GARDENING : Color Is the Order of the Day Lilies : Hardy Plants Thrive in Many Conditions and Landscapes

One variety of day lily is a common sight along roadways: grassy-like clumps producing tall spikes of sunny orange and yellow flowers. The hardy perennials require so little care that they’re often seen in casual, mass plantings.

But, if your image of day lilies ends there, you’ll be missing out on another 35,000 named varieties of America’s favorite perennial--with more coming along every day. The color range of the new hybrids includes near white, shades of yellow, orange, red, pink, purple and almost black. Some varieties feature flowers with differently colored eye zones on the petals. Sizes range from micro-mini to tall.

One of the newest varieties garnering a lot of attention from day lily lovers and the general gardening world is a diminutive plant named ‘Black-Eyed Stella,’ the 1994 winner of All-America Daylily honors.

This compact plant is an offspring of the much touted day lily ‘Stella De’Oro,’ prized for its long flowering season. ‘Black-Eyed Stella’ features dramatic color--a dark red eye zone pattern set against golden yellow petals--and a long bloom period.

John Schoustra, owner of Greenwood Daylilies in Long Beach and a member of the Orange County Iris and Daylily Society, reports a blooming season of up to 300 days. It also has a bloom habit unlike most day lilies. Like its progenitor, ‘Stella De’Oro,’ the blossoms open at night and remain open the following day. Flower buds of most day lilies open early in the morning and last for just one day, hence its name, “ Hemerocallis ,” derived from a Greek word meaning “beautiful for a day.”

Day lily flowers can be enjoyed for more than a day, however, because each stalk contains multiple buds, each opening in succession. They can be admired on the plant or brought indoors for cut flower arrangements. Individual flowers can even be scattered on a dining or coffee table as colorful decorations; they don’t need to be floated in water because they’re so short-lived.

The versatility of day lilies extends to the landscape, because these hardy plants will thrive in many conditions. Schoustra recommends using diminutive day lilies in landscapes.

“They can be tucked into small spaces, used in place of annuals for color beds, planted as borders along pathways or lawn or grown on slopes like a ground cover,” he said. “Day lilies thrive in low water situations, are fire-resistant, pest-resistant and low-maintenance.”

Ruth Greiner of Garden Grove is also a day lily club member and day lily fancier. Among her collection of 70 day lilies are more than a dozen small varieties that she uses in containers or rock gardens.

“They’re dainty little things, and I like to plant them in containers so the blooms can be enjoyed at eye level,” she said.

Technically, the term miniature refers to the size of the day lily flower. Dwarf means the plant itself is small. Another classification is pony , which denotes a small plant with full-size flowers. But these are hard to find and not popular, because most hybridizers regard them as unattractively out of proportion.

Schoustra likes the dwarf day lilies because the flowers often have details such as colored eyes and edges. He calls them “the intimate day lily.”

Lori Asten, also a member of the Iris and Daylily Society, has more than 270 in her collection, plus approximately 1,000 seedlings she’s growing in an effort to hybridize new varieties.

“These are very versatile plants and can be tucked into just about any landscape since they like full sun to partial shade conditions,” Asten said. “I’ve got mine planted with roses, iris, vines, bulbs, just about everything.”

Although they’re classified as drought-tolerant, day lilies will produce more blooms if they receive regular watering. They also thrive in partial shade but will produce more quantities of flowers in full sun.

In the warm climate of Orange County, day lilies usually extend their flowering season, producing abundant amounts from early spring through late fall. Although most varieties perform at their best in this region, Schoustra cautions against planting ‘Stella De’Oro.’ In our area, this variety is neither dwarf nor long-flowering. He says it needs winter chill because it’s naturally dormant during winter, and it doesn’t like the reflected heat that can occur in gardens during hot summer and fall months.

For increased bloom production, fertilize once monthly during spring and fall with a foliar fertilizer like Miracle-Gro or an all-purpose granular fertilizer.

Pests rarely damage day lilies, although snails and slugs are attracted to their foliage. You can hand pick them or set out saucers of beer, which lure the snails to a hasty end.

Aphids can also attack the foliage during spring but rarely damage the plants. They can be combatted by thoroughly hosing the foliage or spraying with a nontoxic insecticidal soap mixture.

After several years in the garden or container, the clumps will become root bound and, like other perennials, need dividing in fall, once they stop flowering.

Cut the foliage back, dig around the clump and use the shovel to break up the root system and divide into several plants. These can be replanted or shared.

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More about day lily culture and varieties can be learned at the monthly meetings of the Orange County Iris and Daylily Club. It meets the second Tuesday of every month at the First Presbyterian Church of Garden Grove, 11832 Euclid Ave. The free meetings start at 7:30 p.m. For information, call (714) 953-1876.

Best Bets

Here are dwarf varieties of day lilies recommended for Orange County by gardeners and growers:

‘Bitsy.’ Yellow; 18 inches tall

‘Black-Eyed Stella.’ Yellow with red eye; 22 inches

‘Homer Howard Glidden.’ Cream colored with orchid overlay; 24 inches

‘Louise Manelis.’ Shrimp pink blossoms with apricot throat; 18 inches

‘Pyewacket.’ Buff pink with plum eye zone and green throat; 18 inches

‘Penny Earned.’ Yellow; micromini to 10 inches

‘Penny’s Worth.’ Orange/gold; micromini to 10 inches

(Both Penny Earned and Penny’s Worth are dormant in winter)

‘Raspberry Pixie.’ Fragrant, tiny raspberry florets; 12 inches

‘Squeaky.’ Tiny, dark yellow, one-inch blooms; 16 inches

‘Terra Cotta Baby.’ Very small, rosy-tan flowers; 15 inches

‘Tiny Pumpkin.’ Deep pumpkin color; 20 inches.

Day lilies are carried at most nurseries and garden centers. Among those specializing in the plants is Greenwood Daylilies in Long Beach, which sells by mail (310) 494-8944. The firm has a display garden at Pacific View Nursery, 698 Studebaker Road, Long Beach.