In the last pic with the scape appearing to touch the hay bale in the distance is What's Up Down South. Monster tall this year and won't be able to measure it till the season ends.

Not sure what is wrong with Houzz as my comments by some of the pics appears to be breaking into a new line.

I am always impressed with how tall your scapes are. That makes your photos special when viewing them. In the south, my foliage has three or four months to grow before even scaping. Therefore, some foliage is almost that tall before the blooms begin. I much prefer yours-you have the lush foliage but at a reasonable height! And I feel your dread on that dividing. I have several beds that need that and have for several years but since our extreme heat extends through October, it is hard to accomplish much. I do so love that bed shot. I get some like that when the hay is baled since one of the pastures is adjacent to my front lawn. I love that look of the hay bales in the background and your lilies are gorgeous, big clumps and all!!

Kate

Yes, I saw that Jellyfish was well into the 30s here too. The hay field is your neighbor's, is it not?

I had no idea you meant Jellyfish Jealousy was in the 30s! It must be a combination of your winters, your soil, and all that rain. And Mantis says it was in the 30s in Ohio too. I'm planting mine in the ground later today. One of the reasons I never got it out of the pot was the registered height of 24 inches. I just used it for hybridizing. If I could get even 26 or 28 inches on it I'd be happy. The height of the two Davissons is not surprising, since they are registered with heights in the 40s. The bed with all the clumps is beautiful! Why do you have to get it divided and dug out?

Debra

I hope you can get JJ in the ground and out of the pot. I have several daylilies which I want to move to the back beds because I've been eliminating other beds to make my life easier. I also like to be able to grow other perennials with the daylilies like I've done with the front. But I think I will make sure rudbeckia, lychnis and purple coneflowers are used sparingly.

Debra and others,

I just live about 45 minutes south of Julia and I also grow Jellyfish Jealousy. For the last 4 years, the majority of scapes have been in the 30 + inch range. What I also noticed is that the scapes in the middle of the clump were taller than the ones on the edges of the clump. I know that JJ is known to take a while to get established. I left my clump undisturbed for 8 years. It really didn't show itself until 4 years ago. This past spring, I dug into it quite a bit to the point of digging it up as its crown is not the easiest to divide. I replanted it and it scaped this year and they are under 24 inches. I think that many factors play a role in scape height - the maturity of the crown, level of disturbance and genetics. This is just my observation with certain plants.

David

Well, David, those are important factors, but you leave out one of the major ones: weather. In certain years, weather factors (mainly, I think, spring fluctuation in temps) have produced an abnormal number of short scapes. Take, for example, the large number of short scapes that Debra (and I, to a lesser extent) experienced last year.

I do understand the need to eliminate beds as we get older. I'm trying to eliminate one that I don't pay much attention to - my old hot colors garden where nearly everything in it is orange and replace registered daylilies in another bed with seedlings The questions I ask myself about every daylily now: Do I really love it? and Does is perform well enough to keep a space in my ever shrinking sun areas?. Did the lynchis self seed, or does it just spread too much?

Debra

David - Thanks for your input on Jellyfish Jealousy's height in your garden!

Mantis - You are right that weather can be a factor in scape height.

Debra

Lychnis (Rose Campion) self seeds and can get tall 2 to 3 ft and a bit of straggly stems once it finishes blooming.I'll take a pic if I remember. I have it in my lawn too which it keeps getting mowed down but doesn't seem to stop it.

Nice to see the height of the plants, and the bed shot is a real beauty.

kay

Interesting post. Love the bed shot!

Brad

That's a pretty looking bed! I like tall daylilies, but they also make huge clumps. I need to divide a lot this year, so I know what you mean about feeling tired just thinking about it..

I'm happy to see that you and David are getting taller scapes on JJ. My new plant will be blooming shortly and I'll save pollen, though I won't allow it to set pods this first year. But I do favor taller scapes and that's encouraging.

Alex