Good idea. In the evenings when the beetles start to swarm, do they throw themselves at your windows trying to get to the lilies? If they do, I hope they knock themselves silly. haha

The first couple years I lived here west of Fort Worth, I had an infestation of beetles that was so bad I could hear them munching on all my plants when I sat on the porch swing at night. One night I decided to gather some of the beetles and feed them to my chickens. I got a gallon jar and went out to the yard lamp where they were emerging from the ground and started catching them. The first year I did this I could fill the jar to about half for 14 nights in a row. The chickens loved them.

The second, third and fourth years it was about the same. Then a couple years ago the number of beetles started to taper off and I noticed less and less damage to my roses and other plants. This is the 11th Spring of beetle harvesting at my house, and I have so few flying around it's almost a waste of time trying to catch them.

After describing this wanton annihilation of a race of apparently useless destroyers of cultivated roses, I hope some radical beetle lover doesn't chime in here and chastise me for feeding them to my chickens.

Cheryl

There are no Japanese beettle lovers. Too bad you can't let the chickens out to chatch those beetles themselves. I am sure they would love that.

I have never tried calla lillies although they would be annuals around here.

These were planted the summer we "met" Rita. Just before I had surgery on the knee. DH actually had to do some of the breaking up and diiging to plant them. I need to divide them now, they are really thick.
kay

Well, Callas are beautiful. But I don't like to plant bulbs or tubers that I have to dig up in the fall and replant in the spring. I have enough else to do around here. But I did put in both cannas and dahlias this year and will have to lift them both late this fall if I don't want to loose them.

kay- the fall after the knee surgery is when I remember you buying and planting lots and lots of daylilies. Not that it has stopped since then.

I have quit adding things for spring. I figgure if I didn't get to it already, I can wait until next year. I did add or bring back so many plants I used to have before the daylily crazies that I did a great job already this spring. I have mantience to do alround here, like weeding and mulching. Have alreasy started on the weeding and mulching projects but they never really go away.

Rita,
You are right. That is precisely when I started buying and planting the daylilies. And the iris came after that and the roses. The clematis started at about the same time, but I got caught in the disaster with the company going out of business. Chalk Hill. It took a while to recover from that.

At any rate, the garden has surpassed itself. It has been the best therapy I could have found. My health and strength have improved dramatically since the heavy gardening started. And you, my friend, have inspired a good deal of it with your beautiful photographs.

kay

Like you, I had a lot to do this spring. Right now I am pretty pleased with the way the garden looks. Especially as the TB iris were spectacular their first year here, the roses are still blooming and the daylilies are just about to start. PLus I have all my spring plants I kept ordering and or buying locally pretty much planted. And I like to both take and post pictures of the garden. If that inspires people, that is good. I know you have been feeding my adiction to the TB iris with your fabulous shots both last year and this spring. PLus you have so many truely lovely daylilies. I don't need any more daylilies at all. IN fact I want to cut back just afew, maybe about 50. We will see.

Rita,
I am up to 262,(I finally counted them). Remember, DH guessed 100) and I am probably not cutting back, but I will make some changes. If I don't get decent bloom or love the bloom or both...it will be replaced.

I had planned to replace a couple this year that have bloomed their heads off, so...we'll see.
kay

Its not numbers for me. This year I finially counted the daylilies. 600. So I didn't say to myself oh I have 600 daylilies, I would like to have 550. No rather I would like to move afew here and there from the backyard garden were I have the korths. I used to have annuals mixed in there and miss the extra color. First year cosmos, second year snapdragons. This year they have grown to clumps and no room for annuals. Well, I am not going to dig up everything and put it all back to the 2 fans or so I started with. I am going to just move out afew clumps from that area so that I have room to put some spots of color (annuals) here and there.

The other thing I want to do is move out the middle grouping of daylilies from the second terrace of the terraces garden by the front door. The first year I had them I had zinnias mixed in there, No room now. I loved it with the zinnias so figgured if I leave the two end groupings and move out the middle grouping I can put some zinnias back in there and be extra pleased.

Trouble is I have no where to move these ones I want to move. So I do need to get rid of about 50 (my guess) to do what I want. I am going to mark poor preformers and other dogs this year. PLus just mark ones that have never done anything for me. I have so many daylilies now that I just don't need to keep the duds nor the ones that I just never really cared for either.

262 doesn't sound like too much to me. But you are smart to start moving out any duds now. Otherwise it gets away from you. And you can get new (better) ones then without making the beds bigger.

I know last year I went crazy with my roses and moved around lots of the rose beds by the side of my house. I then bought mostly bands from Vintage and Heirloom and planted. This spring there is one that I just do not like. Northing wrong with it really, I thought I would like it when I bought it. Buit I just don't. I will replace it with a new rose when this years order from Heirloom and Vintage gets here. I don't much worry about if I might make a mistake when I mail order. IF I don't like it, as in this case, I can easily replace it. And I get such fabulous roses. Much more selection than if you only bought locally.

I have decided that if I don't like it, or it doesn't bloom well, it is gone to try another. I already have them in as many places as I intend to have them. I will have three large iris beds this fall. Enough. I am passing on those that don't please me.

To be honest, I am tired for the first time ever with daylilies. There are enough blooming that it takes a while to dead head, then take pictures then upload to photobucket. It won't be long (I know, I know) but the peak is lasting longer by far then it ever has. Ignore me.
kay

Well, not going to ignore you. But I only deadhead what I want to take a picture of and what shows up in the viewfinder. Otherwise I would neveer get it done. During daylily opeak bloom season here, I don't do any gardening. I water if I have too. The rest of the garden doings is to take pictures of the daylilies every day, download and then upload them. Then post. Now you know what I have been doing for years. It takes hours and hours to get it all done during peak bloom. But I love it, don't know how I managed without my daylilies before I got the daylily crazies.

Like you, I have done all the daylily beds and areas that I am going to have. Thats why I need to cut back some, as there is no where to move those ones I want to move. And I am not making or expanding beds for more daylilies. I do have the TB iris crazies really bad and want more iris. So that is what I will be working on. Plus I want to plant more different types of zinnias than I have had a chance to get to in the past few years. It all takes time and it all takes work. Raining today so no garden work going on. Instead I am on the Schreiners Iris site putting TB iris into my shopping cart LOL!

Let me tell you, I had no idea how long it would take to do the deadheading etc...

Iris are so beautiful, I can understand why that is what you are doing.

DH has converted to volunteer that the daylilies are beautiful.

Actually the reason I am so very tired tonight is that a friend from work insisted on coming to see the daylilies today, so I had to spend time and energy straightening up and piking blueberries and making muffins....Whine! Whine! Whine! That and a little medication cahnge are to blame, I think although the daylilies have been work...lots of it. I am going to post on another subject.