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Daylilies for Sun, Hostas for Shade

© Marilyn Burns

Two of the best foundation plants for perennial borders are daylilies and hostas. With so many new introductions, these plants are hard to beat in the summer garden.

For the sun, daylilies offer a great diversity in form and variety. When in bloom, they are absolutely stunning. When in their quiet season, the foliage offers great structure to the perennial border.

There are miniatures, intermediate, and tall varieties to choose from. Everbloomers, rebloomers, and once bloomers are all available. There are evergreen, semi-evergreen and dormant varieties. There are Spiders, lilyform, ruffled and picotee edged. How is one to choose?

There are diploids and tetraploids. The difference is in the chromosome count, and neither type will cross with the other. Both types offer many good choices for wonderful floral displays.

When chosing cultivars, keep in mind hardiness. Some daylilies are hardier and perform better than others in our climate. It helps to choose those cultivars that have been proven to grow well in our region. Although this is not etched in stone, try to purchase plants from northern grown sources. When in doubt, ask the mail order source or grower about the hardiness and performance for our region before making a purchase.

My tried-and-true favorites are: 'Lemon Lily', an old-fashioned yellow with a wonderful scent; 'Joan Senior', another older variety with a yellow on white flower; 'Catherine Woodbery', lavender pink and fragrant; 'Gentle Shepherd", an almost true white; and 'Purple Waters', a deep raspberry purple with a yellow throat; 'Stella De Oro', a truly everblooming phenomenon. This year, I will be trying a new everbloomer, 'Rosy Returns', a raspberry colored everbloomer.

Be sure to select different varieties with the season of bloom in mind, whether early, early to midseason, midseason, or late for continuous blooms. Be aware that some years, those daylilies with reblooming qualities will rebloom in our region, other years the reblooming is not as reliable. The few everbloomers, or those that provide a continuous season of bloom, will have periods of rest in between bloom flushes.

For the shady spots in our yards, it is hard to beat hostas. Hosta popularity has soared in recent years, and the numbers of cultivars and varieties that are available are astounding. It would be impossible to list all of them here. There are smooth leafed hostas, hostas with puckered leaves, whorled leafed hostas, lance leafed hostas. There are so many variations! Colors range from true green to yellow to near-white, to cool blue. There are variegated varieties to add further interest in the shade garden.