This year, the slides for our annual write-up were not difficult to take. Selecting the ones to report about was another matter and we ended up literally with a pile of daylily slides, all of which were deserving of some kind of recognition. Paring down the number to fit the space in our grand newsletter was another problem, so selecting a second time became a necessity. We have settled on a dozen, however some great daylilies do not appear on the list. Those we will save for another time when we make another annual report.
Elizabeth Salter's HER MAJESTY'S WIZARD was one daylily that we could not resist. Blooms were not very large, but around 4½ inches wide, just making the large flower category. Round, overlapping segments were of a regal purple color, resembling a deep pile of shiny rich velvet surrounded by a moderately wide gold edge on all segments. Blooms were round and recurved with a yellow throat with a dark green heart. This lovely tetraploid was daintily ruffled and very pretty. It was also interesting to note that the nice gold edging appeared around all segments.
Paul and Diane Tyler's BRADLY TEE was a heavily ruffled pink blend daylily, a diploid that we thought very worthy. Light midribs and a faint halo only served to bring out the beauty of the cultivar. Another good feature of BRADLY TEE is that it had slightly lighter pink sepals, making it almost a bitone. We liked the good form of this excellent pink 5½-inch beauty. The Tylers are and should be very proud of this daylily. This daylily easily made our "favorite list."
Bob Roycroft's BRITTANY DANIELLE was a fine round, recurved mauve-colored diploid with a beautiful grape eye that we also liked. Blooms were full with ruffles in waves around them. A large lime green heart served to bring out the beauty of this fine cultivar. Blooms measured 6 inches across and Bob was very proud of his hybridizing accomplishments. We eagerly photographed BRITTANY DANIELLE while Bob stood close by and smiled broadly.
Pat Stamile's NORDIC MIST was a blush pink tetraploid daylily with just about the widest petals that we have seen in this color. Blooms were not round as one sepal did not recurve well, but the overall impression is that this was a daylily to be reckoned with because of its size and delicate color - lightest pink and cream overall. A chartreuse heart served to bring out the segment colors well. Thick substanced blooms measured 6½ inches wide on this fine large tetraploid.
Vic Santa Lucia has introduced a daylily named HEMSTITCHED, a 4½-inch yellow blend with a beige purple eye that we liked. This is not just another "eyed and edged" daylily. The eye is of a shade of purple, as is the edging. The hemstitching in this daylily refers to the stitched effect edge, which is in two colors, purple and cream. A triangular green heart serves to bring out the colors well. It is a tetraploid and very beautiful. We noted good bloom color and bud count on this beauty.
We liked Bill Reinke's BRADLEY BERNARD, a diploid exotic form daylily of distinction. Mauve segments twisted and curled under, exposing a purple eye and a large green throat. Blooms were flat and recurved while the petals only had dark veining. The deep pure color saturation of this daylily makes it very desirable indeed. Blooms were 6 inches wide, while scapes stood straight up, displaying its flowers to good viewing advantage.
Dave Talbot's CARIBBEAN WHIPPED CREAM was a flat, recurved diploid that we liked. The creamy yellow blooms were heavily ruffled and had light midribs on their petals. They were also 5½ inches wide and had a nice green heart, a perfect contrast "show off." This is a perfectly named cultivar. It is a fine addition to the Talbot Caribbean line of beauties.
CASTLE EYE OPENER by Chris Vivarie was a 4-inch creamy blend with a large dark rose eye that we liked. This diploid had much color appeal and its blooms were well recurved. We liked the distinctive and heavy petal and sepal surface ribbing on this beauty. A nice dark green throat added to the overall beauty of CASTLE EYE OPENER. This is a super eyed cultivar with something extra - the ability to stand out among other daylilies with similar colors.
We took several slides of Charles Douglas' very ruffled MOTHER'S DREAM and finally settled on one showing three beautiful open blooms. This tetraploid was a 5½-inch lavender pink blend with darker wide band. Plants were loaded with buds and many blooms were open that day. Douglas' Brown Ferry Nursery is in South Carolina and specializes in growing daylilies in pots; this they do very well! The plants here were as fine as we have seen.
GLORIOUS IS THE MORNING is a Brown-Carpenter registration. This flat, triangular 6-inch yellow daylily with a green throat was heavily ribbed and had many good cream ruffles around all of its segments. A large green throat added much to the flower beauty. Plants were diploid and were blooming well. Jack Carpenter was growing this cultivar well in his Texas garden. Jack is a fine hybridizer dedicated to making our favorite flower more and more beautiful with each passing year. A visit to his huge nursery proves this.
FLAMINGO WINDMILL by Beth and Clarence Crochet is newly registered as an unusual form daylily. The 7-inch blooms have flamingo pink petals and lighter pink sepals. Both petals and sepals twist and curl. A large chartreuse throat adds to the attractiveness of the flower. A thin cream midrib accentuates the flamingo pink petal colors. FLAMINGO WINDMILL is a diploid and very pretty.
With CLOTHED IN GLORY, Larry Grace has produced what we consider to be one of the very best and beautifully colored lavender pastel tetraploid daylilies with extra wide gold ruffling. Segment colors are irresistible while the gold around the petals is lavish indeed. We received our plant late last fall and doubted that it could really bloom well this spring. We were wrong! CLOTHED IN GLORY not only bloomed well, but it had produced multiple blooms on several days. Scapes were heavily budded and rather short. We noticed that buds were well spaced on the scapes, allowing the large six-inch blooms to open well without crowding. The clear pastel lavender blooms kept their large size for the entire season. This one is a winner!
We still spend much time photographing our favorite flower, often traveling far from home to do so. We are also happy that we are able to photograph successfully in our own yard. In any event, we try to seek and select the very best new and recent introductions from everywhere to write about. We consider this year to have been a successful one for us.
Clarence Crochet
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