I’ve come to realize that among the several hundred cultivars I grow, my most trusted and sturdy daylilies are Griesbach-Klehm introductions from the late 1970s. I purchased ‘Cedar Waxwing’ (pictured above) many years ago and was thrilled by how quickly it multiplied in size and continued to bloom for weeks and weeks each summer.
I soon discovered that there was an entire series of bird-named daylilies like ‘Tree Swallow’, ‘Baltimore Oriole’, ‘Heron’ and ‘Scarlet Tanager’. How perfect for a birdwatching/daylily-loving geek like I am.
They aren’t necessarily the flashiest daylilies you’ll find, but you can’t ask for better-performing plants. They are well-branched and stocky and loaded with buds. They perform equally well in sun or part-shade, and because they are older cultivars, you can buy most of them for less than ten dollars.
This year is was ‘Ruby Throat’ that really put on a show. It blooms later in the season and since everything got such a head start this year, it was one of the last daylilies to bloom in my garden. The flowers kept coming for more than a month, and they are such an intense red color that I could easily see them from across the yard or inside the house.
‘Ruby Throat’ grows 21 inches tall with 5-inch blooms.