Daylily

Plant Characteristics

Lifespan:	⌛	[[Lifespan::Perennial]]

Cultivation

Exposure:	☼	Sun"Sun" is not in the list (sun, part-sun, shade, unknown) of allowed values for the "Exposure" property.
Water:	◍	regular to dry"regular to dry" is not in the list (wet, moist, moderate, dry, less when dormant) of allowed values for the "Water" property.
Features:	✓	Flowers, Naturalizes

Scientific Names

Daylilies comprise the small genus Hemerocallis of flowering plants in the family Hemerocallidaceae. They are not true lilies which are Lilium in Liliaceae.

These plants are perennial. The name Hemerocallis comes from the Greek words Template:Polytonic (hēmera) "day" and Template:Polytonic (kalos) "beautiful". The flowers of most species open at sunrise and wither at sunset, possibly replaced by another one on the same stem the next day. Some species are night-blooming. Daylilies are not commonly used as cut flowers for formal flower arranging, yet they make good cut flowers otherwise as new flowers continue to open on cut stems over several days.

Originally native from Europe to China, Korea, and Japan, their large showy flowers have made them popular worldwide. There are over 60,000 registered cultivars. Only a few cultivars are scented. Some cultivars rebloom later in the season, particularly if their developing seedpods are removed.

Daylilies occur as a clump including leaves, the crown, and the roots. The long, often linear lanceolate leaves are grouped into opposite flat fans with leaves arching out to both sides. The crown of a daylily is the small white portion between the leaves and the roots, an essential part of the fan. Along the flower stem or scape, small leafy "proliferations" may form at nodes or in bracts. These proliferations form roots when planted and are the exact clones of the parent plant. Some daylilies show elongated widenings along the roots, made by the plant mostly for water storage and an indication of good health.

The flower consists of three petals and three sepals, collectively called tepals, each with a midrib in the same or in a contrasting color. The centermost section of the flower, called the throat, has usually a different and contrasting color. There are six stamens, each with a two-lobed anther. After pollination, the flower forms a pod.

Daylilies can be grown in USDA plant hardiness zones 1 through 11, making them some of the most adaptable landscape plants. Most of the cultivars have been developed within the last 100 years. The large-flowered clear yellow 'Hyperion', introduced in the 1920s, heralded a return to gardens of the once-dismissed daylily, and is still widely available. Daylily breeding has been a specialty in the United States, where their heat- and drought-resistance made them garden standbys during the later 20th century. New cultivars have sold for thousands of dollars, but sturdy and prolific introductions soon reach reasonable prices.

'Kwanzo' - a triple-flowered triploid cultivar

Tawny Daylily Hemerocallis fulva, and sweet-scented H. lilioasphodelus (H. flava is an illegitimate name), colloquially called Lemon Lily, were early imports from England to 17th century American gardens and soon established themselves. Tawny Daylily is so widely growing wild that it is often considered a native wildflower. It is called Roadside or Railroad Daylily, and gained the nickname Wash-house or Outhouse Lily because it was frequently planted at such buildings.

Hemerocallis is one of the most hybridized of all garden plants, with registrations of new hybrids being made in the thousands each year in the search for new traits. Hybridizers have extended the plant's color range from the yellow, orange, and pale pink of the species, to vibrant reds, purples, lavenders, greenish tones, near-black, near-white, and more. However, a blue daylily is a milestone yet to be reached.

Species

This is a list of species, not of cultivars, which number in the thousands:

Hemerocallis minor dried seed pods

Hemerocallis thunbergii

A Hemerocallis fulva longituba commonly called a "Red Magic" daylily for its color combination

• Hemerocallis altissima Stout
• Hemerocallis aurantiaca Baker
• Hemerocallis citrina Baroni

• Hemerocallis cordata C.P.Thunberg ex A. Murray
• Hemerocallis coreana Nakai
• Hemerocallis darrowiana S.Y.Hu
• Hemerocallis dumortierii Morr
• Hemerocallis esculenta Koidz.
• Hemerocallis exaltata Stout
• Hemerocallis ×exilis Satake
• Hemerocallis forrestii Diels
• Hemerocallis fulva L. : Orange Daylily, Tawny Daylily, Tiger Lily, Ditch Lily
• Hemerocallis hakuunensis Nakai
• Hemerocallis hongdoensis M.G.Chung & S.S.Kang
• Hemerocallis ×hybrida (hort.)
• Hemerocallis japonica C.P.Thunberg ex A. Murray
• Hemerocallis lilioasphodelus L, Hemerocallis flava L, Lemon Lily, Yellow daylily
• Hemerocallis littorea Makino
• Hemerocallis micrantha Nakai
• Hemerocallis middendorffii Trautv. & Mey.
• Hemerocallis minor Mill.
• Hemerocallis multiflora Stout
• Hemerocallis nana W.W.Sm. & Forrest
• Hemerocallis ×ochroleuca (hort. ex Bergmans)
• Hemerocallis pedicellata Nakai
• Hemerocallis plicata Stapf
• Hemerocallis sempervirens Araki
• Hemerocallis sendaica Ohwi
• Hemerocallis serotina Focke
• Hemerocallis ×stoutiana Traub (hort.)
• Hemerocallis sulphurea Nakai
• Hemerocallis taeanensis S.S.Kang & M.G.Chung
• Hemerocallis thunbergii Baker
• Hemerocallis ×traubara Moldenke (hort.)
• Hemerocallis ×traubiana Moldenke (hort.)
• Hemerocallis vespertina Hara
• Hemerocallis washingtonia Traub
• Hemerocallis ×yeldara Traub (hort.)
• Hemerocallis ×yeldiana Traub (hort.)
• Hemerocallis yezoensis Hara

Propagation

Division for true offspring. Seed.

Uses

The flowers of some species are edible and are used in Chinese cuisine. They are sold (fresh or dried) in Asian markets as gum jum or golden needles or yellow flower vegetables). They are used in hot and sour soup, daylily soup, Buddha's delight, and moo shu pork. The young green leaves and the tubers of some (but not allTemplate:Fact) species are also edible. The plant has also been used for medicinal purposes. Care must be used as some species can be toxic.

Dried golden needles

A bowl of daylily soup

Taxonomy

? Scientific classification
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Species
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External links

• The American Hemerocallis Society
• Wikibooks: How to grow Daylilies
• The Daylily Exchange (Links to informational and commercial daylily websites)
• The Lily Auction
• Daylilies hybrids
• UKDaylilies Hemerocallis daylilies site with botanical photographs
• Green Thumbs Galore Daylily Guide Information about buying Daylilies online