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raspberry goosebumps

3/29/2015

Now here's a fabulous daylily. Raspberry Goosebumps is one of my husband Ange's purchases. He chose it simply because the picture was pretty! It's a great performer in western Wisconsin with no drama or fuss and also retains the vibrant raspberry color on a very hot day.

Raspberry Goosebumps was hybridized in Dayton, Ohio by Joel Thomas Polston, who specializes in daylilies with ruffles and teeth. This plant received a 2010 Honorable Mention Award which is the first official “stamp of approval” by the American Hemerocallis Society where good performance goes beyond the local or regional level.

In the future I'm having Ange pick out more of our daylilies. His 'pretty picture' method seems to work quite well and saves me lots of research time :)

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cats are like potato chips, you can never have just one!

3/22/2015

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Middie and Dani

I'm off topic today, but these two cats are so darn cute I had to share their stories. They have used up a more than a few of their nine lives!

Being an adult black cat and ending up in a shelter is not a good thing. According to a UC Berkeley study, black cats are unfairly stereotyped and far less likely to be adopted at animal shelters. Shelters have known this for years. When you add 'special needs' to the mix, finding a forever home becomes tenuous at best.

Middie and Dani are all of these things: adult, black, and special needs -- but unlike other black cats, they beat the odds. These beautiful cats were adopted by Tara and Ryan almost ten years ago in the Chicago area. Dani was adopted first and Middie arrived within the year (from a different shelter). The weird coincidence is that each cat had their left rear leg amputated prior to adoption. From what Tara and Ryan learned, Dani was likely hit by a car, and Middie was attacked by a coyote.

The good part is that Middie and Dani don't know they have special needs. Yes, they limp noticeably while walking, but in a full run they can go just as fast as any cat with four legs! The little princesses enjoy an indoor life of leisure, spending their days watching squirrels and birds from a sunny patio door. Often you can find them napping together as one big black fur ball. I love happy endings!

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primal scream

3/15/2015

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Every summer I take dozens of photos of Primal Scream. No matter how many photos I take, I can't seem to capture the fluorescent, eye-catching color of this stunning plant...but I keep on trying! This daylily is quite an impressive sight when in full bloom. The bloom size varies from 7-8 inches. Primal Scream won the 2003 Stout Medal, which is the highest honor a daylily can receive.

Primal Scream is classified as an "Unusual Form" (a.k.a. 'UFO' in the daylily world). An unusual form is defined as: A class of daylilies based exclusively on petal and sepal shapes, not on color or color patterns. The 'Unusual Form' class is made up of 3 types of flower shapes. These include: Crispate, Cascade and Spatulate forms. Primal Scream is a combination of Crispate and Cascade. Many UFOs exhibit various combinations of these shapes. If you're so inclined, you can read more about UFOs at the American Hemerocallis Society website.

Primal Scream came from my friend Roger about 6 years ago. It was part of a trade we made. Primal Scream came home with me in a small white bucket on a drizzly spring morning. It's a hardy, carefree plant that immediately thrived in my garden. I have recently moved it to a prominent location where I can enjoy it on rainy days from inside as well as on sunny days outside. Primal Scream is another one of those "must-have" daylilies. Are you sensing a "must-have" theme?

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made a trade

3/8/2015

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My friend Lily grows literally thousands of Coral Charm peonies. Every May a peony harvest takes place at her farm. The peonies are cut in tight bud stage, leaves are removed, bundled in bunches of five, and stored in a walk-in cooler. When the cutting is complete the buds are all taken to a wholesaler who sells them. It's not unusual to have cuttings of over 7,000 stems! This generally takes about two weeks to complete. Lily and her husband recently sold the business to her son and his family but she still helps with the cutting.

I have always wanted Coral Charm and Lily wanted a specific color daylily I had. So last fall we made a trade. I'm so happy I have this peony - the color is breathtaking. It's an American Peony Society Gold Medal Winner. Lily assures me this one won't flop over when it rains. And, their phenol content makes them unappetizing to insects, rabbits, and even deer. Music to my ears!

Peonies are one of the longest-lived perennials; a single plant can last for generations.

(Photos courtesy of Lily)

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decisions, decisions

3/1/2015

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Every growing season I look forward to buying 10-15 new daylilies. As excited as I get to purchase new plants, it creates a dilemma because I don't want to make my garden spaces any larger. Believe me, I have enough weeding to do with the gardens as they are. If I want more daylilies, I need some empty spaces. Each spring I have to make the dreaded decisions...which plants go?

Asking these questions helps me decide:

What colors do I have too many of? I LOVE vibrant orange daylilies, consequently I have many.
Do I have too many similar bloom shapes? Daylilies come in such a variety of bloom shapes. I like to diversify.
Do I have two cultivars that look similar? If yes, I toss a coin and keep only one (usually the newer one).
When does it bloom? I want consistent bloom throughout the season and not have all my daylilies blooming in midseason.
What's currently trending for me? At one time I liked dainty miniatures. Now I like large UFO (Unusual Form) daylilies that stand out from a distance. The bigger the better. No bending over while deadheading either!
Do I just not like the daylily? As they say, "one person's trash is another person's treasure." Luckily we all don't like the same things. Someone else may love a plant I feel ambivalent about. In my case, I may not have adequate afternoon shade for some cultivars.
Is a daylily unhappy in my garden? Sometimes (not often) I encounter a plant that will not thrive in my yard even after repeated location transplants. At that time it goes to a new home. Sometimes that's all it takes.
Am I just tired of a certain daylily? If I've grown it for 10-15 years I might want to try something new.

Okay, now I'm good to go...my coffee cup is full and I have a set of criteria. Time to make a list, and start the process of culling my collection -- Wish me luck!

(Pictured is "Leebea Orange Crush." This was one of my hardy starter daylilies I culled in 2013. I enjoyed growing it for many years and just wanted to try something different.)

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raspberry goosebumps

cats are like potato chips, you can never have just one!

primal scream

made a trade

decisions, decisions

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