|
| The winning daylily for 2007 is Lavender Vista. This variety has clear, lavender, fragrant blooms reaching 5-6 inches across with arching evergreen foliage 16-22 inches tall. (Photo courtesy of the All-American Daylily Selection Council.) |
News You Can Use Distributed 02/16/07
Gardening enthusiasts have always enjoyed hearing about and raising All-America Rose Selections, All-America Selections (which include bedding plants, flowers and vegetables) and other award-winning landscape plants each year. One of the newer groups of winning plants is the All-American daylilies.
LSU AgCenter horticulturist Dr. Allen Owings says the All-American Daylily Selection Council evaluates more than 50 performance characteristics of daylily varieties across the nation at a number of sites. The council announces a new winner or winners each year.
For 2007, the winning daylily is Lavender Vista. This variety has clear, lavender, fragrant blooms reaching 5-6 inches across with arching evergreen foliage 16-22 inches tall. Bloom period is about 80-90 days.
Most lavender daylilies require a trade-off between bloom beauty, foliage quality and performance. This variety encompasses all of these things, according to the AADSC.
2006 winners were Buttered Popcorn and Persian Market. Other previous winners include Miss Mary Mary, Red Volunteer, Chorus Line, Lady Lucille, Plum Perfect, Frankly Scarlet, Bitsy, Black-eyed Stella, Judith, Leebea Orange Crush, Lullaby Baby, and Starstruck.
The most popular daylilies for region 13 (Louisiana and Arkansas) are King Kahuna, Beautiful Edgings, Jolie Monde, Richfield Muriel’s Double, True Pink Beauty and Barbara Sheets, according to the members of the American Hemerocallis Society.
Owings says many other daylily varieties are suitable for Louisiana among the more than 48,000 registered kinds. Most garden centers have a nice selection in April and May each year.
On the Internet: www.louisianalawnandgarden.org
On the Internet: AADSC: http://www.daylilyresearch.org/