Daylilies, members of the Liliaceae (lily family), are some of the easiest to grow and most popular of the garden perennials. Because they range in size, color, and design application, there is a daylily for almost everyone and every garden. Like their name Hemerocallis, "beauty for a day," the individual daylily flower lasts only one day. What is so wonderful? They are borne on long arching stems with the flowers in clusters and bloom in succession over a period of two to six months from mid-spring to late, depending upon the variety.

Daylilies are versatile in the garden and landscape. They can be very dramatic in a perennial border or in the foreground of shrubbery plantings. They can be spectacular as foundation plantings, cover an unsightly bank or serve as accents beside a pond. These flowers are more dramatically effective when planted in clusters of three or more to create sweeping drifts or a mass effect. Not only do the flowers sway in the breeze, so does the light, strapping foliage. Motion in the garden!

The flowers of the species come in vibrant shades of yellow, orange, and red, with a much more varied color selection in the hybrids. Plants have been developed with flowers in cream, gold, scarlet, pink, apricot, purple, violet, and plum. There are also hybrids, which repeatedly bloom throughout the summer; they bloom early, then after a short rest, bloom again, constantly repeating the process.

Don't miss out on our new daylily hybrids with ruffles, piecrust ruffles, and picotee borders. Ruffles have soft, lightly wavy edges. Piecrust edging has heavy indentations, much like edges to a pie crust. Picotee has petal margins that are either lighter or darker than the main petal color—a contrasting color. All of these new introductions are gorgeous!

Choose a sunny or lightly shaded location for your daylilies. The best flowers will be produced when they are planted in a sunny location, unless you live in a very hot climate; in this case, choose a lightly shaded area. Daylilies also enjoy a regular feeding every two months during the growing season to maintain their bloom color.

They are tough, adaptable, vigorously-growing plants that will thrive in nearly all kinds of soil; however, the best is soil that is moist, but well drained, fertile and humus-rich. Whether your soil is light and sandy or heavy clay, add planting mix. Mulch the soil with bark or cocoa mulch in the spring and in the fall to minimize weeds and retain soil moisture.

Here at Sun River Gardens we have numerous daylily hybrids for you to choose from. Stop by soon!

Who's your bud? Not the budworm. When the weather warms up, you can bet this pest is on its way. The budworm (a type of caterpillar/moth) is gunning for your geraniums, petunias, snapdragons, and other flowering plants. Knowing the budworm's diet, habits, and the effective control methods, you will be armed and ready for combat.

It can be hard to spot budworms. They are very small and they tend to take on the color of the bloom or foliage they are infesting, further enhancing their camouflage. You will see irregular chewing on the blossoms and round holes through flower buds and leaves. The numerous black droppings they leave behind are one of the telltale signs. Many gardeners may not know they have a problem until the damage becomes severe.

Controlling this pest depends on the amount of planting. With a small patio of plants, physically removing and killing them should be effective. A larger yard would require spraying. Insecticides that contain Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis) offer reasonably effective biological control. Because the Bt must be ingested by the insect to be effective, it may take a few days before you no longer see any signs of budworms. Plant sprays containing Sevin are also effective in controlling budworms.

Now that you know what to look for, and what to spray, you'll be armed and ready at the first sign of attack.

As more homeowners re-landscape gardens, there is an increasing desire for something out of the ordinary. This is a direct departure form the traditional foundation shrubs that came to be the standard look in most front yards of the 70's and 80's.

It's important to realize that an entryway garden is normally the first impression that your visitors will have of your home. Rather than blind them with multiple colors of blooms or boring them with a sea of plain green foliage, consider something more elegant, understated and inviting.

This can be accomplished by using shrubs and perennials with white flowers or that bloom in the neutral or pastel color range, such as pale blue or yellow, light pink or lavender shades. Sticking with these color options makes designing an entryway garden simple since one doesn't need to worry about clashing colors.

We have an excellent selection of plants that will make any front yard the talk of the neighborhood. Most of these plants will make a greater impact when planting in groups of three or more. As with all planting, make sure to add a soil amendment to the hole and add some plant food to help get your plants off to a healthy start.

So come down and visit us today. Our staff of nursery experts is available to help you make a great first impression with all your friends and neighbors.

The fruit is ripening on your backyard fruit trees and the vegetables in your garden are looking really good. You're starting to anticipate a fabulous harvest. Unfortunately, so are the birds, squirrels and other critters. If you are unwilling to share your garden with your winged and animal friends, consider covering your tree with fruit tree netting. Fruit tree netting is easy to install.

For Fruit Trees
Wrap fabric around or drape over your trees (for tall trees, use a pole to lift the netting over tree-tops). Gather it at the trunk and secure it with twist ties. Just roll back edge of netting for easy harvesting.

For Vegetable Gardens, Grapes, or Berries
Simply drape fabric over garden and secure with stakes, or weigh down the corners with heavy objects. To protect seeds, seedlings, and upright plants, elevate netting 6" or more above the ground using stakes, wire, etc. Lift the netting for easy harvesting.
Fruit tree netting is not only durable and lightweight, but also strong enough to protect your garden from thieving birds and other garden pests. It's a safe alternative to chemicals and is reusable season after season. Pick some up today and protect your much anticipated harvest.

Will ants hurt my plants?

Answer:

Not directly. If ants are living in the soil around a plant, they can make the plant dry out and need water more frequently. This is because their ant tunnels create air pockets which dry out the soil faster. On the other hand, those same tunnels help to aerate the soil, which is a good thing. If ants are on the foliage of a plant, that's usually a sign that harmful sucking insects such as aphids or whiteflies are feeding and damaging your plant.

These sucking insects emit a residue called honeydew that is sweet and very attractive to ants. The ants will roam your plant and feed on the sweet honeydew.

Unfortunately, they will do nothing to control the damaging insect. In fact, ants sometimes will move predator insects to fresh parts of the plant to help them create fresh honeydew. At this point, they become partners in crime and should be destroyed. Their criminal status may be determined by interviewing a sampling of suspected ants or catching them red-handed in the act of predator insect transport.

There are several effective methods to control ants, from aerosol sprays, ant baits containing boric acid, to placing a sticky barrier around the trunks of trees or bushes that are vulnerable to attack.

If that doesn't work, shake the plant or tree vigorously and hold an ant stomping party. It's a great way to let out your aggressions.

Product Spotlight: Dr. Earth Organic All Purpose Fertilizer

Dr. Earth All Purpose Organic Fertilizer is the natural way to help plants look their best. It contains a superior blend of organic ingredients in addition to beneficial soil microbes and mycorrhizae. You'll get exceptional results with Dr. Earth because the nutrients are released quickly into the soil for a stronger root system, lustrous foliage and what everyone wants, a greater abundance of blooms. It provides for stable and consistent plant growth so your plants are happy all of the time. So don't delay. Give your plants what they crave. Feed them Dr. Earth Organic All Purpose Fertilizer.