June Plant of the Month

Hemerocallis 'Forsyth Lemon Drop'

by Adrienne Roethling,

Director of Curation and Mission Delivery

Hemerocallis or Daylily is a large group of plants with several dozen species, mostly native to Asia, and countless varieties introduced by plant breeders everywhere. They have been around for hundreds of years, in fact first documentations date back to thousands of years ago in China. Daylilies became popular in the United States at the turn of the 19th century with plant breeding occurring well over 100 years ago.

              If you’ve been to the garden since Grand Opening of 2011, you may have noticed some hybrid daylilies starting with the word “Forsyth.”  We are honored to be growing daylilies bred by Garden Member, Donor and Volunteer, Wyatt LeFever.  Wyatt began hand-pollinating daylilies 25 years ago and has produced over 100 different kinds that are now commercially available.  Wyatt LeFever used the word “Forsyth” in the name to represent Forsyth County, NC.  As I travel and visit public gardens, I stroll through their daylily collection and often find Wyatt’s hybrid daylilies on display.  Hemerocallis ‘Forsyth Lemon Drop’ hybrid daylily stays small, only reaching 12” tall and wide.  It’s one of the first to bloom and last to end its bloom cycle.  In my opinion, ‘Forsyth Lemon Drop’ has a superior habit over ‘Stella D’Oro’ daylily. All daylilies prefer growing in full sun in rich soils.

            Join or Renew your garden membership for the month of June and your name will be included in a drawing for a complimentary division of Hemerocallis ‘Forsyth Lemon Drop’.