Using Daylily Size as a Planting Strategy

One of the best things about daylilies is the fact that they come in a wide range of colors, sizes, shapes and heights. We like to say that no matter what your garden needs, there's a daylily for that!

Aside from their beauty, their varied sizes, shapes and colors are another reason daylilies fit so effortlessly into most any garden. Tall daylilies look fantastic and draw your eye to the back of the garden bed. Short daylilies offer a charming option for the front of the border, and trusty mid-sized daylilies fill in the "between spaces" to add a lush, colorful presence to the garden.

Using a variety of plants with differing heights and bloom sizes creates an interesting and delightful garden. If you are considering building a new garden or reworking an existing one, here are a few tips to keep in mind:

Plant Sizes = Bloom Sizes... Usually (But Not Always!)

If you have ordered from us, you already know that we send bare root plants. We'll be the first to admit that trimmed, bare root plants are hard to differentiate from one another! Here's a trick: Smaller plants typically have smaller blooms and larger plants usually have larger blooms. (Note the use of the words "typically" and "usually!")  Just as in most things in nature, there is no "one size fits all." There are small plants with larger blooms and tall plants with smaller ones, but IN GENERAL, the size of the plant will give you a hint as to its bloom size. Why does this matter? So glad you asked...

Space Your Daylilies By Size

Understanding mature plant sizes—and this is true for any perennial, not just daylilies—is crucial to good planting placement. How many times have you planted something only to have to dig it up and move it a couple years later because it outgrew its spot?  A planting trick that we use is to space your daylilies according to mature height. For example:  Happy Returns is a cheerful early bloomer with small, 3 1/8" blooms that reaches 18" at maturity. Because of this, you'll want to plant it at least 18" away from its neighbor. A taller daylily like Jersey Spider has huge, 8" blooms and grows tall on sturdy scapes about 46" tall.

If you were planting both Happy Returns and Jersey Spider, Jersey Spider should be planted at least 46" away from Happy Returns. It might look weird and somewhat sparse that first year, but trust us: your daylilies will fill in quickly and you'll be so happy later when you don't have to dig up mature plants to move them to a larger space.

Consider Height as a Tool

One of my favorite ways to plant daylilies is to plant tall varieties in the back of the garden and use mid-sized daylilies as camouflage. Tall daylilies are beautiful but can look leggy if there isn't something in front of them. I like to use a few solid mid-sized daylilies like Frankly Scarlet or Buttered Popcorn to plant in front but between the clumps of the taller daylilies. This way, the mid-sized daylilies will grow to hide some of the legginess of the taller varieties.

That being said, I am partial to a garden with a bit of whimsy. I love to plant our tallest variety, Autumn Minaret en masse with nothing  around it. The "leggy look" it offers imparts an airiness that adds to the sense of wonder that comes from standing near a daylily that is the same height (or taller!!) than you are. It's magical.

Daylilies are super easy to grow and maintain. They are very forgiving plants so if a planting mistake is made, digging them up and moving them to a better spot is usually easy enough.  Life is hard enough. Planting flowers shouldn't be.

Interested in learning more? Check out our YouTube channel including this video on "Decoding the Reasons for Different Daylily Sizes."