Hemerocallis from seed

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I’ve grown daylilies for around twelve years now and at last count had 102 different named varieties, plus one or two unamed, bit of an obsession, just love them such easy plants not fussy about soil type and as long as they get some sun will flower their heads off from early June onwards, still have several flowering now, never had one die on me, and never fails to amaze me how each fan will make a new plant.
Anyway having just bought a new book this year ‘The New Encyclopedia of Daylilies’ by Petit and Peat the amazing pictures of over 1700 varieties of daylilies, even with section on daylilies of the future, gorgeous varieties that are being trialled in America now, prompted me to grow some crosses of my own, bit late in the year to do any crosses of my own daylilies, and being a bit impatient thought I’d send for some seed, so after searching e-bay USA found a supplier, bought five packets of some lovely crosses, even though each lot of seeds will be from same plant all flowers should be slightly different.
The seeds arrived in less than two weeks, and supplier even included couple of extra packets, and only charged me one postage charge, really pleased, I’ve grown my own seed before but not specific crosses, just left to the bee’s, by sowing autumn time and seeds usually germinate the next spring after period of cold, but as there were only 12 seeds in most packs and one quite special one were there was only 5 wanted a more reliable method, a fellow daylily addict recommended sowing seed in bags of just moist vermiculite in the fridge and low and behold here we are nine weeks later with three lots already germinated, and 100% success rate.

Not very good picture but think you can just see black seeds with white roots coming out the end.

Two of the three lots were pricked out last week, (Siloam Prissy x George Jets On, and Star of Fantasy x Iktoma) and are already showing tiny leaves, pricked this lot out today(Calgary Stampede x David Kirchoff seedling, red with white edge) will have to wait two to three years for flowers but who knows may have something new and exciting, can’t include pictures as don’t have any of my own but can see what they look like by looking on www.tinkersgardens.com clicking on database and entering name of daylily then search, think next year may try some crosses of my own,really easy to do, just have to remember that you can’t cross tetraploids with diploids as they have different number of chromosones and won’t produce seeds, have just acquired half an allotment at bottom of garden,already have one to grow veg, so room to grow them on.
Here are a few pictures of my daylilies in flower this year.

Enchanted Rainbow

Parade of Peacocks

Tide Line

Cameroons

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• 13 Oct, 2009
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