Always 'Courting Trouble' | Daylily Blog on Local-vores

Okay, so I owe you two haiku.  The last two weeks have been a swirl of Disney, Spring Break, gardening, and stretching.  We soaked up the Florida sun for a week and are just now coming back to reality.  I'll be back next week with your weekly dose of "Daylily Haiku Thursday."

This is H. 'Courting Trouble.'  It's a tiny little kiss of a daylily that has died four times in my garden.  That is a compliment to its existence, not a complaint about its genetics.  I love it so much I have tried in vain four times to grow it successfully.  Its the color combination that gets me.  I love the fruity tones of the base color; the brooding black-purple of the eye and edge bleed into it with delicate veins.  The fuchsia midribs really give it a punch of distinction.  It does well in daylily shows; the scapes present very well in the show vase indoors.  Drop me an email if you have shown it before and done well with it!  Here is a web search of more pics...

I've seen it growing in Florida, North Carolina, Illinois, Ohio, Georgia, Wisconsin...surely I can grow it, too.  Why has it died for me four different times?!  Different locations, different soil, different originating stock...what gives?

It is not in my collection now.  Five times will not be a charm.  There are too many fabulous things that will grow for me that for now I will just enjoy this photo instead.  
Daylilies, while they are very forgiving and diverse, are far from perfect.  Not all cultivars grow the same in all climates and sometimes not all gardeners within the same climate can grow the same daylilies.  Yes, they will survive, and they will bloom, but now how they were intended.  To get the maximum level of awesomeness from your daylily collection, try to buy local.  There is a big "local-vore" movement in food and in retail - you should buy your plants local, too.  At least buy them local to your growing climate.  If you need to find growers in your area- use this page.  It will help you define what AHS Region you live in, and then provide a Source List for growers in your area.  If that doesn't work, I just googled "daylilies in Illinois" and got a big list of sources.  Try googling that phrase with your state inserted.  You'll find some local folks who have some daylilies to share with you this spring!
I do buy from many sources that are not local to me, but their plants have been outstanding for me in Michigan and in Illinois.  Here is one source.  Here is another.  

Enjoy adding to your daylily collection this year!  I know I am having fun selecting plants that are different from any other I already have, and those that are introduced by hybridizers that arent currently represented in my garden.  

Have fun!