Nor'East Daylilies www.noreastdaylilies.com/

2012 Introductions are up on the website

2012-02-03T06:40:00.000-08:00

Here is a photo of 'PHILL WARBASSE' - A 2012 Introdution

Here is a photo of 'SENATOR EDWARD M. KENNEDY' the second 2012 introduction

I traveled to Nashville, Tennessee to attend the most enjoyable Mid-Winter Symposium of AHS Region 10 a couple of weeks ago and shared pictures of the hybridizing program of George Doorakian including the two 2012 introduction above. They are up and available for sale on the website at: http://www.noreastdaylilies.com/

Awards and Honors

2011-10-27T10:24:00.000-07:00

From October 13-16th, I had a great dose of daylily people, when the AHS Board of Directors, Staff and Special Committee Chairs were able to combine the fall Board meeting with the Region 5, Fall Fling held in Atlanta, Georgia. After two days of various Board meetings on Thursday and Friday, several of us were able to attend portions of the Fling that lasted until about noon on Sunday. Lots of good work done at the Board meeting and lots of great presentations at the Fling made for a great several days. On Friday night after the Board meeting, as tradition established, we were able to announce all the new Awards and Honors winning daylilies to those in attendance at dinner. That night, Webmaster Tim Fehr put up pictures of the winners on the rotating home page. Please check out all the winners at http://www.daylilies.org/AHSawards.html where you will be amazed at the variety of daylilies in all sizes, shapes, and colors. The two highest awards are the Stout Silver Medal that went to hybridizer gary Schaben for his flower, 'Northwind Dancer' and the Lenington All American Award that went to hybridizer Patrick Stamile for 'Ruby Spider'. Congratulations to both winners!

AHS Membership

2011-08-18T07:05:00.000-07:00

This is a great time to be part of the American Hemerocallis Society. We're right on the edge of seeing a growth in our Society for the first time in nine years. As of today, we only need 31 more members for this year to reach our goal! If you are part of a daylily club that has non-AHS members in your ranks, this is a great chance to have a drawing among non-members for a gift membership. The $15 trial membership is in effect now for this year with receipt of two terrific color-rich issues of The Daylily Journal if membership is entered by the end of this month. You will probably receive a regional newsletter and can access the members only portal. If your club achieves 65% or greater AHS members, your club will receive recognition in the Journal and on the AHS Website (www.daylilies.org) and on the members only portal (www.daylilynetwork.org). Your club can win Bronze, Silver, Gold or even Platinum status for 100% membership. Check out membership information at either site. This is a great time to join us on this daylily adventure.

Membership in the AHS

2011-08-01T08:27:00.000-07:00

People join clubs and groups for many reasons. One of the most common is to enjoy meeting people with shared interests. The Daylily Society - AHS - is one place where you meet with almost 8000 other people who are interested in a superior perennial that comes in almost unlimited colors and forms. This year we are offering a trial membership for the rest of this year - for just $15 you'll get 2 copies of our fabulous color Daylily Journal and an issue of a regional newsletter distributed across the US and Canada, as well as a chance to participate in our members only portal where you can upload pictures, participate in forums and groups, make contacts with other daylily growers in your area, blog about what's important to you, and purchase some cool daylily merchandise through a link to a Zazzle store. If you are interested - go to www.daylilynetwork.org and click on the Join the AHS button on the left top column, or go to www.daylilies.org and click on Membership on the home page.

Pictures from the MidWinter Symposium in Nashville

2011-01-26T10:29:00.001-08:00

All of these pictures are by the talented photographer, Susan Okrasinki. Thanks very much. These are pictures from the MidWinter Symposium in Nashville last weekend. Above is Barbara White from Ontario who spoke on the evolution of her outstanding garden which I had a chance to see at a Region 4 regional meeting is on the left, Mandy McMahon is in the middle and gave us a great look into her developing gardens and growing family in a most delightful way, and her husband, Ed is on the right.

Here are Joann Stewart (AHS Exhibition Judges Records Chair), Paul Owen (Auctioneer extraordinaire) and Sandy Holmes (Region 2 Hybridizer and AHS Portal Rollout Specialist) at the Symposium

Here are Jean Pickles, Joann Stewart and Brenda Macy (Director from Region 10 and AHS Publications Chair) enjoying a few minutes between speakers at last weekend's great event.

DAYLILY SYMPOSIUMS

2011-01-25T10:20:00.000-08:00

I'm just back from a delightful trip to Nashville, Tennessee to participate in the twenty-first Midwinter Symposium hosted by AHS Region 10 last weekend, 1/21-23/11. This was the first winter symposium of its kind when it first began. It was organized by Lee Pickles, who is the recipient of the Helen Field Fischer Gold Medal for outstanding service to the American Hemerocallis Society. Now there are a number of these out-of-bloom-season symposiums around the country. Note the calendar section to the right for the locations of some additional meetings coming up.

Not only are these events a great chance to meet other like-minded people, but is a chance to see and hear some terrific programs loaded with colorful photos and to learn more about daylilies. I hope you get a chance to participate in one of these -two more are coming up next month. Check them out.

What's new in AHS

2010-12-21T11:43:00.000-08:00

Here's wishing all of you a happy holiday season and the best of new years in 2011.
The 15 member Board of Directors of the American Hemerocallis Society meet with our staff and special committee chairs twice a year and our last meeting was held in Columbus, Ohio the last weekend in October and hosted by the hospitable Metropolitan Columbus Daylily Society. Starting on January 1st we will have a new slate of officers and committee chairs so be sure to check out the AHS website at www.daylilies.org/ after January 1st if you are trying to get information. I'm pleased to announce that at the meeting in Columbus, the Board approved the use of membership management software from yourmembership.com to create a society members portal to access information relationg to the Society and their membership. This will also allow a Society Networking Community. Work is underway to get this up and running late this winter so stay tuned for more information.

The Society will also be offering a new system of recognition for clubs with over 25 members that have achieved from 65%-100% of AHS membership of their members from Bronz through Platinum. More to come on that in the future too.

A new year is about to start along with some great opportunities to attend symposia where you can learn a lot about daylilies and meet a truly friendly and knowledgable group of people. The first is scheduled in January and is called the Midwinter Symposium in Nashville, TN being held from Friday, January 21 - Sunday, January 23, 2011 - here is information about the program: http://www.daylilies.org/2011Files/Mid-Winter-Symposium-2011.pdf

I'll try to add upcoming events as I hear of them.

September 1st Deadlines in the AHS Daylily World

2010-08-26T10:50:00.000-07:00

September 1st will be here shortly and for members of the American Hemerocallis Society there are some deadlines rapidly approaching.

The first is the annual Popularity Poll vote, which is done by geographical location, as either a member of one of the fifteen regions in the US and Canada, or as an international member. Visit http://www.daylilies.org/PopPoll/ballot.html and vote. As a service to its members and to the general public, each year the AHS conducts a popularity poll among its members to determine the favorite daylilies from each region. It is the hope of the AHS that this Popularity Poll presents a true picture of which daylilies perform well in a given area and which are best liked by the membership.
My friend Nikki says; "There is nothing to mail, no need to find just the right pen, and no paper ballot to find in that stack of to-do's on your desk. Just visit the above link and cast YOUR vote for YOUR favorite daylilies."

The second deadline is that September 1st is the last date for a postmark for AHS Garden Judges to mail their Awards and Honors Ballot for this year. This voting by all accredited AHS Garden Judges determines the winner of the annual Stout Medal, the highest honor that can be awarded to a daylily cultivar, the pinnacle of the AHS Pyramid hierarchy of awards. Learn more at: http://www.daylilies.org/AHSJudgesDocsG.html

The third deadline involves student research grant applications that are welcomed on September 1st as well. The AHS is pleased to solicit applications for an AHS Student Research Grant from graduate or undergraduate students or faculty/staff using daylilies (plant genus Hemerocallis) as experimental organisms in original research projects. Applications should be sent to:
Patricia Loveland, Scientific Studies Chair
7665 NW McDonald Circle
Corvallis, OR 97330 U.S.A.
541-745-5496
lovelanp@peak.org

A Capital Affair

2010-08-11T09:05:00.000-07:00

Last month I was happy to attend the annual regional meeting in Region 4 of the AHS sponsored by the Hudson Adirondack Daylily Society in Albany, NY. Despite a growing season of extreme heat and limited rain, we had a real treat in the gardens we toured as part of the event, and those that were open to visitors before and after the meeting. We were even treated to fresh blueberries harvested from the bushes in the garden in one. We also saw a great variety of gardens, including a masterful garden behind a town house utilizing every inch of space up the hill behind the home in a most refreshing manner, and a hidden garden behind a city row house. I highly recommend that you check out these regional meetings all over the US for next year and plan to attend one or two of them. You won't be disappointed. You can find information on the AHS website at: http://www.daylilies.org/AHSreg.html

2010-07-12T11:54:00.000-07:00

I'm just back from judging two beautiful daylily exhibitions. One for the New England Daylily Society held in Tower Hill in Boylston, Massachusetts on Saturday and the other for the Long Island Daylily Society held at the Planting Fields Botantical Garden in Oyster Bay, NY. Despite horrible weather, off the chart heat and dry spells both clubs put on an impressive display of well grown and beautiful daylilies. If you've never attended a Daylily Exhibition, a Daylily Show, do consider doing so next year (still a couple left for this year around the country - see the list to the right). Daylily season here in New England is winding down for me, because the heat and dryness actually shortened the number of buds that could bloom. Daylily people are the best when it comes to hospitality. I traveled to the New York show with a friend, Kate Reed, and we were most graciously welcomed to stay overnight at the home of a member of the Long Island group, Louise Peloso. We had a great time from start to end. Daylily people are the greatest.

2010-06-06T11:36:00.000-07:00

Dear Friends, to let you know about daylily club events that are happening around the country, I've made a new list in the right side bar that will list events scheduled to take place in the upcoming months. You can always go to the AHS Website - link at the top of this page, to see what is happening in the 15 regions of the AHS such as summer regional meetings, but this listing is to let you know what other club events might be happening that I know about. Also on the side bar is the upcoming daylily exhibitions that have been scheduled. If you would like to see the truly extraordinary variety of daylily colors (they're not just orange and yellow any more), sizes, shapes and forms, patterns, eyes, watermarks and the like, a trip to a daylily exhibition being held within driving distance to you is an excellent opportunity. You won't be disappointed.

2010-06-03T09:59:00.001-07:00

Dear Friends, I got back on Sunday from a wonderful visit to Valdosta, Georgia for the 64th Annual AHS Convention. The Board of Directors, Staff and Special Chairs of the Society attended two days of meetings before the garden tours for the convention.
The gardens were pristine and a true feast for the eyes. We had a wonderful time.
Many great awards were announced at the annual Awards Banquet on Saturday night.
Our hosts were the members of the Valdosta Hemerocallis Society and Region 5 of the AHS, and they took their hosting duties most seriously and delivered an event of outstanding success. I'll try to post some pictures from the gardens to the blog over the next few weeks. The highest award in the Society for Service is the Helen Field Fischer Gold Medal and this was awarded to Bill and Jean Norris of Florida for over 45 years of tremendous team efforts on behalf of their local club, their region and the entire AHS. They weren't able to attend but a telephone call from the Banquet to notify them was exciting to hear their surprise and delight at receiving this award. Congratulations! The highest award in the Society for hybridizing, creating new daylily cultivars, is called the Bertrand Farr Silver Medal. This year it went to Dan Trimmer also of Florida - a most deserving individual for this outstanding honor. A third award to honor an individual who has served as an outstanding mentor, the Steve Moldovan Mentoring Award, went to David Kirchhoff of Kentucky as the second recipient of this award that was institued last year. Mr. Kirchhoff has in the past also received both the Helen Field Fischer and the Bertrand Farr Awards and therefore represents the first individual to receive all three of these prestigious awards. You can find out most of the awards by checking out the AHS Website - the link is noted on this page, but I hope to post more here later.

Springtime in New England

2010-05-08T17:54:00.000-07:00

For the past week, my Daphne has been in full bloom sending the most delighful scent into my home as it is growing right beside my front steps outside my livingroom. It usually blooms for two weeks but seems to be winding down already. Other plants are blooming quite early up here in Massachusetts. Some of my medium bearded iris started up and are blooming ahead of the small short purple iris, called 'Grape Jelly' I think, which is one hybridized by noted Massachusetts daylily hybridizer Bob Sobek. I have two wonderful pink tree peonies that opened yesterday and today - I couldn't resist and went out and cut some of the blooms for the house in between two showers so I can enjoy them before the rain ruined them. These are dinner plate sized pink blooms that make me swoon with delight. The lilacs have been early this year also. Next weekend is 'Lilac Sunday" at the Arnold Arboretum and unless they have some lates ones many lilacs will be finished their bloom. If these things are blooming, can daylily season be far behind?

2010-04-19T17:30:00.000-07:00

Daylily season is rapidly approaching. There are lots of daylily meetings and, starting in May, there are lots of daylily exhibitions (shows) that will be taking place all over North America. Remember to check out the regional information page on the AHS Website at http://www.daylilies.org/AHSreg.html and pick out the area on the maps to find out what's happening near you. I'll try to share some of these with you as daylily peak season bloom moves south to north over the next 3 months. If you are located in northern California, the Nor Cal Daylily Group will hold their next meeting next Saturday, April 24, with a well known daylily hybridizer as guest speaker, Luddy Lambertson. Luddy breeds daylilies with unusual eyezones, shapes and colors. They are meeting at 11 AM at the Courtyard by Marriott, 120 Nut Tree Parkway , Vacaville, CA. If you are going to be anywhere near Toronto, Ontario the following weekend,check out the Ontario Daylily Society's 14th Annual CAN-AM Classic, April 30th, May 1st and 2nd, 2010, a meeting with loads of speakers from both Canada and the U.S. For more information go to: http://www.ontariodaylily.on.ca/
Check back often and I'll try to highlight as many events as I can.

Due date for scholarships around the corner

2010-03-02T17:10:00.000-08:00

The AHS offers an opportunity for youths and others to win a scholarship if they are studying in a horticulture related field. There is also an annual award of one Life Membership in the AHS to the youth who submits the best application. The deadline for the youth scholarship, called the AHS Bertie Ferris Youh Scholarship and for the Christine Erin Stamile Youth Award is coming up at the end of this Month. Applications go to the Youth Chairman who can be reached at youth@daylilies.org. The Mabel Matthews Scholarship can be applied for by any AHS member who fulfills the eligibility requirements and who is studying in a horticulturally related field. Applications for the Mabel Matthews Scholarship are due by April 1st and should be sent to the Endowments Chair who can be reached at the endowments@daylilies.org address. Read more about all of these on the AHS Website at www.daylilies.org/ by clicking on the Youth Page or the Research Grants/Scholarships Page

2010-02-24T14:46:00.000-08:00

A new and fabulous issue of the Daylily E-News came out today. It is Volume 3 No. 1 and is chock full of great information about what's happening in the world of daylilies. We thank Daylily World for sponsoring this first issue in 2010. New Editor Elizabeth Trotter has assembled an impressive amount of information including stories and pictures for your viewing pleasure, ways to find out more information about dayliies, how to apply for grants, a feature article giving some great tips on how to get your daylilies safely to a daylily exhibition, and much more. To subscribe just email the Editor at daylilyenews@daylilies.org or check out the link on the AHS website at: http://www.daylilies.org/ENews.html You won't regret it.

The AHS Website

2010-02-16T12:51:00.000-08:00

If you are interested in daylilies, be sure to check out the official website of The American Hemerocallis Society: www.daylilies.org/ If you click on the News and Announcements page it tells you about a number of new additions to the website, including a new article with suggestions on how to transport daylilies to shows that was just posted on Valentine's Day. There is also a handbook on Judging Daylilies that is available for free download that contains a wealth of information about daylilies, judging daylilies, and running a daylily show; it can be found at http://www.dayliiles.org/AHSJudgesDocsG.html
The AHS is the registration authority for new daylily cultivars and you have access to over 60,000 daylilies in the online daylily database. Take a minute to look around the site. I think you'll be glad that you did.

American Hemerocallis Society (The Daylily Society)

2010-02-13T06:27:00.000-08:00

Just last month, I became the President of the American Hemerocallis Society. Over 8,000 members of the Society enjoy growing, hybridizing, talking about, and learning about daylilies. The Latin name Hemerocallis means "flower for a day" because each individual bloom lasts for one day, but that one bloom can be followed by 20, 30 or 40 more blooms on each scape (stem). I hope to share current news about people, events, the flower, and the Society with you on this page. Check out our website at: www.daylilies.org