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YES, we are still open! BUT, please call and let us know you are coming to the garden. We do not want to miss your visit.
It is that time of year again - tender potted plants already inside, including a huge variegated banana that is magnificent. Newly set plants have been watered again, and finally, the water lines have been opened and drained. Must not let them freeze! This is an annual chore which includes the repairing of leaks. We were pleased that Vic's Carnival In Caracas was a co-winner of the 2013 President's Cup at the Minnesota National Convention. It is a bright, colorful flower, similar in "base" color to its co-winner, Curt's Primal Scream. Carnival In Caracas, however, has a large eye pattern which makes it a very distinctive flower. Though we watered very little in 2012, the 2013 season was the first year ever that we did not have to water the garden. It rained so often with so-called pop-up showers that we did not even connect many of the sprinklers. Those years when we had to water continuously were not missed. It is no fun moving hoses and sprinklers around the garden at night to keep things alive! We cannot emphasize enough, the importance of having regular soil tests done in the garden. Here in NC we are fortunate that the testing is free. Be sure to test each bed or growing area separately. Instructions for most soil test are for large farms and they suggest taking samples from several locations in a field and mixing them together. For daylilies keep the samples separate. The chemical make-up of each bed or growing area can be very different. Though we had a small crop of new seedlings to bloom this season, we were pleased with the quality. We dug perhaps 50 or more for further evaluation. There were wonderful new "shades" of color and patterns. With daylilies there is never a dull moment. We have named a lovely bright new rose-pink double Mountain Echo. This will be a gift plant at the AHS National Convention in Asheville, NC on June 25-28, 2014. The name reflects the doubling of the flower and the location of the convention. We will not be selling any of this plant until 2015. Early on, we informed Julio, our gardener and worker, that petting and playing with the cat counted as work time. Now, Snowflake, trots along with him wherever he is working in the garden and gets under foot for attention and petting. When the three of us are working in an area Snowflake cannot decide where to go first. He just circulates among the three of us. He is just a spoiled kitty! You should hear him "scream" when he gets lost! This year's introductions are, as usual, a variety of colors, forms, and patterns. They vary from the very bright 'Captain Mighty' and 'Drumline' to the softer 'Eye For Detail'. 'Eye For Detail' continues our "eyes" with a striking variation on "patterns". We are extremely pleased with 'Make-up Artist'. Though it will be considered a "melon" by many, it's color is refined and it grows very well here. The other introductions? Come visit, look, and decide! For too many years to count, Bud and Ruth Bennett from Maryland have visited the garden each summer. They certainly attended many Region 15 Summer meetings. Bud has hybridized many beautiful daylilies that, unfortunately, never got the distribution they deserved. 'Polar Fizz', 'Wild Cherry Wine', 'Jazz Me Blues' and 'Fashion Page' are wonderful. In recent years Bud has worked for lavender purple with "blue" eyes and patterns. They have excellent clarity of color and are quite striking.
Asheville, NC - June 25 - 28, 2014
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