Color Fade

16 years ago

I'm somewhat new to growing daylilys and I've observed something that I would like to better understand.

Two of the varieties I've planted are not nearly as colorful as their pictures.

The first one is Persian Market. Although lovely, there is not as much depth in the red in the photographs. There has been a little variation in the blooms, but all are lighter than expected.

The second is Cherry Checks. While still in the pot, the bloom was pretty much as expected. A few days later and after planting, the blooms are much lighter, more of a pink than a red. Surprisingly, today's bloom is dark like the original. The lighter colored blooms are identical in form, just not much red in the bloom. It is still an exceptionally pretty flower.

Is it common to have so much variation? Could there be a soil deficiency? Could it be a soil PH problem? At least with Cherry Checks, could I have a mutant "sport"?

Any insight would be appreciated.

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Comments (11)

okbt
16 years ago
I read a hybridizers notes on color in Daylilies and he said that reds are water based and need a lot of it to show good color. Maybe try giving more water.It's worth a shot and the easiest fix if it works.

Betsy
highjack
16 years ago
PERSIAN MARKET is not a red bloom. I wish I could describe it, but red it isn't.

Brooke
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okbt
16 years ago
It is described as a deep rose with a red eyezone. I think until something is settled in a garden the blooms can vary in size and color due to shipping and transplanting.They go through a lot before we get them.

Betsy
sweatin_in_ga
16 years ago
I've had Persian Market for about 5 years. It is always a rose pink with a deeper pink eye. Look at the Tinkers Gardens database. Mine looks like the third picture. The first picture is too bright and the second one looks too red. I'm not Goldie-Locks, but the third one is just right! I have listed the link below. Click on Database, then enter 'Persian Market' and press the search button.
Larry

Here is a link that might be useful: Tinker's Gardens
juliet11
16 years ago
Colors can vary with temperatures too - I think my daylilies are darkest on cool mornings (with adequate water). Some daylilies also fade during the day, so if the photo you're comparing it to was taken first thing in the morning and you see your flower in the afternoon it would look paler. Finally, sometimes it's hard to capture true colors, especially reds and purples, with some cameras.

Juliet
beaufort-2006
16 years ago
yes juliet is right temp,weather conditions such as rain can and does raise heck with colors it a good way to find out if your flowers are what I call color fast.
virgo45
16 years ago
Cherry Cheeks is not a red daylily, it has a dark pink flower as shown in the picture below. I have grown CC for a number of years and have never seen it flower any colour other than dark pink.
joann95118
16 years ago
As you can tell from my garden pictures the color is a little different each day and ranges from pink to rosey pink. I think color is changed by temperatures, night time and day time and also by soil types. Probably the amount of water they get too.

JoAnn

Here is a link that might be useful: Persian Market
jim123
Original Author
16 years ago
Thank you for all the links and comments. Yesterday's blooms on Cherry Cheeks was a nice red (extremely dark pink)and matched the picture that it came with. This morning's blooms according to my wife (I wasn't home to see it) was somewhere in between the dark from yesterday and the very light pink from Saturday. This evening it has faded to something a bit darker than the blooms from Saturday.

I will be very happy if I continue to have this kind a variation, as the garden it is in is near a Rio Somba rose, the the two plants are very complementary.

I suspect from what I have learned here that this is a combination of sun fade and transplant adapting.
suel41452
16 years ago
I'm new at daylilies, too. When I got my "South Seas" daylily, I accidently split the clump in half. One half got planted in morning sun/afternoon full shade, and the other half in full sun. They get the same amount of watering. The semi-shade blooms stay VERY, VERY deep, rich coral, and the full sun blooms are coral. I was surprised that the semi-shaded plants bloomed as well as they did - just as well as the sun one, actually. But maybe South Seas is just a vigorous grower.
Anyway, if you want pretty, saturated color & less fade, I would suggest trying planting a couple fans of your Cherry Cheeks in an afternoon-shaded spot.
jim123
Original Author
16 years ago
An update. The most recent blooms are consistently dark. I'm very happy with it. It is prolific and looks great in it's setting.