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"Possibility and promise greet me each day as I walk out into my garden. My vigor is renewed when I breathe in the earthiness and feel the dirt between my fingers. My garden is a peaceful spot to refresh my soul." Meems






Welcome to my Central Florida Garden Blog where we garden combining Florida natives, Florida-Friendly plants, and tropicals.

Sunday, March 30, 2008

Weekend Debuts


Just yesterday I noticed buds on a couple of the day lilies. Today as I was mowing, I literally gasped when I spotted this lily that had burst open to greet me. I hurried to get my camera- then I slowed down while chuckling to (at) myself- why was I hurrying?...as if it was going to get away from me. Do you ever do that with a bird or another critter? Well there's a good chance they might get away. But the cheery yellow blossom isn't going anywhere at least not for a day or two. Usually my day lilies bloom around Easter which typically falls in April. By all my accounts this bloom is making its appearance earlier than normal.

Anyone know the name of this one (above)? Until I started blogging all day lilies fell under the same name... day lily. I'm sorry, it just never has been a priority to me to know the botanical names of flowers. The priority was knowing if it would grow for me. Now I'm more curious than ever and most often research to find out names. Could this be the Stella d'Oro?

And then there is the red Amaryllis that made its presentation yesterday. I snapped these photos today while working in the garden. I am beginning to see them everywhere in our area. Always a signal that spring is well underway in Florida.

I separated and transplanted dozens of bulbs over the last few weeks. I don't know the rules about when to do this - I was not too concerned but I do hope I didn't hinder the blooming time for the ones I moved. If so, there's always next year.

14 comments:

  1. Daylilies blooming already! Mine are just beginning to poke teeny tiny leaves up. Hmmm...I have a couple of Stella D'oro and if I remember right they don't look quite like this one. But, I'm new at this :) Whatever type of daylily it is, it's lovely.

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  2. Oh Meems, I love seeing your daylilies. I can't help you with names. I write them down but then which name goes with which plant?? Ha... Not much help here.

    I love the picture on your header too. It looks so lush and tropical.

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  3. I think there are thousands of named daylilies and it takes someone obsessed with daylilies to figure out one from another. Your yellow one looks like a Stella to me, so I would go with it.

    Like Lisa, I keep labels, but then sometimes matching them back up with the flowers when blooming is problematic, especially if I planted several varities of a particular flower. That's the case with my daffodils which should be blooming in the next few days and weeks. I just give them my own names.

    And it is funny how we rush inside for the camera to take a picture of a bloom, which isn't going anywhere!

    Carol, May Dreams Gardens

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  4. It doesn't seem to matter how many years we've been gardening, we still get excited at all the 'firsts.'

    A daylily blossom is so fleeting it's no wonder you were in a rush to capture it before it disappeared.

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  5. Oh I hope my daylilies bloom early too! In a week or two I'm going to have to move them to a new, but temporary, home - Maybe I'll get lucky enough to enjoy a few blooms first - and if not, I'll enjoy yours with you! Thanks for the beautiful pictures.

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  6. hi meems, you have a beautiful garden and blog. my sister lives in palm harbor, which i think is close to you? she doesn't garden much but is a grandma like you-loving life!

    you make florida sound awesome but i know i simply could NOT garden there. or maybe with years of acclimation? my mother came last summer then went to see my sister there, and she said it was actually COOLER than here in tennessee. lol take care.

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  7. Amy: Here the leaves are part of the scenery all year long. Glad yours are beginning to poke out of the ground.

    Lisa: Once I know a name I'm usually okay about remembering. It's just that botanical names haven't been that important to me - what was important was learning what would live and where... so knowing it was a daylily was enough.
    Glad you like the header - it is from May/2007 when the garden is most happy I think.

    Carol: There really are thousands of day lilies. I'm still waiting on an online order I made in January to add to my varieties. I'll be sure to keep the labels.

    I like your idea of giving them your own names when in doubt.

    Garden Girl: It's true... It is that first bloom that says "here I am again back to bloom for you another time" that gives me such a sense of oneness with my garden.

    Nancy: Thank you. Yes, the thrill of discovery and I thought to myself "how did that happen so fast? from bud to blossom?"

    MaryBeth: There are only two plants out of about 40 that even have buds on them so this one is "really" early. All the nicer for me. Hope your do well with the move.

    tina: Thanks for visiting Hoe&Shovel. Yes, Palm Harbor is right around the corner (so to speak). I love that little community (which is presently growing too fast). My sister lives in Franklin,TN...how funny.

    I DO love Florida so it's easy for me to make it sound awesome.While gardening year round definitely has its challenges I always say I don't think I could live without the sight of green for months on end. But the truth is you adjust to what you have and make it work.That's why I like visiting gardens all over the world via the internet. Makes gardening more interesting.

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  8. yes indeed-ironic for sure! and you do make the best of what you have don't you?

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  9. Yes, I have daylilies too, but um, not quite in bloom--about half-an-inch out of the ground, although now carefully blanketed in snow.
    :-)

    And yes, there are somewhere between 55 and 60 THOUSAND different named cultivars of daylilies, so not to worry about names. I have somewhere around 5-6 dozen, some of which I can recognize on sight, others of which have lost their names and it's okay with me--I just love them regardless. And that's the main thing, isn't it? Yours is gorgeous, as is that stunning amaryllis. And I really love what you did with the wall in the previous post. (I don't dare tempt Blogger by attempting to leave two comments on one site in the same evening. )

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  10. Meems, in general Amaryllis and Hippeastrums are usually divided when they are dormant, in winter or when they have finished flowering is fine too. Let them set seed and you can get quite nice new ones. They flower in two years.

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  11. Beautiful. LOL. I probably WOULD have to run and get the camera, with my luck Peanut would be outside picking it to put in some kind of dirt stew she was brewing or something!

    The Stella d'Oro was yellow, right? Although there are other yellows than the Stella and I'm not sure what the distinction really is. I guess I'm not very good at names of flowers....

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  12. Meems, that is so exciting to see a daylily in bloom and even a double flowered one. I don't believe Stella is double, however, but I'm far from an expert on that. We have lots of daylilies, and some are very similar to each other, and some came with the property, so they will never be identified, so I make up names for them. How about making up your own name for yours if no one recognizes it?
    Frances at Faire Garden

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  13. Wow!!! your daylilies really are ahead of mine....
    Rees Cowden

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  14. tina: I kind of hope I don't ever have to but it sounded good anyway.

    jodi: Now I don't feel so un-Botanical not knowing the daylily names specifically.They are easy to love... so willing to flourish with little attention.

    Trudi: Well, I guess I did that right - it was technically winter when I divided them.Thanks for the info.

    Frances: I'm wondering if it really IS a double or if it might have an extra weird petal. I guess I'll be able to tell when the next bud opens up. I like the idea of making up my own names ... only I wonder if I could remember those???


    Rees: Funny it is the only day lily plant that even has buds and it is full of them. The rest are still just green and leafy.

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Have a blessed day,
Meems


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