Oldies but Goodies

It’s hard to say what’s worse: soldiering through a typical winter of unrelenting snow and ice, or this particular one that teased us for weeks with bare ground, fairly mild temperatures, and then dumped 8-10” of snow on us just as we were seeing the beginnings of spring growth. My patience is taxed either way, but right now I am as antsy as can be, itching to get out in the garden. Fussing over seedlings and houseplants is all that’s available right now.

It’s also the time of year to update our daylily website, which somehow inevitably leads to looking at lots of other daylilies online, which somehow inevitably leads to ordering more. This can be a dangerous way to feed the garden appetite, I’ve learned, as it lends itself to impulse buying without the near-immediate gratification of a package arriving within the week. It’s much safer to just look at the pretty photos and make wish lists -- but that sometimes requires more self-control than I possess.

As time goes by, I’ve found that my eye is drawn over and over again to the same daylilies in my winter explorations; often they are ones I already have, but it’s a good way to really notice which colors and forms appeal to me. With over 60,000 different daylilies out there, it can get terrifically overwhelming! – sometimes when I am standing in the middle of a large nursery, surrounded by hundreds and hundreds of varieties, I can feel paralyzed and nearly unable to choose.

Lately I’ve found that many of the varieties that catch my eye are the antiques, or heirlooms. Here are two of the new ones I’ve ordered:
Rosy Wren, introduced back in 1961 …

… and Crazy Lace, a Wild intro from 1966

Some of our favorites in our collection are the “elders” of the garden. The one we call Cape Cod Cousin is probably Black Prince, dating back to 1942, but we lost the registration …

And Abstract Art (65) always takes my breath away …

Catherine Woodbery (67) is a classic

… as is Frans Hals (55)

Heirloom Lace (63) … who knew there were these kinds of ruffles back then?

And Miss Jessie! We just love this one that goes back to 1956

Prairie Moonlight (65) always stands out in the garden

The photo at the top of the post is Radiant Greetings. I've had this one for years; it dates back to 1975, another one from Wild, maybe not an antique but already 37 years old.

Sure, the newer, splashier daylilies have their charms, but these oldies have stood the test of time, hardy and graceful and beautiful in their simplicity. And, as a bonus, because they’ve been around so long, they are usually a lower-cost way to expand your daylily collection.

Fifteen days until spring!