Note the plant in the previous frame was the worst of them. Here is the group. Some better than others. Like I said I know they will survive, and I will have some beautiful plants. I am happy to have them in my garden, I just think they should have been treated a bit better between when they were dug and when I received them........or am I wrong(?). I know some of you have ordered a lot more plants than me......with more orders and more sources.

I can't answer your question, really, but last year I got plants from place I ordered from the year before, and ordered again this year. They looked similar, actually almost whitish like they had been grown in dark. Roots looked good like yours, but I worried. Within days though they greened up and did fine. I certainly expected better, but was happy.

Temperatures during shipping - which the vendor has NO control over - can certainly impact the appearance and state of health of mail ordered plants. Even a short period of time with extremes either hot or cold can have very negative results. However, daylilies are incredibly resilient perennials, the drive-a-truck-over kind that can take considerable abuse and bounce back without issue.

I would not be concerned about a less than pristine appearance. That is a risk with any kind of mail order!

Plant them. They should do fine and start showing new green growth from the center in a week or so. The roots look good. I wouldn't blame the seller. Many parts of the country were experiencing a heat wave with temps in the 90s last week., and I would say it's heat that's gotten to your plants. If the box was left out on a postal loading dock in the hot sun and transported in hot mail trucks, this would be the result. I received an order that was lost in the mail for 11 days before I received it, and all the plants looked far worse than yours. After just three weeks, they are flourishing again.

Debra

the drive-a-truck-over kind that can take considerable abuse and bounce back without issue.

==>> did gal just quote me... lol ...

i will add ... you could probably throw them as is.. on the driveway for a month and not kill them .. lol ...

but dont leave them standing i water too long.. they are not aquatics ...

if you want to baby them.. just shove them in the ground near a spigot.. and water them often.. and move them in fall .. if you dont care to bother.. just plant them wherever ... water them in.. and forget about them for a year ...

ken

I left a plant that was a bonus in water expecting it to die. Nah! They are tougher than that. It stayed the balance of summer, fall, winter, and in spring the silly thing bloomed in the water. I planted it then since it seemed to want so much to live. It continues to bloom well. I have another that has been in the water a year and it is gree and healthy. I live in the deep south which may affect growth. And in answer to the original question, they may look any kind of a condition or color when you get them. I soak them at least overnight, then plant them in pots and I allow them to grow roots in the pots before I plant them in the ground although most people probably don't do that. I rarely lose a new one treated this way.

kay

Thank you all for your experienced input!!

Years ago I visited a daylily farm - the seller dug them and put them in paper bags. I forgot one in the back seat of the car - it was there for no telling how long.......couple of months. It was all shriveled up and I started to throw it away, but put it in water, let it soak and planted it. Lo and behold - it grew and bloomed! I pot up my new daylilies, being careful not to over pot them or plant them too deep. They do great.

They are all but invincible.

kay