Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Double Daylilies

Doubles are my favorites.

I started with Siloam Double Classic, in my opinion the best double ever. Last summer I ordered two new ones: Night Embers and Moses' Fire. These are blooming for the first time this year. I have to admit a little disappointment in Night Embers. The color is dull and fades quickly. The white outlined edges are nice. Moses' Fire is much more orange than the catalog pictures and Night Embers isn't as dark. LOL, why am I surprised that catalog photos aren't accurate.

The first photos are of a daylily growing wild on my farm. When I first found it, I thought it must be rare and unique. Perhaps a sport or mutation of the tawny daylily seen on old farms and along roadsides. Actually, it's fairly common, but no less spectacular. Fulva Kwanso with a triple bloom. This has to be the most elegantly made daylily in existence. Unfortunately it's sterile so hybridizers won't be creating its lovely form in other colors.





Below is Night Embers, a dark and dull red with a white outline around each petal. As with most dark daylilies, the color rubs and washes off easily leaving a blotchy appearance.



Moses' Fire isn't the bright, true red promised in catalogs. When it begins to open, the petals have more red but they soon fade to a spotty orange.





Siloam Double Classic--the gold standard in doubles (in my humble opinion). The first year it bloomed, it was a clear pink. The following years it has displayed a more coral color, perhaps the result of different soil, I really don't know. Double Classic increases quickly in my garden and the single plants have become large clumps. The first photo shows the color the first season. The last photo is this years color. Based on the clear pink color I planted it among pink roses. This year the combination is not pleasing. It needs to be moved into an area with no pink and more blues and purples to look its best.

The photo above shows the color in relation to a truly pink petunia.