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Question about Seed Count on Seedlings

15 years ago

What would be considered an average number of buds on a scape for a seedling blooming for the first time? I not sure that "average" is the best word. What is a decent number, an excellent number, or a poor bud count? I am trying to evaluate seedlings as they bloom but have no experience to guide me. Is there a bud count so low that you will compost a seedling, regardless ot what the bloom looks like? Or do you wait for a whole summer and look for improvement in subsequent scapes if rebloom occurs? Sorry for so many questions, but I know people on this forum have so much knowledge and are willing to help others.

Ann

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Comments (5)

okbt
15 years ago
A good seedling evaluation will take at least 3 years.Bloom,scape and budcount can change until the plant is mature.
farmerbell
Original Author
15 years ago
Are you saying that if a daylily has a low bud count (less than 10) on its first scape that it can improve dramatically to have 20+ buds later? I don't have room to keep all these seedlings, so I am trying to use some criteria on which ones to keep and which to compost. I am looking at overall plant habit, bloom, of course, but also bud count and branching. What else should I consider?

Ann
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katlynn719
15 years ago
Ann, Good question. I've wondered the same thing. But I decided to ignore the bud count for a couple of years. If a DL multiplies rapidly, has lots of scapes and reblooms (like Stella de Oro for instance) then a low bud count wouldn't matter much to me.

Having said that...I have about 50 seedlings from last year that had pretty blooms, so I kept them for further evaluation. About 10 of these have not increased much...still one or two fans. I plan to get rid of these in the fall. At the other end of the scale, I have about a dozen that have increased to about 10 fans and have produced 8-10 scapes this Spring. None of these have a high bud count, but they are nice clumps already. These are the ones I'll keep for another year. All the rest are somewhere in between these two extremes...and I haven't made up my mind about them yet. I know this doesn't really answer your questions, but I thought I'd share my plans.
Kathy
Ed
15 years ago
Bud count is not everything. Spiders and uf, I think, do better on top branched scapes.

If a seedling blooms in 7 months, I don't expect great branching and bud count. But after a year and a half, it better have 3 way branching and 18 buds minimum. Plants grown in the south will typically have greater bud counts and branching than plants grown further north. Decide what you feel is best and next year decide if your rule was too strict or lenient. Modify as necessary.

I still keep way too many seedlings every year for too long!
Good luck,
Ed
shive
15 years ago
Ann,
Yes, a seedling can dramatically improve bud count and branching as it matures. Also, you need to take into consideration that our area experienced a severe drought last year. Most of my mature, registered daylilies that normally have bud counts in the high 20s or 30s this year have only 10-12 buds. With 400, I didn't have the time or money for the waterbill to regularly water all my plants. They are reall showing the after-effects.

Debra

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