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Home > Flower and garden articles > Dazzling Daylilies
Dazzling Daylilies
If you have not yet discovered the many wonderful qualities of the daylily, you have a surprise in store ! The beautiful daylily, or Hemerocallis, is fast becoming a very popular choice for gardeners everywhere, in just about any garden situation, because of its outstanding performance and reliable flowering habit.
Not only are these lovely flowering plants easy to grow, low maintenance, and drought tolerant, most varieties are evergreen so their hardy foliage will provide year round interest in the garden. And the myriad of colours available means there is plenty of choice to complement every garden style.
 The common name of ’daylily’ belies the fact that they actually flower for many weeks at a time. Each gorgeous bloom lasts for a day, but as each flower fades another takes its place, with many varieties flowering almost continuously from late spring into autumn, and some even flowering in early winter !
From dainty ‘miniature’ varieties to enormous blooms up to 12cms across, there is a daylily to suit every garden. The choice is almost endless……. glorious ruffled blooms, dainty miniatures, eye-catching bi-colours, picotee varieties, spider forms, and more. There is such a wide range of flower forms and exotic colour combinations that it is almost impossible to choose ! There are even many fragrant cultivars to choose from, varying from soft, creamy fragrances to heady perfumes.
Consistently reliable in their performance, these amazingly hardy plants are widely used in landscaping on a large scale in parks and municipal gardens. This is a testament to the daylily’s ability to withstand tough conditions. Its vigorous upright habit means it can readily stand up to wind and weather without the need for staking, making the daylily invaluable in its architectural contribution to landscaping.
With lance shaped leaves that remain neat and tidy, the plants have a compact habit, gradually forming fans of arching foliage. From dwarf varieties to tall giants, there is a daylily of just about every shape and size imaginable. This fantastic array of varieties means that gardeners are literally spoilt for choice, but it also means that the daylily is outstanding in its versatility.
The daylily thrives in rich, well-drained soil, however it can also handle a wide range of conditions and will tolerate poor soil. A full sun position is best to ensure strong growth and good flowering, however a small amount of shade is acceptable. Once established, the daylily is hardy and drought tolerant, so it is not inaccurate to say it will thrive on neglect.
In fact, there is a well known saying, that …
“if you can kill a daylily you should give up gardening !”
 However, as is the case with any flowering plant, you will of course get an even better result if you invest a little time in enriching the soil with good compost and well-rotted animal manure prior to planting your daylilies.
Even in containers, daylilies are very easy to grow. For best results, use a larger size pot to allow for good root development and to avoid over crowding. As a general rule of thumb, it is a good practice to lift and divide daylilies every 3 years or so, to promote vigorous growth and excellent flowering. As with most flowering perennials, eventual overcrowding will result in poor growth and less flowers.
From the smallest city courtyard to the largest country estate, the daylily works brilliantly to bring colour, shape and form to any garden situation. Bold clumps in mass plantings are an excellent alternative to agapanthus to line a sweeping driveway, whilst single daylilies work beautifully as accent plants in cottage garden beds and borders or as ‘stand alone’ specimen plants.
Choose colours that blend in with your overall colour scheme, or go for a riotous contrast. Bold colours work very well when planted around a pool or pond, and cool colours can be used to great effect as a highlight in your garden beds - even the shape and form of the foliage works well as a contrast amongst other plantings.
 Daylilies are an excellent choice as companion plants to other flowering perennials such as alstromerias, penstemons and dietes, all of which thrive in similar conditions to daylilies. Mix and match tall and short varieties to create a layered effect, with dwarf daylilies at the front of your garden beds and taller daylilies toward the rear to bring valuable height to your overall design.
Originating from Asia many centuries ago, the daylily has been successfully cultivated across the continents and is now readily available in Australia. These wonderfully versatile plants easily tolerate our range of climatic regions, handling hot, dry conditions as well as cold and frost. In spite of these tough characteristics, be assured that the daylily is NOT an invasive species.
Lastly, a word of warning - daylilies are seriously addictive ! As each new glorious bloom greets you in the morning sunshine, you will be delighted at how easy it is to grow these wonderfully rewarding plants.
by Jenny Waldock
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