My garden has been been cleaned up for fall. The flowerbeds have been weeded, the plants have been trimmed and tomato cages I have been placed over the daylilies to protect them from deer that roam through our yard. It's not the greatest curb appeal, but it works!


Thank you to Tara, Jade, Blake, Lois, Lori, Ryan, and Trina for all of their hard work. I am so grateful and appreciative.

My friend Mary was watching TV in her living room one evening. After a long day of gardening work she fell asleep in her recliner. She woke up suddenly, hearing a "PLOP… PLOP… PLOP… PLOP" on her laminate floor. She jumped out of her chair wondering what the heck that noise was. Oddly enough, a toad was sitting by her front door as if it was asking to go outside--certainly not your usual house guest! Mary quickly opened her front door and the toad jumped outside into the bushes.

About 48 hours prior, Mary brought in a couple of beautiful annual pots from outside to overwinter in her sun room. Earlier, she noticed that a toad had been sitting in her pot outside. It appeared to be gone on the day she brought her annual plant pots inside. Next year, Mary plans to bring her plant pots into the garage for a day or so before they come into the house, just to make sure there are no toads residing in the dirt!

About 25 years ago I received Spanish Glow as a freebie plant with one of my daylily orders. Believe it or not, I ended up liking Spanish Glow way more than the daylilies I actually ordered. Dozens of daylilies have come and gone in my garden, but Spanish Glow has remained.

Hybridized by Jeff Salter in 1988, this semi-evergreen tetraploid grows 26 to 28 inches tall with a 5 inch bloom. The soft pastel peach is lovely. It is a mid-late season bloomer, that blooms from July through August. Spanish Glow is a perfect garden plant...beauty plus performance!

American Dayliliy Society Award: 1992 Honorable Mention

Toronto is one of my best finds ever! Not far from my office there is a large plant nursery. Needless to say, I spent many lunch hours looking at their plants. At the end of the season they would put out bargain tables. In one particular plant pot there were two solitary sticks poking out of the dirt. There was a plant tag in the pot of a gorgeous Asiatic Lily. I thought I would take a risk and try it out hoping that it wasn't a misplaced plant tag. I was tickled when the plant bloomed the following year and looked even more beautiful than the tag.

I grew Toronto in a flower bed mixed in with daylilies in the backyard. I loved the unusual vibrant color so much that last year we moved it close to our back door. I get so many compliments about how beautiful this lily is.

Stranger in a Strange Land is one of my newer daylilies. I had an empty spot in our brick retaining wall. I wanted a smaller, purple, late bloomer; and this daylily checked all of the boxes. Hybridized in 2011 by Karol Emmerich,  this Minnesota daylily grows very well in Wisconsin. It grows with five inch blooms, between 22 and 24 inches tall, and begins blooming towards late July and well into August. It is sunfast and consistent in addition to being beautiful. It was a perfect addition to our tiered retaining wall. 

Now that October is right around the corner, it's time to prepare my flowerbeds for winter. One task I don't have to do is store my whimsy in the garage or basement. My garden decor is mostly cast iron antiques that remain outside year round. Easy peasy!
 
Here are a few photos of my decorative antiques.

Here is another of my favorite orange daylilies, Screamcicle. Hybridized by Pat Cochenour in 2003, this dormant tetraploid grows 35 inches tall and has a large 8 inch  bloom.  It is an early midseason bloomer, usually starting in early July. Categorized as an unusual form crispate, this daylily is a great performer in my Wisconsin garden with a bud count of 26-30. 

American Daylily Society Awards:
​Award of Merit: 2014
Honorable Mention: 2009

Look what we discovered...a turkey family taking a dust bath in our dirt pile. Turkeys dust their feathers every day if possible. This helps to remove mites and lice. Birds also dust bathe to prevent their feathers from being saturated with excess preening oil, and to remove dry flakes of skin. This was a  rare sight we had never witnessed before.

Have you ever thought about becoming a master gardener? Recently my friend Vonnie earned her certification as a Wisconsin Master Gardener. This is quite an achievement! As a master gardener, she is  knowledgeable about all things related to plants and gardening.

If  being a master gardener is something you may be interested in, here is some information and a website you can go to. It is a very rewarding certification to hold.

How to Join the Master Gardener Program
​#1. Learn about plants and how to take care of them. Participate in an approved learning opportunity from the Wisconsin Extension Horticulture Program such as a county-based in-person course.
#2. An Onboarding course will explain the scope of your role as a Wisconsin Extension Master Gardener.
#3. As a Wisconsin Extension Master Gardener you apply your knowledge and skills educating others and gardening at local organizations. Volunteer service and continuing education are required to be completed and reported each year.
#4. Your involvement will lead to an increase in knowledge and skill in yourself and those your reach. You will use your knowledge of plants to improve lives of others and the community you live in. This, ultimately, will lead to a bigger change in the world around us.

mastergardener.extension.wisc.edu/get-started/

All photos are from Vonnie's home and garden. She grows a wide array of annuals and perennials. And  Vonnie's beautiful cat is named Tipper.

I don't usually grow unregistered daylilies, but I couldn't resist this little sweetheart. I got this daylily from Bobbi Johnson (Johnson Daylilies). Hybridized by Bob Keitzman in Wisconsin, 'Nu-Era Sure is Cool' is the name he had picked out, but never got around to registering it. Bobbi may be registering this plant in the future if she gets permission from Bob's family. In any case, I am in love with this daylily. Blooms are small –I would say about 4 to 4 1/2 inches, but the scapes grow between 30 and 36 inches tall. I planted mine right up by the house so I could appreciate the beautiful colors and intricate details. Nu-Era Sure is Cool is an early-midseason bloomer, typically starting in late June or early July. The plant is hardy and the blooms are consistent.

Here are the frogs for the class of 2022.

​Daylilies pictured include Pretty in Pink, Heavenly Starbrite, Hey Sue's Crispey, Panic in Detroit, Only Just Begun, Pigment of Imagination, and Boundless Beauty. 

​Pictures taken by Ange, Mary and Tara

There is a funny story about this daylily! I grew Egyptian Spice many years ago, but had given it away to make room for new daylilies. Lo and behold, last year I found it blooming behind our garage in the field. I am guessing a small piece of the crown got thrown in the field with a bunch of weeds. The poor thing looked so pathetic; it was begging for a second chance. Ange dug it out for me and we placed it in our large garden by the road. We gave it some TLC and lots of room to spread. 

Egyptian Spice is a beautiful amber-orange blend that grows approximately 28 inches tall and has large 6 inch blooms. It is a midseason-late bloomer, usually starting in at the end of July going into August. Hybridized in Chicago by Brother Charles Reckamp in 1969, this dormant tetraploid is a classic. It won an Honorable Mention in 1973 from the American Daylily Society. The plant is already thanking me as it bloomed wonderfully this summer. Welcome back!

Gardening has taken on an entirely new dimension for my friend Mary. A large black bear was seen by her next door neighbor's house at dusk one evening. He was strolling around the neighborhood like he owned it. And Mary lives in town, not in the country. Talk about scary… she now gardens with a bear bell attached, so it jingles while she works.

​Mary took this photo from her backyard deck.

One evening last week my friend Sally came over to help me live-head my day lilies so they would look perfect for the next morning, as I was having some friends over to see my flowers. It's always hard to pluck perfect blooms off, but knowing they live only one day anyway makes it bearable. Sally brought over a bunch of her new blooms after she live-headed at home so I could see them. Some of her new daylilies included Passive Aggressive, Green Arrow, Space Coast Royal Rumble, Underdog, Smoke Scream, Paradise Bar and Grill, and American Muscle, just to name a few. Between the two of us we had lots of beautiful blooms so we decided to make this cute 'I love daylilies' flower image on the grass.

This summer my grandson Blake deadheads my daylilies a few times each week with his Mom and sister. He is so energetic! Secretly I am hoping to instill a of love of flowers in his life. I have to be honest though, he's really much more interested in the John Deere lawn tractor. Nonetheless, I'll keep trying…

When Blake comes over he likes to visit our next-door neighbor's goose named Donald. Donald rides herd over a flock of chickens, keeping them in line. Donald honks and makes a big racket to protect his chickens. Blake first met Donald when he was tiny and has enjoyed visiting him as he's grown up. 

Here is one of my early birds; the Wisconsin–bred 'Flaming Pumpkins'. My friend Sally surprised me with a division of her plant after I admired it in her garden. Orange, waxy textured daylilies are some of my absolute favorites.

​Hybridized by Francis and Genni Kleckner in 2012, this dormant tetraploid grows 36 inches tall with 6 inch blooms. This year the blooms are even larger because of all the rain we have had. I love the delicate ruffles and the subtle gold edges on the flowers. Last summer bloom time was from June 21 through July 21. This year bloom started about two weeks later, due to the cold weather. In 2020  Flaming Pumpkins was awarded an Honorable Mention from the American Daylily Society.

Summer mornings are so exciting and filled with surprise. I love to rush outside to see the new daylily blooms. My garden is a completely different experience each and every day as various plants emerge. It reminds me of Christmas morning as a little kid. You never knew what Santa would leave for you. At this point in my life it's Mother Nature that delivers :)

Pictured:  'Chicago Apache' This daylily always makes a statement with an exclamation point! Notice the little frog on the large bloom.

I have taken hundreds of photos of 'Heavenly Starbrite' and I'm still not convinced that I have accurately captured this daylily's true beauty. It is stunning in peak bloom. The large, waxy 10 inch blooms are beacons of light in the garden. In the morning the blooms have a greenish tint. 

Hybridized in Ohio by Jamie Gossard (2005), Heavenly Starbrite is a dormant tetraploid that grows 36 inches tall in my garden. This daylily is categorized as an unusual form crispate. Last summer, bloom time was from July 22 through most of August. Starbrite's parents are Techny Spider and Adeline Goldner, both are of which are very well-known daylilies. 

About five years ago Ange bought a bunch of blue plastic fiber IKEA shopping bags at a garage sale. We re-purposed them for weeding and they turned out to be the best garden helpers ever. There are three sizes –small medium and large. They are lightweight with large carrying handles. What a find!