The daylily is a popular flowering perennial that adapts well to Florida landscapes statewide. Plants are available in a wide variety of growth habits, flower shapes and colors, including yellow, orange, red, pink, purple, near-white and shades, and combinations of all of these. Flowering starts in March for early-season bloomers while late-season daylilies will not bloom until mid-May. Select early- and late-season bloomers to extend the flowering season. The typical bloom period is about four to seven weeks, although some varieties bloom even longer.

Daylilies are members of the lily family, in the genus Hemerocallis; “Hemero” is Greek for “day” and “callis” for “beauty,” i.e. beauty for a day. The flower buds and petals are edible raw, boiled, stir-fried, steamed, stuffed, or battered and fried. Dried daylily petals, called “golden needles,” are used in numerous Chinese dishes. The modern varieties of daylilies have been developed from native Chinese species. Early settlers from Europe and Asia brought many of the original species with them to America. During the last 75 years, hybridizers in the United States and England have made great improvements in daylily varieties.