The
Merry Weather Garden Club met in Woodland on Thursday, July 10th,
2014. Hosting the meeting were Marilyn Austen Carter and Lynda Woodall.
The
ladies met at Larkspur Antiques and were disappointed to find the antique store
inaccessible for shopping but toured the garden behind the store that was
cultivated by Baker Hendricks who won several awards for his daylilies which he
propagated and named. Today the store
and property are owned by Larry Lees and greatly appreciated by local plant
enthusiasts.
The
program was on daylilies or hemerocallis, plants not native to Georgia (from
Asia) but perfect for our climate and soil. Named in the top ten of the one hundred
best plants, lilies thrive in our Georgia clay. The name means beauty and day
as the blooms last just one day. Easy to grow, daylilies reproduce and make
clumps that need dividing every three or four years.
The
program, given by former Merry Weather Garden Club President Mary Anne
Rasmussen, covered digging and dividing the fans, planting, and cultivating.
July or just after the lily blooms is the best time to dig and divide the fans,
separate each, and replant. Most growers complain that this time of year lilies
look awful as the greenery dies. Frequent
grooming of the yellowed and brown leaves rids that neglected look. Rasmussen says
she plants her lilies with other plants like black eyed Susan, shrub roses,
penstamen, and thyme so there is plenty of interest in the flower bed.
Lilies
like full sun, lots of water, fertilizer the first week of March and October,
and thrive when they are cut back in winter. The goals of lily growers are,
depending on the variety, produce plants that have four to six blooms, double
blooms, and blooms with unique colors or details like frothy lace edges.
Most
lilies are diploids with a double set of chromosomes (22), but the prized
tetraploid lilies or tets have more genetic material (44 chromosomes) which gives
daylily breeders or hybridizers more chances for dramatic advances.
After
the program at Larkspur, the garden club members retired to tour the home and
garden of Marilyn Austen Carter. Marilyn had decorated the tables with
centerpieces containing twenty two plants from her garden. Club members were
asked to identify them and prizes, a bouquet of sunflowers, were awarded to Mary
Anne Harman and Joan Allen who correctly recognized the most.
In
upcoming garden club events: the next meeting in August will be hosted by Ellen
McEwen and Patti Acheson. The Meriwether club has been invited attend the Elms
and Roses fundraising event in October on the rooftop at Del’Avant.
