What are some examples of daylilies you weren't expecting to receive that turned out to be favorites? These could be daylilies you were sent by mistake, daylilies someone gave you without an ID, plants that were in the yard when you moved in, or bonus plants you didn't ask for. (Please don't include bonus plants you requested specifically--that's cheating!)

I have a few that I think will be keepers, and one showstopper, Spacecoast Little Red Ninja:

When I moved in I had no idea what a daylily even was.

This possible "Strawberry Candy" was sitting there from the prior owners.
https://garden.org/lists/item/...
Now, I actually hated the thing. The peachy pink is just too pastel for me, even today.
So, I decided to dig it up and either toss it for a nicer plant, or move it elsewhere.

But first, I wanted to read up on what it was to see how I should go about digging it out. So, I started researching daylilies. Then I fell down the rabbit hole into Wonderland. I learned about dividing clumps, all the fancy cultivars out there, diploids and tetraploids, and so much more.

Someone on Etsy was selling Spider Man (I think) and it was red and huge (well, what I thought of as huge back then, not anymore at only 7"). However, they had sold out by the time I was ready to get it. But then after more research I saw Megatron! Over 10" of red bloom and I made my first ever daylily purchase online (actually, now I think about it I have NEVER bought a daylily in person, all my purchases are online).

So my NOID, I split into 3 sub-clumps, and kept 2 in different locations, tossing the 3rd. I have since tossed one of the 2 for space, and have kept the 3rd. I have no plans to get rid of it. It is nice in its own way. And much more fertile than anything else I have as a tetraploid pod parent. Plus I have it in a pretty shaded area and it does just fine. I would never put a purchased daylily in that shaded spot anyhow.

I even grew a seedling from it, that made a weirdo cute flower. But I think seedling did not survive the winter as it has not re-emerged as of yet. However, "SC-NOID" (I cannot bring myself to actually call it Strawberry Candy without proof) is my test plant for pollen to determine if the pollen donor is tetraploid or not (I also now have a diploid very fertile NOID for similar testing - that one I suspect is Crimson Pirate).

A number of years ago I got Message of Love as an unasked bonus and where other plants have come and gone in my garden, MOL remains.

Nan, Spacecoast Little Red Ninja certainly has a lovely color and I can see why it is a favorite.

I have some favorites, but will have to check my spreadsheet to see if they were gifts or if I ordered them.

Really enjoyed your story Orion. Rabbit hole...

Most of my bonus Daylilies are too new to really comment about but I received Greywoods Chasin' the Blues from Darlyn Wilkinson as a bonus from my first order from her in 2020. It is truly beautiful. It hasn't covered itself in flowers yet but I really appreciate the blooms and the unique color of the eye.

Great story, Orion, and great pictures, everyone.

Orion, I have some like your noid that "are nice in their own way" too. They just have qualities that make them worth keeping. I think you might be right about it being Strawberry Candy and I think it is very pretty!

As soon as I saw this thread last night, I thought of 'In High Regard', but had already shut my computer down and couldn't remember how I had gotten it. But it is indeed my serendipitous daylily! It was introduced in 2010 by John and Annette Rice (btw, it is available on their website for $45).
https://www.thoroughbreddaylil...

During a dig for a club daylily sale in 2016, the lady who owned the property gave me a very tiny fan of In High Regard only because it wasn't big enough to put on the sale. Of course, it didn't bloom that year, nor did it do anything in 2017, so I moved it. In 2018, I was blown away by the almost four-foot scape and bloom and it has continued to be a favorite in my garden not only because I love the blooms, but because it is a late bloomer too. Depending on the day, the lavender is either lighter or darker, but that large, lime green throat is gorgeous all the time!

This one lone scape in 2018 blessed me with sporatic blooms for a month between mid-July and mid-August.


In 2019, I was able to keep a scape in the house and it continued to bloom until November 5th that year. Not all the scapes have branching as nice as the one in the photo below, but it is registered as having 3-way branching with 18-20 buds.


From that tiny fan in 2016 it was nine fans strong in 2022 and I look forward to its late blooms again this year.

Vickie, that is a stunning daylily!! I imagine In High Regard is going to go on many want lists because of your post.

Buddy's Angel Baby was a bonus from its hybridizer, James (Buddy) Hall, some years ago. It's 2.75"with 26" scapes bloom out of SSM winner Lavender Blue Baby, and is a beautiful, not well distributed, miniature. I've shared it with friends over the years in hopes of getting it more " out there."

Also, Green Ghost was a bonus from Phil Korth a couple of years ago and it's pretty remarkable.
Buddy's Angel Baby



Green Ghost:

Wow, Julie! Buddy's Angel Baby is gorgeous! And what a contrast of colors between BAB and Green Ghost. I'm a sucker for big green throats. I bet they would look pretty together being so close in height.

I went to the database for Buddy's Angel Baby and there was no height listed, so I have proposed an edit to add that.

Those are both gorgerous, Julie. I am in love with Buddy's Angel Baby.