Keep the Green While You Clean

The lates and the rebloomers are still gracing the garden, much to our delight. Storm Surf (pictured) has sent up as many new scapes lately as it did earlier in the season. But, of course, the majority of the daylilies have gone by, and the cleanup has begun.

It seems there are plenty of differing opinions as to the best way to deal with post-bloom daylilies. I’ve come across a variety of articles and blogs and posts with instructions that varying from “mow them all down” (yikes!) to “leave them alone.” Being such a resilient perennial, our favorite flower seems to be able to withstand almost anything, it seems!

That said, some practices make more sense to me than others. Throughout the season, as some of those bottom leaves turn yellow and begin to dry out, I regularly pull them; it doesn’t hurt the plant, and it keeps the garden looking fresher and neater. The overriding principle to keep in mind is this: green foliage is feeding the roots and helping the plant to grow larger and stronger next year; dried, yellow foliage is no longer performing that function.

This is why I don’t cut all the leaves down at this time of year. You do see some gardeners doing just that, and no doubt they have their reasons; but there’s still a lot of green foliage, and cutting it this early means that those plants will send up new green shoots, using up some of their stored root energy for no good reason. (Take note: cutting foliage does NOT stimulate new fan divisions!) I like to wait until later in the season, as we experience a few frosts, to trim down whatever foliage is left.

Now is the time to gather seed pods, if you wish, pull the spent brown scapes and older foliage, and discover the weeds that have flourished under cover – but none of this is necessary, really. It keeps the garden looking neater, but there will be more to do later. Personally, I think that pulling those weeds now is the best idea. Why bother?, you ask, now that the blossoms have gone by and the garden is nearly done? Well, most of the weeds are sending out their seeds, and getting rid of them now will cut way down on next year’s weeding.

Later, before winter sets in, it’s best to remove the remainder of the dead daylily foliage. This cuts down on overwintering fungi and mites, and eliminates a potential source of moist rot in the spring. If you want to mulch – and I certainly do mulch my evergreen daylilies, this far north – it should be done AFTER a good hard frost.

But truly, whatever course of action (or inaction) you take in the fall, your daylilies will likely come through just fine. Putter around and clean up if it pleases you, leave it alone if you don’t have the time … it’ll all be okay!