I listed all my dl's in a table in Window's Works
Just an example:
name Tet/Dip Hybridizer/Year Size Discription

Rebecca Marie D Joiner l988 26" 6" Dbl Pink w/Red this didn't line up here but you get the point. I
can print a list when I need to and take list out to garden
when they bloom, etc.

If you put it in a table, you can keep it in Alpha. order and
add a line anytime you buy a new DL I also use Paw-Paw
21" markers and a Lable Maker to keep up with them in the
garden. I make a lable when I plant them with name, hybridizer, size.

I just keep mine on a spreadsheet, works well for me. I don't try to keep detailed info on performance, although I have started tracking FFO & descriptions, where & when I got them. I do need to do something about keeping up with locations. I tag my daylilies, but those stupid garden gnomes keep stealing them. I visit my daylilies enough that I remember the older ones, but I have problems with new plants :) Of course, I move them around occasionally. Last fall I moved Royal Occasion & Barbary Corsair, both were new in 08. This year I had 4 plants in different locations, all looked very similar & of course, NONE of them tagged. I think I figured out which is Royal Occasion, not sure of the others though. I'm going to dig them up this fall & see if the tag is buried.
I remember last year someone had a link to some nice daylily software, I thought about it, but I think I had rather spend the money on daylilies.

This question comes up often, and I have still not found anything that works better than a spreadsheet (Excell) for me. If you are a paid member of Tinkers, you can establish a "my daylilies" list and export it in .xls format, and you instantly have all of the info that is in Tinkers on your spreadsheet list. Then you can modify it, deleting the columns that you don't have an interest in, and adding your own such as garden, year purchased, where purchased, etc. This makes it easy to sort your DL by name, hybridizer, year, color, etc.

This year I have taken it one step further, and copied both my named cultivars and my seedling numbers into a new spreadsheet, and have been manually logging in FFO, last bloom, number of scapes, bud count in MY garden, branching in MY garden, etc. I am trying to evaluate performance in my area compared to "the norm".

As for images, I have a "daylilies 20xx" file in "my pictures" for each year, and the images are named "cultivar name dd/mm/yy" so they are sorted alphabetically. That way, if I lose a tag down the line, I have a somewhat easy way of determining who's who in the zoo.

Once you get used to using a spreadsheet, it is amazing what kind of info you can work with in relative ease!

Julie

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention the "down side" of using spreadsheets.

YOU CAN NO LONGER BE IN DENIAL OF EXACTLY HOW MANY DAYLILIES YOU HAVE!

Hello, my name is Julie, and I am an addict....695 daylilies/seedlings and counting....

holy crap! 695??? You must have a lot of land! I want to see pictures!!! :o)

I could not do without my maps. With workers helping me, they do get careless, so I wouldn't be without it.

I do regret not having made one for the new seedling bed - the deer have not only eaten 1/4 of them, they have also knocked the markers away from the seedlings.

Things do happen and whatever records you keep on your DLs is up to you - but I really think a map is invaluable.

Nancy

Dani,

I do have lots of land, and a huge garden to maintain, but I thoroughly enjoy it. One of the reasons that I love this forum is that any time I think that I am out of control, one of the other "addicts" chime in and make me feel like my DL collection is chump change. My count includes at least 200 unbloomed seedlings, and believe it or not, it is absolutely nothing compared to some of the people on this forum. Just ask!

Nancy, I do agree about maps. I was fortunate enough to have MADE myself do a map of my latest seedling bed, even though I was really too tire to want to do it. By the next eveninng, the dogs had kicked out several of the tags. I was oh so glad to know where to put them back in!

:)

Every morning I go outside and count daylily blooms...backyard and frontyard. I just started writing it down on looseleaf paper and have kept them but it is messy. Should have started with a composition book but I didn't know for sure I was gonna do that everyday. NOW I KNOW! I have things documented on the computer but its not in good order ......I need to do something about that! Ugh! I don't worry about hybridizers much if any, just colors, FFO, rebloomers.....oh and then there's the crossings......so much to keep track of -----how do you all with 100s and even 1000s of daylilies do it???

If you have microsoft works you can make a spreadsheet. Ask any 13 year old how to help you create it. I have mine set on landscape so I can get several columns set up. I like to keep track of the hybridizer,year,color,where I got it,height,bloom size,season. I like the idea of FFO - might have to add that. Also if you use the garden tags push them way down in the ground so they don't heave up in the winter.

Yes, I do the same as Daylily Dreamer, she taught me the ropes. :) Thanks so much, I was handwriting in a journal prior to that. But, I'm with Julie, the spreadsheet keeps a running total and you know you are an addict when that number keeps climbing. In the garden I use the paw paw markers. But there is always just one more you have to have, and of course this forum is such help. I can't tell you how many I have added just because of you all on this forum. ( Well,actually I can, but I'm not ready to admit it. ) Thats why the spread sheet is just great. I also use a column on the spreadsheet that tells where it is located in my garden.
Cindy

Rarejem- I live about 20 miles frmom Songsparrow daylily/peomy farms. It's gorgeous! I can't imagine having that much beauty at one time (and every day!)...you are one lucky gal! I went crazy this year and now have about 140. Just a taste in comparison, right? ;O) It's probably good I don't have more land- trust me!!! Sometimes I think I'm out of control....but don't care. HA! *smile*

Sheesh, I can name all of mine from 50 paces (I'm not a junkie, just a casual user). My total is under 25 right now (with no hybridizing etc.) to be fair.

All of my known, named varieties vital stats are kept on a simple WORD document but diagrams are very helpful. I do those for myself and folks I work for, keeps track of gifted/traded divisions, varieties I planted but don't yet have for myself. Photos help too, as I usually start with baby pics and add every season.

Regardless, plenty of good info here that I plan to save and try to impliment, thanks!

Wes

Natanya,
I know you THINK you don't have enough for the software I think that you are well on your way-LOL! Plantsteps has a terrific program-it is soooo worth the $29.95. I spent a lot of time and effort (some $ too) trying to keep track of my daylilies before. This saved me tons of time. You just add the daylily and the program adds all the info on that daylily. You can add pics/ purchased from/ where planted/all kinds of stuff! It even lets you make your own catalog at the touch of a button-with all your daylilies with their pics. Here is the link-
http://www.plantstep.com

Plantsteps sounds like a great program and if you really don't want to spend a lot of time building a spreadsheet, it would definitely be worth the $30.

I personally love to work with Excel, so I use spreadsheets. Within each workbook in Excel, I have worksheets. This way, I can name each worksheet (FFO, Hybridizer, Branching and Bud Count), and still have a complete record. I even have a worksheet that I have inserted pictures of each daylily in.

The daylily software that is out would probably be something I would buy if I hybridized or had a lot more daylilies. As it is, my approx. 120 daylilies are manageable in Excel.

I am on vacation this week and must get started on a map. I could use graphing paper to lay it out, but will probably use Excel to print off a lined graph to mark where everything is. Then take that sheet (or sheets), and copy the information into the Excel workbook that I have going.

The one thing that I do need to do is BACK UP the information on a disk. I'm terrible about doing this with pictures too:)

Vickie

I just checked out the software program and it looks impressive, but I have an iMac and it may not work on it. It gave me some ideas on what to include in my spreadsheet if I want to. I don't think I'd like to purchase it though. Not because of the money, but because I just don't think I need it. Maybe in the future. Thanks for the info!

Just wanted to toss this out there in terms of maps. It was something I started (and of course only got partway through, but it was working well) this year that my mom suggested. I took digital pictures of my DL beds this spring, and then printed them and added names on the picture. I can't draw to save my life, and this was a much better solution than my attempted mapping.

{{gwi:678623}}

Get to re-do the whole thing though if you move stuff around!

I also use an Excel spreadsheet .. I have 400+ named cultivars and 200+ seedlings (that number will be MUCH smaller shortly). I have raised beds and use aluminum house numbers nailed to the beds, and that number is on the spreadsheet for each daylily.

If I lose a tag, I can figure out which one it is by process of elimination.

I bought the Plantstep software a few months back and it has saved me from using 3-4 other documents such as an inventory list, map and sale list. The picures are right there as well as the description and any notes you might need. I have only utilized 20% of the program, I need to take the time to learn more of it. So far it has really proven it's worth for me.

What a GREAT post--I cannot thank you all enough.
My puppies were in the Dip bed and I did not notice that they had pulled out all the TAGS!!
WHAT A mess!!!

You are so right making maps ECT, forces us to count or really see how many we have!!!

YeePIE the more I have the more I want--
To me the only draw back is the broken,faded tags--and NOID!

I'm going to work on photos and maps--
You are all the best!!

cole, daylily and DOG crazy in mendo

I have the metal tags, the dog so-far has left them alone. Started Excel last year and include newest picture. I did a map but it is already out of date withing a month. I was feeling guilty about becomeing obsessed - I can't even do that as well as you pros! Anyway, I am ashamed to admit that this is driving me nutso ... FFO. I can't connect it in my mind as to what you are referring to.

I use a spreadsheet and a text file to tell where they were bought, how much, and where they are planted. I'd be interested in Plantstep, but I mostly use Macs and the only PC I have runs Windows 98. Plantstep "Runs under Windows XP and Vista only," so for now it's not an option.

dmparmelee, FFO just means first flower open. I had trouble with that one too:)

Love your comment about feeling obsessed. My husband just accused me of that about a month ago. I think I like the word "passionate" better!

One of my projects this week while I am on vacation is to get my map put together. And then when I get my order in the fall, I can add those to the map. I have a pretty good idea where they will go, but a few feet one direction or another messes up the map. It still helps with process of elimination though.

Vickie

Long time lurker here. I created an Access database for all my garden plants, including daylilies, and would be utterly lost without it. I can track all the plants I currently have, as well as all the ones I've lost over the years. I can run reports on different suppliers and see whose plants I kill most regularly and which survive my attentions.

Unfortunately, as Julie said above, I can no longer deny that I am a plant addict. With well over 2600 entries (one for each plant) and a report that adds up the costs (what was I thinking when I wrote that one???), I can see my garden probably cost more than my car! Fortunately, here in the great, white north, rust will only be a problem with the car!

(ickie...I am with you, "passion" is a much better word than obsession!

Kitcat, What kind of masochist would even consider putting dollars in their spreadsheet? LOL! I don't don't don't don't ever want to know that figure! Or putting all of their plants in one spreadsheet? I can cope with the shock of seeing my daylilies tallied, or roses, or iris, or dahlias, or all of the wonderful shrubs....but all together and get a TRUE idea of the extent of my "passion"??????? That just would never do.

To be honest, Julie, I rarely look at that particular report - it IS sort of masochistic, isn't it?

Mostly, I look at the individual plant records and make notes about ones I like, keep track of when I planted them or when they expired and why. I even have a sort of mapping form where I can link each plant to a particular section of the garden. Very handy when tags get lost!

I know it is softwear, but that is what I use. PLANTSTEP softwear. I used to track it with a map, then excel and now the softwear. Makes it so easy to find all the info add pictures, keep track of bloom seasons, make notes, hybridize. If anyone ever wants to progress from excel to Plantstep, you can import your spreadsheet. THAT made it easy for me. I have about 170 + seedlings. But, I know where they all are in my mind (except the seedlings), so I don't need a map anymore.

I like the picture idea - that's cool.

This really is a great thread. I have found some interesting tips. I only have my list partially on my gardenweb trade list. The rest is in my head.
I did have it in excel but when I lost my job it was on my computer which was owned by the company (they bought me a computer for home use) so I deleted all my personal files before I returned it == not remembering my plant files on excel. I LOVE Excel and will make a new spreadsheet this winter. I'm going to check out PLANTSTEP.
Thanks for starting this thread.