Daylily (Day Lily) SALE - Three or more - $6 each

Daylily IS one word, but spell check does not agree ... so for those searching, I'll use both approaches.

Once you catch the daylily bug and realize the vast choice of colors and forms, you start to have favorite hybridizers. One of my favorites is Pauline Henry of Siloam Springs, Arkansas.  Her daylilies do wonderfully in northern Vermont.  She registered 490 plants during a period of 37 years and she died in September, 2000, at the age of 92.

I sell ten different 'Siloam' daylilies and have more growing in the fields for future sales.  Here are four of them.

Siloam Double Classic (above) won the 1993 Stout Award, 

the highest honor given to any daylily. 

Siloam Paul Watts

Siloam Baby Talk

Siloam JeromePillow

I have hundreds of different daylilies,  all large clumps in gallon pots and now all offered at $6 a pot, if you purchase three or more.  And if you want just one, they are still on sale at $6.99 each.

New Daylilies for 2013

The first perennial I ever planted was a daylily.  Like most beginners, I didn't know about the variety of shapes, heights and colors offered.  Also, this was so long ago that most of those choices probably didn't exist.  There are now more than 60,000 registered cultivars from which to choose.

My customers are much more sophisticated now as well.  Double flowers are very popular, and folks like the off-white as well.  I tend to like anything that's different from what I already have growing.   "Moses Fire" is a new double red we will carry.  I can't resist mentioning - White Flower Farm offers this plant for $27.00 (plus shipping).  All of my daylilies are $6.99 in a gallon pot.

MOSES FIRE

I have a number of tall daylilies I like.  'Golden Chimes' has a yellow bloom and is 46 inches tall.   The smaller blooms face outward at a 90 degree angle giving the plant an airy, delicate appearance. 'Autumn Daffodil' is another fine tall yellow daylily.  'Challenger' is among the tallest with a red bloom  at 48 inches and it has been around since 1949.

I am adding 'Steeple Jackie' to my offerings of tall daylilies this year.  It is definitely a back-of-the-border plant, as it can can reach five feet.  The flowers are 2.5 inches and the plant is loaded with buds.  The color is a nice light yellow without the orange cast often seen in other yellow daylilies.  

STEEPLE JACKIE (Photo courtesy of Walters Gardens Inc.)

Probably the whitest daylily I offer is the lovely 'Gentle Shepherd.'  The problem with this bloom is the pedals are thin and delicate.  I like 'Joan Senior' and 'Sunday Gloves.'  This year I am adding 'Early Snow' to the white daylily repertoire.  The flowers are seven inches across and have more substance than other white daylilies.

EARLY SNOW (Photo courtesy of Walters Gardens Inc.)

I like 'Moonlight Masquerade' which is a cream colored daylily with a purple eye.  This year I am offering 'Blackthorne' which offers a picotee edge and ruffled pedals and a more prominent purple eye.  

BLACKTHORNE (Photo courtesy of Walters Gardens Inc.)

It is snowing outside, but we are hooking up the water to the greenhouse and seeds are sprouting in the house.  And so the 2013 growing season has begun for Amanda's Greenhouse.

Vermont Daylily Sale

The daylilies have started to open and mine are ALL offered at $6.50 a piece. AND - if you buy five, the sixth one is free - your choice. This is retail only, as I don't ship plants. We grow all our daylilies in the field and pot up large plants. Many of the pots have more than five fans.

- Here's a quick sampling from the more than 100 cultivars offered -

CHARLES JOHNSTON

BURNING INHERITANCE

BARBARA MITCHELL

BUTTERFLY KISSES

NILE NIGHTENGALE

RUBY SPIDER

HOLIDAY DELIGHT

HOWARD GOODSON

We are closed Monday, so it's nice to have the time to pop outside (in the drizzle) and take these photographs. I hope everyone is having a lovely summer.

HEAT and HUMIDITY and Daylilies on Sale

I do not understand how folks survive “down south.” I am OK in 30 below weather - toss another piece of wood in the fire, perhaps find a thicker turtle neck and make sure you are wearing good wool socks.

When the temperature goes above 90 degrees and the humidity is high, as it has been the past week, I switch into a low gear.

Once again, the returning power of new guinea impatiens astounds me. One hot day I neglected to water this big pot in a display garden and it looked the way I felt.




But it bounced back after a good dose of water -




With the help of my son I have been keeping the daylilies watered in pots. They are on sale now (ALL $6.50 each, buy five and the sixth one is free.)

MIDNIGHT MASQUERADE

YOU WIN

GENTLE SHEPHERD

GUS BLANKENSHIP

I am hoping for less humidity in the future. Farmers' markets have been slow and folks are generally dragging. A friend gave me a wonderful birthday gift - a used air conditioner in the kitchen.

Daylilies in Bloom August 3

One of the most valuable lessons I have learned for my business is to use a number 2 pencil on a plant tag. This will last longer than any ‘sharpie’ made. I have also learned to mark my daylilies in the field with large wood stakes, the cultivar’s name written with a paint marker on one side and pencil on the other.

Some growers bury the name with each planting as well, just in case the tags disappear.

We grow our perennials in two areas and since we are closed on Monday (today) , I headed to the upper field with my camera to take an inventory and see how the plants are doing with all the rain.

One of the showiest daylilies now blooming is called ‘Brilliant Circle’(below). It produces tons of flowers in the field and in the pot. It has a small bloom (3 and 1/2 inches) but the quantity more than makes up for the size.



Brilliant Circle


Another flower with a smaller bloom, but stellar performance is 'Siloam Doodlebug'.




Siloam Doodlebug

I really like 'Dragon’s Eye' because of the wide rose eyezone.



Dragon's Eye

This one is named ‘Outrageous’ which is a bit of an over statement, as it is very similar to 'Holiday Delight' or 'Bandit Man', but I suppose it is one notch hotter.



Outrageous


'Pink Cotton Candy' is from the breeder, Patrick Stamile, who has a whole series of ‘candy’ daylilies and they all do well for me.



Pink Cotton Candy

'Butterfly Kisses' is an older daylily, but lovely with incurved 8” blooms.



Butterfly Kisses

The following daylily is lovely and blooms heavily each year, but its name has disappeared from my inventory list and I can't find a tag anywhere.



I have No Name


I have a special place for daylilies in pots that have lost their tags. It is the "orphan daylily" corner and they sell for $4.50 a clump. Perhaps I will dig some of these next spring for sale as nameless orphans.

Vermont Farmers' Markets ... and me

In my youth (sigh) I was quite good at keeping a daily diary. Somehow I must reinvigorate that energy for this abandoned blog. So I will start the easy way - posting photos with commentary.

Here are early pictures of my setup at the St. Johnsbury Farmers’ market. All of the baskets have long gone to new homes. I placed annuals on the right and perennials on the left and herbs, etc. on the table under the tent.







Here is a shot of the same area last Saturday (July 11). I bring a lot more perennials, no more baskets, and I have started making bouquets.



I have been involved with farmers’ markets for years and love the opportunity for customers to buy from folks who are actually growing the vegetables and plants. Both the St. Johnsbury Farmers’ market and the Danville farmers’ market fall under the “Caledonia Farmers’ Market” umbrella.

I was instrumental in starting the Waitsfield farmers’ market and the Waterbury farmers’ market, both of which I attended for years. I also participated as a vendor at the Montpelier market, but eventually left, as they wouldn’t let me bring perennials.

The Danville market is held Wednesday's from 9 - 1 on the green in town, just off Route 2. Because it is on grass with picnic tables and trees it has a real charm and the vendors are terrific. Many of those same vendors attend the Saturday market (also 9 - 1) at St. Johnsbury. That market is larger and a bit more sprawling and is also a great opportunity to get the freshest produce.

I enjoy both markets, but Danville is my favorite.