Musical daylilies

Last Saturday we went to the beach. The hypnotic power of the sea on a fine day is a great thing. We did the usual: got to the beach in time for lunch at Big Daddy's, took a long walk on the beach, visited the Fort Fisher aquarium, and drove around Dunkin Doughnuts for a glazed on the way home. Not only is the aquarium itself pretty amazing, there's a garden outside too. Not grand but always something pretty and interesting. This time we saw 2 plants I hadn't seen in person before: 'Perfume Deep Purple' Nicotiana ~ truly a deep beautiful purple, and I ordered seeds for it after we got home ~ and the ornamental grass Lagarus ovatus 'Bunny Tails'. I enjoyed seeing the African Daisies too, which I have not grown with success. They might like the dry bed up near the mailbox that DH wants to install. Currently the plantings up there just consist of a rosemary, lavender, Butterfly Weed, and Eastern Silvery Aster.

Here it's daylily time. Which means it's time to move daylilies around. I do not put the effort into labelling that I should so the colors and heights don't always end up where I want them. (The best and cheapest way is probably a metal tag marked by engraving or a Pilot Silver Market attached to the base of some leaf stems by a fine wire. Then the tag can't be pulled up or broken by being stepped on.)

Daylily season starts here with 'Smuggler's Gold' and 'Bleu Celeste', which is not blue at all but a two-toned pink.

'Red Volunteer'

with 'Lion in Winter'

From left to right: 'Golden Compass' or Tar and Feather', 'Little Missy', 'Shady Lady', 'Lion in Winter', and 'Red Volunteer'.

'Tang' in foreground

The cream, pink and yellow blended pastel 'Beautiful Edgings' is one of my absolute favorites. The pink is 'My Melinda' and I moved out the golden yellow 'Buttered Popcorn' after snapping the picture.

This yellow noid is fantastic: elegant, long-blooming, and very fragrant.

'Jedi Blue Note'

I love purple daylilies and 'Indian Giver' is unique in its clear shade of rosey grape purple. Even though I have to spray the daylilies with peppermint every night to keep the deer at bay I want to add a few more daylilies (makes sense right?) and more 'Indian Giver' is definitely on the list. I don't feel like dividing the daylilies further this year. I'd rather just let the clumps mature more.

This weekend we are enjoying magnificent weather: breezy, low humidity, upper '70's. Reminds me of New England or Canada in the summer. Not like our usual steam bath.