It is a daylily kind of day at Spring Meadows from May through August. With over twenty different daylily plants, beautiful and fragrant flowers greet us daily on our walks through the gardens. Some provide blooms for a few weeks, but others will continue to bloom throughout the summer months. But with all their beauty that I enjoy, each time I look at the daylilies, my mind travels back to a Sunday afternoon many years ago. It was my first encounter with the daylily and one that my husband and I will never forget. In fact, if you visit our daylily garden when my husband is around, you are sure to hear his version of my daylily incident.
A Daylily Encounter
After church, while still wearing our Sunday best, my husband and I made a trip to Lowe’s Home Center to pick up supplies for a quick afternoon project. Dressed in my creamy white linen dress and light green sweater, I wished for a t-shirt and shorts as beads of sweat ran down my face and back. It was early May, and the temperature was unusually hot, or at least it seemed that way after a week of blackberry winter made us bring out sweaters already tucked away in the back of our closets.
While my husband headed to the building supplies and paint, I made my way to the Garden Shop where it was cooler. The lilies that were on display were stunning. Being passionate about gardening and flowers, I shared my excitement over the beautiful plants with other shoppers around me.
Each time I bent over to smell the lilies, I raised my head, exclaiming to the people around me, “What a wonderful fragrance!” I thought they might like to smell the flowers, too. The other shoppers were nice, friendly people. They smiled, but soon their smiles ended in laughter. Puzzled, I laughed with them, thinking to myself what happy but strange people they were. Regardless, I was glad they appreciated the daylilies as much as I did.
After smelling every daylily and flowers in bloom that the store offered, I casually strolled to the other side of the store to find my husband. I saw him coming toward me at the front aisle of the store. We met halfway near the registers, and the look on his face was one of shock and disbelief. I could not imagine what was on his mind.
As he approached, shaking his head, he asked, “What have you been doing?” and then quickly explained his question. A yellow/orange powder covered my face. And it made its way down the front of my white linen dress. While in the garden center, each time I sniffed the daylilies, the pollen spread over my entire face. My entire face! That explained the laughter from the shoppers at the daylily display and other shoppers’ curious looks as I walked the center aisle at the front of the busy store.
The laughing but considerate cashier handed me paper towels. Have you ever tried to remove pollen from your face? Not easy. And the dress? It was hopeless.
At least I know that on that Sunday afternoon if anyone was sad or down and out, I definitely gave them something to laugh about and lifted their spirits. It is still a topic of conversation each time my husband and I make a trip together to Lowe’s, and I wander back to the Garden Center. Now I know better.
I developed a love for daylilies in spite of our first encounter, and through the years, we’ve added more plants to the garden to create a fragrant and beautiful place to enjoy. If you visit, you are free to stop and smell the wonderful fragrance. We keep paper towels on hand for those who, like me, want to experience the daylilies up close!
Divide and Share
Every three years I dig up the daylily plants, divide, replant what is needed, then share with friends. Each time I divide the plants, it seems to boost the number of our daylily blooms in the ones I replant.
New Daylily Garden
In each of our gardens, including the vegetable garden, you will find daylilies, some with an abundance of daylilies, and another garden with just a few daylilies here and there. With such a love for daylilies, we created a garden specifically for the daylily. Each season, as the plants multiply, we have a colorful and fragrant show to enjoy! Each year, we purchase new daylily plants, or often receive new plants as gifts from friends, to add to the garden that are different than the ones we have.
We need a name for this Daylily Garden. Any suggestions???
Daylily Names
I wish I could give you the botanical name of each daylily, but most of my daylilies have been gifted to me through the years. I can tell you where they came from and each daylily is named after the giver. Katie is the name of several, named after my friend and gardener, Katie Griffith. For instance, Katie Yellow Daylily, Katie Peach Daylily, and Katie Orange Daylily. I have Merle Purple Beauty (my friend Merle), Louise Lovely Salmon (from my mom), and Margaret Pink Spectacular (our sweet Nanny, Margaret Wright). Really awesome names, right? I love the names and each time they bloom, I am reminded of some of my beautiful gardening friends who love to share.
Outdoor Kitchen Garden Includes Daylilies
The year I landscaped the garden at the Outdoor Kitchen, I purchased a daylily named Buttered Popcorn. Each year, it has the most prolific blooms of all the daylilies. (Visit Chelsea Outdoor Living to see our outdoor kitchen that includes a wood-fired pizza oven. If you are interested in a Pizza Event, we are the place!).
Bloom Times for the Daylily
Pizza sounds good but back to the Daylily… The only downside to daylilies is the time they bloom. Only one day. But most of our daylilies produce blooms continually from May until August each year. Of course, one of my favorites, Louise Lovely Salmon, is a heavy bloomer and blooms day after day. My mother would be proud!
Daylily Information and Links
The daylily is a magnificent addition to a garden. Be sure to include daylilies for the pure enjoyment of their beautiful blooms.
Are you a lover of the daylily? If so, please share your photos with us!
Check out these links for more information. Basics of the Daylily and American Daylily Society