Daylily season is upon us. Even those who can’t name many flowers recognize dayliles, those growing in glorious organce by the road side, and those in shades of cream and pink, coral, gold and deep reds and burgundies in cultivated gardens. Some daylilies have the classic simple trumpet shape and some are ruffled. Because daylilies are so hardy as well and beautiful in their variety, many small growers sell them in full bloom, dug out of the garden right before your eyes.
I bought some dayliles from Richard Willard at Silver Garden Daylilies earlier this spring. He is having another digging day on Saturday, July 10 from 9 am to 4 pm. The daylily farm is on Glenbrook Road out towards the Greenfield Pumping Station. On July 17 Richard is holding his annual Daylily Festival which will include edible daylily treats dished up by Mary Ellen and Denise of Stockbridge Herb Farm. Pre-registration for the daylily meal ($18) is required.
Last summer daughter Kate and I visited Lorraine Brennan on Rt 10 in Northfield and bought a carload of daylilies. She is selling daylilies on July 10 and 11 from 9 to 1 pm, and again the following weekend, July 17 and 18 from 9-1 pm. Lorraine will have a sign out on the road. Don’t drive too fast.
Last year I also bought a small yellow daylily at Shelburne Farm and Garden. It is named Happy Returns. One of my Buckland library patrons gave this daylily to the library. We thought the name was just perfect for a library.
My tall clear yellow daylily is the classic Hyperion. It was given to me by Elsa Bakalar many years ago. We are deconstructing a daylily bed and moving my favorite daylilies to the new Daylily Bank. My husband will no longer have to mow that difficult area.
The beauty of daylilies lies not only in their color and form, but in their hardiness. They are not bothered by extremes in weather. They need only ordinary soil. They are not bothered by disease or bugs. Hybridizers are coming up with varieties that bloom early and late so you can have daylilies blossoms all summer long.
Daylilies are one of my favorite plant, and the great part as you say, is that they are so easy to care for. You’re fortunate to have two daylily farms nearby. I visited a daylily farm last year for the first time–what a delight! So much more fun than selecting a plant off the shelf at a nursery. ‘Happy Returns’–great choice for your library garden:)
Rose – One of the great daylily farms is nearby, just over the line in Vermont. Check out Olallie Daylilies http://www.daylilygarden.com. The Darrow family is a great group – and all those Darrow berries? They are all named for the most senior Darrow, now passed away, who devoted his professional life to hybridizing berries including highbush blueberries – and devoted his retirement to hybridizing daylilies. A collection of his daylilies is at the National Arboretum in Washington, DC.
They are everywhere, even in the land of roses.
Daylilies are such wonderful plants. I have a garden full of ones I’ve moved from Michigan to Illinois to Connecticut, plus special ones from friends and family. And they’re all beautiful. I really like your photo of the reddish-pink daylily. Isn’t it lovely to have such fabulous variety in color, size, form, bloom time, etc. all from one type of plant? How could anyone ever get tired of daylilies!?