a comment

Too much going on in life to focus on anything too long. I get the watering done daily, though. Blogging comes second, but I made time today because . . . (drum roll) – I have my first Ned Roberts Spiders in bloom today. The yellow trumpets have company – true colors shining through! Dream Keeper is a reliable early bloomer. I am a little surprised that Purple Grasshopper is one of the first in the Southwest Garden. It didn’t bloom at all last summer but seems to have profited from being put in a put with new soil and no tree roots.

BTW – My plants are noticeably bigger this year after they were moved last year. I am hoping that results in more blooms this year. Here are the blooms of the day:

Premiers for Today

Former Premiers (this year):

Saratoga Springtime – Premier Bloom 6.3.11 (this photo was taken 2 days ago)

Follow our NEW! Art and Nature from the Hartt blog page, where I will be selling plants and nature/Southwest artwork. There will be daylilies and daylily art for sale!

Saving the Best . . .

August 6, 2020Leave a comment

. . . For Last! Today came what I think is likely the last of the premiers of the season – Purple Corn Dancer. Honestly, one of my favorites! It is almost sad because Saratoga Springtime is cool enough, but not a favorite. Saratoga stars when my desire to see daylily blooms is the highest. Purple Corn Dancer is frequently the cultivator with the last blooms of the season. Funny, she showed up the same day Olathe Sweet Corn was shipped across the State!

All too often, I am sidetracked or just at a saturation with daylily photos. I guess it’s like how they say there are almost always more photos of the first born child.

I had 13 today and I am exhausted after my first day back to work in 5 months. I think I will just feature my Ned Roberts cultivators from today. Purple Thunderbird had a nice bloom, even at 6:45 AM.

It is interesting how daylilies look different throughout the day. Navajo Grey Hills looks like she is falling in space at 6:48 AM

Cripple Creek is an early riser and was bright-eyed for the AM photo shoot.

Desert Icicle actually looks really good first thing in the morning. She resembles Skinwalker first thing in the morning.

But, Shape Shifter is having a hard time opening her eye.

I had to wait to get Golden Eclipse until after work. Fortunately, it was a short work day (until 3:30) and some cloud cover, so she also looks decent.

Absolutely, some of my favorites still blooming. So much richer than the yellow trumpets of June. Now, to find time to savor them all.

Pink Spiders, Red Flags, and Things that Go Bump in the Night

June 30, 2020Leave a comment

Today was another red flag day with a fair amount of wind. Nothing like we have had a few times this spring – but decidedly dry and breezy. And, as the clouds do so often in drought years, the grey clouds seem to tease as they drift by, only leaving a few drops of moisture behind.

The premiers today were mostly pink spiders. And, pink Ned Roberts spiders, at that. Now, trying to photograph a spider daylily with wind gusts up to 30 MPH is interesting. I am like a dentist trying to tell the wind to hold it’s breath until I snap the picture. My patient is non-compliant.

First premier pink spider was Rocky Mountain Pals. This daylily has a sweet story of being dedicated to the hybridizer’s cancer treatment team. I told the story to a co-worker today because she is battling cancer.

Next, big old Pink Rain Dance catches my eye. She is a huge bloom and such a great pastel pink. I can only guess Ned Roberts named her during a drought year in the Southwest.

Funky named Pink Enchilada was also in my pack of pink premier spiders. Another big. floppy spider from my Roberts collection. I suppose they are all cousins, or something.

My last premier is an older daylily that deserves some credit for a bit of near blue – which didn’t happen much during the time she was hybridized. Prairie Blue Eyes opened her eyes for the first time in 2020 today.

I recounted scapes tonight and I think it is about 130 now. So, potentially a decent bloom rate. I can’t believe I’ll miss 6 days of it – but I will savor coming home to see the color.

As for things that go bump in the night – it is probably just my cats playing with their toys at 2 AM.

Colorado Kid Daylilies

A Blog About My Western Colorado Daylily Adventure

Tag: Ned Roberts spiders