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How to Grow Daylilies
by Jill Black
Description: Daylilies are a useful plant for herbaceous borders, on banks, around
water features, grown in containers or used as a ground cover.
Daylilies are a clumping perennial with attractive arching sword
shaped leaves, tuberous roots and are either deciduous, semi-
evergreen or evergreen. Plants come in a range of sizes from small to
tall, and flower sizes range from miniature to singles or doubles up
to 15cm across.
The daylily has an attractive lily-shaped trumpet flower that stands
above the foliage and comes in a wide variety of colours and shades
from yellow, orange, red, white, pink, purple and more. Many daylily
hybrids are available in duel tones and may be fringed. Some
cultivars have fragrant flowers.
Most daylilies do exactly what they say, flower for one day only, but
don't let that put you off, because new buds keep developing in
succession on emergent stalks to produce a long run of flowers
through summer to autumn. Many have 5-9 flowers from each corymb that
open day by day over about 2 weeks before another stem emerges.
Daylilies make a good cut flower lasting about a week in a vase when
the water is changed daily.
Daylilies are a useful plant for herbaceous borders, on banks, around
water features, grown in containers or used as a ground cover. In the
garden daylilies look good placed in the middle of a garden bed
surrounded by perennials of a similar colour scheme. In warm areas
the evergreen types are the best and also do well near the coast.
An easy plant to grow, daylilies are generally trouble free and
flourish in most types of soil. In summer they like ample moisture
while in bloom. Mulch well to provide a cool root run and fed with a
complete fertilizer during spring and summer.
Plants can quickly become overcrowded with the soil may no longer
able to support the plant. This can cause the plant to produce fewer
flowers. To maintain vigorously growing and healthy plants, divide
clumps in very early spring by digging up and pulling apart. Replant
the sections about 350mm apart in enriched soil to give a new lease
of life.
The petals are edible and are very tasty. They are crisp and sweet,
rather like lettuce, and go very well in tossed salads providing
flavour, texture and colour.
For garden ideas or to learn more about plants log
on to http://www.netwrite-publish.com/gardening.htm
