Why Daylilies are the Perfect Perennial for Your Flower Garden©
Posted: Sunday, September 07, 2008
by Arlene Wright-Correll
http://www.learn-america.com
Sometimes the word Daylily is spelled as one word and sometimes as two. The scientific name for daylily is Hemerocallis which is derived from two Greek words meaning Day and Beauty.
I love these because they are easy to grow and though the lily only lasts for one day each stalk gets many blossoms and many stalks come from one clump and they give the impression of being around for many days or weeks.
Another thing I love about them is that they come in a variety of colors, sizes and shapes. Plus they are able to survive in even the worst of soils and they thrive in a variety of climates. They are almost disease resistant, drought resistant and best of all pest free.
This flower adapts to just about any soil and light conditions and in my zone which is zone 6 they bloom from late spring until fall.
When I was a kid these were found in fields and on road sides and I only thought they came in yellow or orange. Since then I have discovered Daylilies are native to countries in the temperate parts of Asia and are grown in Siberia, Korea, China, Japan and Eurasia.
The United States and England hybridizers seem to have made the greatest strides in daylilies coming from the original colors of yellow, fulvous red and orange to the colors we are able to enjoy today. I have some fabulous blends of colors in my daylilies and one of my favorites is the rust and purple blend. We also have some pastels, near white and pinks and one can get brilliant reds, crimson, nearly true-blue. All of today's daylilies have been developed through an elaborate system and history of hybridization from the existing daylilies and other wild types of daylilies.
The Daylily consists of four parts, the root which is long, slender and fibrous and these store absorbed water and minerals which feed the daylily. The second part is the crown of the daylily which is really the stem of the plant and it is a solid white core that is between the leaves and the roots. The crown is the part that produces the leaves and scapes for the upper surface which the roots are produced from the sides and lower surface. The third part of the daylily are the leaves which have a beauty of their own as they are long, grass-like and slender. The leaves also have a prominent center rib on the underside and they are arranged opposite each other on the crown.
Finally the fourth part of the Daylily is the scape which is the leafless stalk that bears the flower and they often have two or more branches with each bearing several flower buds. If you want to root to another plant then look below the branches for the stalks that have a few leaf-lick "bracts" which is a small plantlet growing at the junction of the bract and the scape. This is called a "proliferation" and it is used to be rooted to produce another plant.
If you don't have some Daylilies in your garden give them a try. Put them in places where they can spread. They grow to 18" to 25" and made a grand addition to your garden.
"Tread the Earth Lightly" and in the meantime May your day be filled with
Peace, Light and Love,
Author's note: This article was originally written for GreenThumbArticles.com
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