The nice thing about DLs is that they're not fussy! I do pretty much what you do - and divide them when they get crowded. The ones nearest the woods I spray Liquid Fence on when they get buds to keep the deer from munching. I try to give all the DLs lots of water during blooming season. That's about it. I use mulch around them in the winter, but you don't want to have the mulch too high the rest of the year - if you cover the crown they may not bloom.

I just feed them in the spring,weed,water,and the occasional insecticidal soap spray if the thrips are too bad.

Betsy

I never water mine and I have well over 300 varieties with also as many or more seedling crosses. I mulch with hay and the chickens we have free range and give them fertilizer as they scratch.

I sprinkle Milorganite around the peremiter of all of my beds (including hosta and veggie) in the early spring and late fall to keep the deer away from the beds. We have plenty of deer and they are all over the place, but the Milorganite keeps them from my flowers.

Daylilies are truly care-free and I think you can certainly 'over-coddle'.

I think a lot of it depends on your own personal gardening habits & style...if you strive for perfection, going by the book, etc, or if you are a lazy gardener (me) and hope you get it (mostly) right the first time with little maintenance in the future...

That having been said, I try to give them a good home to begin with: good soil, good light, and knowing that my soil is already nice & rich anyway (houselot is an old apple orchard & farm), I do little else except mulch thickly first, then pull out the crabgrass & other weeds as I see them. I try to get in my garden spaces daily just to 'survey' things. I don't fertilize, although I do take note of people's posts here, and file it away on the back burner if I decide to do something like that later.

I'm constantly moving things, too. Shorties shouldn't get stuck in amongst the big things so they are stretching their necks to show me what they've got...so I try to pay some attention throughout the season to make sure I move them up front if needed. There will be a lot of that going on as my 'unmarked' bed gets itself established in the next couple seasons.

Thank you, everyone. I appreciate all the replies! I had read that daylilies weren't fussy before I purchased so many, and I'm glad to hear confirmation from the field (so to speak).

I am very excited by my "Frankly Scarlet" that opened this past week. Zowie, they are beautiful-- a rich red, like velvet. Everyday I have to check my garden to see what new surprise awaits.