New Italy Day Lily Farm Guide to caring for your daylilies
Daylilies are low maintenance plants that will survive the harshest of climates. However, to get your plants to flourish and have abundance of blooms in season, there are a few things you can do:
Position: For optimum performance (especially for quantity of bloom), position daylilies in full sun or partial shade. Darker colours seem to perform better in a semi-shaded position in the hottest part of he day.
Ground Preparation: Daylilies prefer soil with good drainage (but will survive in soils from heavy loam – light sandy soils). Improve soil with compost, well rotted manure or any soil conditioners.
Planting Time: Daylilies can be planted at any time of the year (in warmer areas), but the best times are Autumn and Spring. As a general rule, place plants about 60-70 cm apart. Do not plant too deeply. – the point where roots and leaves meet should be no deeper than 2.5cm. Cover roots with soil, firm and water. They are robust growers, and will clump up quickly. Leave the plant to bloom and clump for at least 3 years, then you can lift and divide the plant.
Watering: Although these plants are drought resistant, and will survive on a small amount of rainfall, they will benefit greatly from heavy watering 2 – 3 times a week, especially during Spring and Summer. Do not overwater so that the soil becomes boggy.
Mulching: Daylilies like to be heavily mulched for water retention. Luckily, they are not ‘finicky’ about the type of mulch you use. We use a tea tree mix here at the farm, but lucerne hay, garden compost, bark chips, sugar cane mulch etc will all do the same job.
Fertiliser: Like most plants, daylilies like a little feeding annually with a slow release fertiliser. One containing blood and bone and potash is ideal; (potassium phosphate). Avoid too much nitrogen based fertilisers.
Pests and Diseases: Although Daylilies are hardy they are not IMMORTAL. They do suffer from some diseases and pests, but if treated, they bounce back quite quickly.
Aphids: One of most common pests to daylilies. Telltale signs are white flecks on the foliage (actually shed skins of aphids). Aphids are are visible to the eye. If you part the leaves near the crown, you may find these bright green critters. There are a number of insecticides on the market that will work; but try soapy water first – it is cheaper and environmentally friendly and doesn’t kill natural predators such as ladybirds and lacewings. We are now using Natrasoap here on the farm.
Spider Mites: Mites draw the cholorphyll from the leaves. Leaves will loose their healthy green colour, turn tan, brown, then die. Spray with a miticide if necessary.
Crown Rot: This is almost always fatal as it is not detected until leaves turn yellow – meaning the crown has rotted. Some plants can be saved by digging the affected clumps, surgically removing all affected parts and treating remaining plants with fungicide or try a strong mixture of bleach and water.
Rust: There are several types of rust that can affect plants. Daylily Rust is a reddish brown powder like fungus that will appear on the foliage. It can be wiped off the leaves, but it won’t remove the disease. Fortunately we have not had to deal with Daylily Rust as yet, but it is becoming quite more common. There are sprays that you can purchase to avoid the problem, but if you do discover that your daylilies have the rust, the best thing to do is dig them up, bag them and throw them or burn them. This will prevent it spreading to your unaffected plants.
Mail Orders: If you have received your daylilies by post, it is advisable to soak them for a few hours in a solution of liquid fertiliser. If unavailable soak in water before planting. If you receive them in the flowering season ie Summer – we advise planting them in pots first and then placing in a shaded position (a greenhouse would be ideal). When they are established you can then place them in your garden.
