Gardening
Hints!
Where
to plant
Daylilies should be planted in full sun or partial shade that receives
4-6 hours of sun per day. Despite the preference of full sun, occasionally
colorful daylily blooms can be found under the shade of tall trees.
Wherever some shade is present, the daylily flowers will face away
from it toward open sky. Avoid low wet spots where water collects
in rainy spells, and high dry spots over ledges where the soil is
shallow.
When to Plant
Daylilies can be planted very successfully at any time the ground
can be worked --- spring, summer or fall. Fall planted Daylilies should
be mulched to prevent winter frost heaving. We recommend that you
plant your daylilies right away when you receive them. However, if
they are held for several days, set the roots in water for one hour
before planting.
Potted
Plants
Dig a hole a little larger than the pot. Remove daylily from pot,
loosen the roots, and place into the hole, packing dirt firmly around
it.
Bare-Root Plants
Keep in a cool place until you can plant. If held for several days,
soak roots in water one hour before planting. Prepare a hole with
a cone of soil in the middle. Spread the roots over cone with the
crown a little below ground level. Press soil firmly around the plant,
covering the crown with one inch of soil. Water newly planted daylilies
well.
Soil
Loose loamy soil is preferred. Sand, gravel and clay are very poor.
Mediocre soils will be improved by adding compost, rotted leaves or
wood chips, old manure, or almost any other organic material.
Spacing
In a mixed perennial flower border allow a circle of 16-18 inches
in diameter if the daylily will be divided and replanted in 3-5 years.
If you expect to leave the daylily clump intact for 10-15 years, it
will need a 24-30 inch space. The same applies to a daylily flower
border. In a landscape setting, such as a bank to be covered with
Daylilies, space the daylily plants in a triangular pattern with each
plant 24 inches from its neighbors. 100 square feet of bank will then
require 30 daylily plants. (Multiply square footage by 0.304.) As
an edging along a walk, space the daylily plants 12-18 inches apart
in a single line.
Mulch
One to four inches of mulch will retain soil moisture and inhibit
weed growth among the daylily plants. Leaves, hay, wood chips and
grass clippings are suitable, but they withdraw some of the soil nitrogen
during their own slow decomposition. You may wish to add some fertilizer,
especially with freshly cut wood chips. Where the ground normally
freezes in winter, fall-planted Daylilies should be mulched heavily
the first year to prevent them from being heaved out of the ground.
Fertilizer
An organic compost soil is seldom deficient in plant nutrients. To
maintain excellent daylily growth, add any slow release, composted
organic matter such as horse, sheep, or cow manure, or your own compost,
in either spring or fall.
Dividing
Daylily plants can be divided and replanted in 3 - 5 years, or it
may not be necessary at all, depending upon the spacing of the plants.
Water
For best performance, daylilies like a lot of rain or watering just
before and during flowering. Flowers will be larger and more numerous,
prolonging the daylily bloom season.
