It’s customary to receive bonus plants when purchasing daylilies via mail-order or from a daylily farm. I’ve acquired some wonderful freebies over the years, but I’m still a little cautious about planting them front and center until I’ve had a chance to evaluate them.
I received a rather puny division of ‘Silent Sentry’ a few years ago. I planted it in a partly-shady area of my garden where it could develop a strong root system and not waste energy churning out flowers that first year. The small plant was surrounded by perennials and some other daylilies, and I quickly forgot about it until the following summer.
One morning I was making the rounds and checking out all the new blooms in the garden when a flash of yellow caught my eye. As I got closer I spied a big purple flower with a yellow throat. I rummaged around in the foliage to find a plant tag. Not only had my wimpy ‘Silent Sentry’ division matured into a thriving plant after just one year, but it was showing off several scapes full of buds.
I was going to move ‘Silent Sentry’ to a more sunny location, but it seems perfectly happy lending some color to a shadier part of my yard. ‘Silent Sentry’ grows 24 inches tall with 6-inch flowers and is an early-to-midsummer bloomer.