Daylily Surprises

Thursday, July 12, 2012

Heading for 6:30 AM and the temperature is beginning to rise. 50° right now and rising to about 90° before the day is out. I have already penciled in Artesano's Ice Cream in my mind as a "must-do" evening trip down to Groton. Thoughts of a cool ride through the state forest and a nice ice cream cone will help get me through the day.

Daylilies are popping out at Vermont Flower Farm but the flowers are noticeably smaller due to lack of rain. Worker bee Michael continues to divide and plant daylilies for us and I continue to use the tractor to till over old gardens for new plantings. In some places the clay soil just turns to dust.

Red Volunteer, pictured up top, is not the three feet it often is because of water shortage. Just the same, it's putting out some blooms that make some gardeners grab a couple pots. In another year the root systems on this one will be very strong and the large flowers will signal attention from visitors. Chicago Star and Chicago Sunrise have that similar "wave the flag" trait too.

I like purples even though insects do too. Strutters Ball pictured here is a favorite but I have no problem with Wayside King Royale which I have planted in a 30 plant mass down by the hosta display garden. If you haven't seen the hosta garden yet, seeing Wayside King Royale is an excuse to make the walk down the hill. If the heat gets to you, holler up and I'll come get you in the golf cart.

Gail likes Amazon Parrot (below) which just came out. I better find out where she planted it as I know it was relocated a couple years ago. It's been six years since I first planted the field and the original alphabet has been superseded annually and now we are running on 6 alphabets and a bunch of other configurations of English ordering. I better make a map soon!



South Seas is the last picture for this morning. I call it coral colored but others have their own ideas. Let me know yours. This is a great daylily and in a few years when it really clumps up you'll be pleased by the the number of companion plants you can surround it with.

If you're out and about like Facebook friend Steve from down Cornwall/Middlebury way was yesterday, stop and say hello. It's always nice to meet new gardeners and find out how their gardens are doing.

Better pack up and get going here. Lots to do this morning as Michael went camping last night and is taking the day off. Just me and Gail and 90°. Come visit anyway!

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm
On Facebook as Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens and also as George Africa
On Twitter as vtflowerfarm
Always here to help you grow your green thumb! Open 9-5 every day.

Bloom Explosion

Saturday, July 7, 2012

Saturday morning already and the predicted rain has just begun. Karl the Wonder Dog just returned from his morning walk but right now he is hiding under my desk. We both heard a clap of thunder and Karl doesn't do well with the unexpected. I have been thinking of buying him a thunder jacket to try as they seem to get great reviews. Does anyone have comments on one for their dog?

The flower farm has shown a little more business this week but it's waiting for summer traffic which just has not started yet in Vermont. I have visited a couple larger garden centers and was one of the few visitors so I know it's not just Vermont Flower Farm that is waiting for customers. Vermont's economy is not what officials tell us it is.

Daylilies are beginning to bloom and they serve as a visitor magnet as many have not seen the available colors. The early blooming yellows and oranges have be joined by every color but blue and pots are getting loaded into cars at a rate that is making me a little happier.

Red Rum up top has taken a few years to get settled into our gardens and now it's producing well. It is not a bright red like some people like but the shade works well with many complimentary colors, especially the blues and pale yellows. The profusion of bloom makes folks smile too.

Stamile's older release of Omomuki is not just another yellow (just below here) It has great substance and it blooms on thick scapes over a long time. I love the edge and the fact that in heavy summer rains it holds tight and does not fade. It also does not brown up on the edges if it gets bruised by heavy rain like Imperial Lemon sometimes does.

People either love reds or they hate them and they are quite vocal about their persuasion. Red Volunteer is perfect for the "lovers". This is a taller daylily on thick scapes and it produces blooms for a long period. It is a vigorous grower and I have found myself doing exercises before dividing clumps after a few years growth. If you grow one, you'll know what I mean.

Wayside King Royale is a purple with yellow throat that is a "must have" as far as I am concerned. I planted 30 of them in a group down in front of the hosta display garden and when they bloom, the show from Route 2 and from our parking lot is noticeable for sure. The bloom period is long and you don't like to see it end. We have this daylily in pots and also dig from the gardens if you are interested.


If you're out and about today, stop and see the daylilies beginning to bloom. There are umbrellas available if it's raining but remember that we close everything down and retreat inside the office if there is thunder in the air. Respect yourself and don't ask if you can walk the fields in a thunderstorm. Some people ask and I make a very "just-ate-a lemon-face" when I have to say "No!!!!" Common sense is always available at Vermont Flower Farm and it comes for free....kinda like our sign, a crafted gift from friends Dianna and Tracey---"Free Weeds"

Writing from the mountain above Peacham Pond where light rain continues as a little chipmunk drinks sugar water from the honey bees feeder and washes its feet together while looking straight at me.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm Open 9-5 every day until Labor Day
On Facebook at Vermont Flower Farm and Gardens and also at George Africa
On Twitter as vtflowerfarm
And at the farm where we are always available to help you grow your green thumb!

Just Fizzle

Saturday, July 4, 2009
Independence Day Evening

Almost 9 PM here and the last bit of light is fading as it's Gail's turn to take Karl the Wonder Dog for a quick walk. Neither of them seem to mind the fact that the big bear is around here some place. I guess they have both resigned themselves to dealing with an encounter if one materializes and until then, to proceed as if it's just another day. Gail and Karl have met bears before and also a couple moose so they apparently have developed some sense of trust that works.

It was a dismal day that started bad and didn't get much better. The heavy rain held off until late morning and the real heavy rain began around 4 and continued for over an hour. Our road is already having that old fashioned washboard look that puts struts and shocks of the car and truck to a regular test. We live on a dirt road and the man with the grader has some self induced game of seeing how deep the pot holes get and how many irate calls come into the town garage before he fires up the machine and levels out the road. It's difficult to understand this whole game unless you live in a rural state where dirt roads are common and every town has a road grader that they covet.

In between rain storms I piled up weeds from this week's work, moved some more hostas into place in the new garden and helped a few (too few) customers with info and purchases. You just can't get interested in gardening when the ground is turning green with moss and the water, so frequent of late, is puddled up everywhere you turn. I really wanted to get the grass mowed today but the weatherman (person) was wrong again. It almost seems that if it's a great drying day tomorrow, it cannot possibly dry enough to get the tractor on the fields. We'll see.

The daylilies are coming out more and more and with one day of sun it will be like someone holding up a big stop sign out in front of the nursery. The question however, is when will the sun come. A little more "We'll see." I guess.

A few more daylilies that came out today include Custard Candy (top):

Over There

Jeune Tom

Beth Barth

Beloved Country

It's clear that I have to get into the picture taking mode as I have to catch up with these that are out too: Creepy Crawler, Respighi, Sinbad Sailor, Golden Prize, Fragrant Treasure, Salieri, Wayside King Royale, and Strutters Ball. There are others but my "thinker" is getting tired tonight. I ended the evening around 6 digging the last daylily of the day which was Red Volunteer. It about did me in as it was a monstrous plant with 6 scapes. Then when I got home I remembered I had promised to dig some spearmint for a friend. All the commitments are finished now and we should have a quiet night. I heard a couple fireworks from Peacham Pond kind of fizzle so I assume a hundred per cent humidity and a light rain are making lift off a challenge. In the days of our country leading to Independence Day, there have been challenges bigger than lighting fireworks. Take a minute before the day is over and think about how we got here. Pretty nice country, kind of like the daylily directly above here--Beloved Country.

Be well!

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener

Strange Daylily Habits

Friday, July 3, 2009

A wet morning here in Marshfield. Enough is enough but we have no control over the switch that makes the rain fall. The rivers are very high and the daylily beds are floating today. I need to mow between the rows so customers and visitors can get about but there's no hope of that in their current condition.

Karl the Wonder Dog got me up at 4 and had convinced me to get going by 4:15. We headed down towards the pond when he got just wet enough that repeated shaking was no longer keeping him half dry. He went back to bed and I headed to the nursery. We are trying to get all the plant markers up to date and although not a difficult chore, it takes time.

As I sit here writing I am in between my second and third set of clothes. The rain appears to have run out of steam and there's even a little sun coming through. I sure hope it clears by noon as we could use some customers.

The daylilies are really popping out now and I've lost count. We pick one bud from each plant as it blooms and have a table full now for people to look at. For some, this saves a trip into the fields but for others, getting wet and muddy has become something they are used to. Up above is Chicago Silver which Gail and I enjoy a lot. Here are a few more.

Carolyn Criswell

Barbary Corsair

Little Pumpkin Face

Rocket City

Leebea Orange Crush

Grape Velvet

Chorus Line

Off the top of my head we have Bitsy, Corky, Jay, Green Flutter, Siloam Space Age, Grand Masterpiece, Penny's Worth, Red Volunteer, Ruby Spider, Miss Amelia, Miss Tinkerbell, First Show, Gordon Biggs, Cream Drop, Siloam Paul Watts, Mini Pearl, Lemon Lollypop, Alna's Pride, Joylene Nicole, Atlanta Debutante, Citrina, Hush Little Baby, Jen Melon......boy, more than I thought (or can remember!)...blooming away.

Guess I better get back to work. If you are out and about this weekend, stop by and say hello. The mud is deep but the company is good. The new hosta garden is also worth a look.

Writing from the mountain where Karl is bothered yet again by the line of visiting-for-the-weekend joggers who huff and puff up and down Peacham Pond Road wearing knee braces and Ipods and stopping once in a while for breath or to answer a phone call. Some of this is just not me.

George Africa
The Vermont Gardener
Vermont Flower Farm: Where the cold temperatures of Spring 2009 have left some daylilies mysteriously blooming on short scapes not 6" from the ground.