BETTER Flowers for MONARCHS and Pollinators! -- (Ditch Your Daylilies!)

Our daylilies have gotten a bit carried away with themselves, and are unfortunately displacing native species like milkweed. But we have many stunning options to replace the common daylily!
Join me as we check out some gorgeous native alternatives! And I hope you’ll consider ditching your own daylilies - our Monarchs will thank you!

[@eliza33888]

Thank you for sharing this important information about day lilies and for pointing out the the beautiful native alternatives!

[@gardenforbirds]

Thank you so much for watching! I appreciate the support!! 💓

[@melindabelcher7833]

I’m so glad I came across this video. I didn’t get to plant flowers this spring like I wanted due to storms & having work done to the house to repair. I didn’t want workers stomping thru my flower beds. So I’m planning for the coming fall/spring. And I now know Day Lillie’s I do not want. Just finally got rid of the English Ivy that was engulfing our shed.

[@gardenforbirds]

I’m glad it might be helpful! Fall is a wonderful time to plant, in my experience! They’ll grow their roots over the winter and I find they cope with summer better than my spring plantings. But this year I was also pleasantly surprised at how well my spring plantings did! Congrats on removing the ivy - that is a feat to celebrate!! 🙌

[@gardenforbirds]

Quick follow on to the discussion in the comments about day lily being edible - please note that there are some highly toxic look alikes! For example the highly toxic tiger lily (Lilium lancifolium) and some of its relatives! I’ve also read that about 1/50 people has a “violent gastrointestinal reaction” even to day lily, so please exercise caution before consuming anything in the wild!

[@Hayley-sl9lm]

I took a wild food class from a guy who wrote a book w/a chapter on daylilies and he said saying that these are mostly edible, but every once in a while there will be one with toxic ovaries and there's no way to predict it really. So the ovary should be discarded from the flower bud before eating and you should also avoid yellow flowered varieties from people's gardens which may be non-fulva spp. or hybrids with non-fulva spp.

[@gardenforbirds]

@@Hayley-sl9lm So weird! Thank you for confirming! Maybe related to individual allergies / physiology or something!

[@Hayley-sl9lm]

@@gardenforbirdsEdit: I looked it up in John Kallas' book Wild Edibles volume 2 (the guy whose class I took) to clarify -- and he says that the problem is that with many cultivated daylilies, the exact species is not readily identifiable and some species of Hemerocallis, particularly the yellow-flowered altissima and lilioasphodelus , can contain the toxin hemerocallin in the roots. A study from China in 1989 looked at Hemerocallis citrina and two varieties of fulva and found no toxins in the roots of those species. So while this can't prove that all varieties of those two species of daylilies don't have the toxin in the root, it's consistent with the lack of reported poisonings of this species in North America. Livestock poisonings have been reported in China from animals eating the roots of H. thunbergii, esculenta, altissima, lilioasphodelus, and minor. So those are to be avoided. But the author couldn't find any documented poisonings from people eating tawny daylilies in the Americas so he advises just staying away from any yellow-flowered varieties from people's gardens. Also if you plan to eat the flower buds, remove the ovary as is done traditionally in China. His book has a whole chapter on how to use them so they can definitely be a legit foragable with the right know-how. I wanted to correct my earlier comment which I think was from him relating an anecdotal experience where someone had served daylily buds and gotten sick, that sometimes rarely the buds of an individual clone could cause stomach upset if the ovaries aren't removed.

[@gardenforbirds]

@@Hayley-sl9lm Awesome! That’s a lot of good info!! 🤯

[@miguelg4556]

Just started a garden and first thing I did was dig these bad boys up. Hard work, confirmed.

[@gardenforbirds]

🙌 Awesome, Happy spring! And good luck with your new garden!! Mine brings me a surprising amount of joy!

[@21214GlobalArchitect]

Thank you ❤for sharing this very important video I was just about to plant it I will plant native plants I want to have lots of pollinators 😢❤❤ Thanks so much

[@gardenforbirds]

I’m so glad it might be useful to you! I love seeing all the different pollinators, it’s so much fun and adds a dimension to the garden that really brings it to life!! Thank you for watching! 💓

[@p.h.c.1113]

We have a tough area next to our driveway, that is full of these ditch lilies, unfortunately. The ground is hard as a rock there, I tried to dig them up several times. After watching your video I need to try the smothering method next. I found these tubers are impossible to kill, ugh! Thanks for the reminder though, they need to go!

[@gardenforbirds]

Oh yikes, that sounds tough. I’m hoping to get a video out next week on prairie plants - I had a tough spot along my driveway too, compacted soil and bakes in full sun. What we call tough conditions, the prairie plants call dreamy! 😅 Mostly require full sun, but they might be a good option for you depending on your location!

[@beybslifeintheus494]

Beautiful flowers

[@gardenforbirds]

I was excited to learn about the native lilies - hadn’t seen those ones before!

[@hibiscus-dreams]

I was trying to start growing butterfly friendly flowers but its been a slow start. Attempted to winter sow milkweed in winter '21- but nothing germinated. I wonder if I direct sowed some seeds in the ground this week if they'd produce any flowers....

[@gardenforbirds]

I hear you, winter sowing can definitely be hit or miss! You could try direct sowing into the ground in the fall maybe. I’ve heard that can be a great time for seeds that need cold stratification, since everything else goes dormant and usually there’s a decent amount of rain (depending on where you are). I’m guessing only annuals might bloom this year if you direct sow now. I haven’t tried germinating milkweed myself yet, but have heard some species are harder to grow to maturity from seed. I’ve so far just bought small plants from Prairie Moon Nursery online, and those have done well for me! 💓

[@bartonmic292002]

Love this video

[@gardenforbirds]

Thank you! And thank you for watching!

[@crystalwindchime1]

thank you, I did not have a clue.

[@gardenforbirds]

Me either, I had actually assumed they were native until recently when I looked them up! Thank you for watching! 💓

[@user-my2fh9mp3m]

こんにちは。とても愛らしい百合の花が群生しているんですね。なんと素敵な場所なんでしょう。他の花々も、とても美しいですね。素敵な動画をありがとうございます🌺🌹🌹

[@gardenforbirds]

Thank you for watching! 💓

[@aimytran2142]

Hello! Any tips on eradicating day lilies? I have a whole bed of them which I am in the process of digging up. I want to replace the bed with roses but am afraid that the lilies will resprout and kill out anything I try to plant over top.

[@gardenforbirds]

The smothering strategy might work for you - cover with a layer of cardboard and a heavy layer of mulch, a few inches thick. Then you should be able to plant directly into the bed if you part the mulch and slice the cardboard. I’ve not had much personal experience with roses but have heard they can be finicky. You could consider a robust alternative that you know will thrive - I’ve been loving my inkberry holly bushes (Ilex glabra), or something like black chokeberry which makes edible fruit and has really stunning fall color!

[@cindystuder9090]

Daylilly tubers are easy to dig out. They're right below the surface. Just spend a hit digging and pulling out. They aren't too hard to get rid of.

[@gardenforbirds]

@@cindystuder9090 Good to know - I was almost (almost...) wishing I had some to dig out, so I could speak from experience!

[@robynmoxham4255]

Love these videos.❤ but, what’s wrong w burning bushes?

[@gardenforbirds]

Thank you so much! I have a separate video to explain more about why burning bush can be problematic (and some different options to consider)! 💓 kzbin.info/www/bejne/qaeVlad-rMikaacsi=Epa_UYp8zFin-LRf

[@maggiesmith979]

Will milkweed grow near walnut trees? I have that gardening problem now. I would like to add that daylilies are edible. The flowers are tasty and the buds can be dried and added to salad. I have many pollinators in my yard. Maybe harvest before mowing them down. My day lily patch is in a place where not much else would like to grow because previous owners put gravel in front of the house; although I did get a surprise turnip last year. Save your good soil for something else.

[@gardenforbirds]

Love it! You’ve reminded me that my dad once fried some up for us in tempura batter! 🍽️

[@gardenforbirds]

For some reason the whole comment didn’t show before! Prairie Moon Nursery gives the option to filter their plant selection by just those that tolerate walnut trees: www.prairiemoon.com/black-walnut-tolerant - I need to check if they list milkweed, but hopefully this can help give some ideas!

[@birdliker7172]

Wood lilies are a great native alternative!

[@gardenforbirds]

Yes! They’re quite beautiful and apparently beloved by Tiger Swallowtails!

[@YSLRD]

When I was much younger and hungering for beauty in my yard with a budget of zero for luxuries like decorative plants, I dug daylilies from the railroad tracks. Decades later, I have many feet of beautiful, well behaved, graceful borders. I have since included hybrids. I created some of my own. They aren't going anywhere. The interior spaces of my yard are filled with many natives, and my kids call it my nature preserve. We can have both.

[@gardenforbirds]

That's a beautiful story and speaks very much to my own journey with gardening! I began with many donor plants from my parents gardens, and never even heard the notion of "native" or "nonnative". Decades later, when I was trying to learn more about how to attract birds to my garden, this was the first time I ever heard the idea of local ecosystems or native plants. And as I learned more I was totally blown away! My hope for this channel is to share what I've learned and offer some ideas for native plant alternatives. I think many people are still learning, just like me! And the only way for nurseries to start offering more native options is for the consumers to be aware of them and asking for them. So lovely that you, your family, and wildlife are all enjoying your nature preserve - that's the best possible outcome for a garden, in my estimation! 💓

[@theweirdospfan.28]

Most daylilies found in stores aren’t invasive as they are highly hybridized hybrid daylilies and not just the plain species

[@gardenforbirds]

Yes, fortunately most of the hybrid varieties don’t seem to invade so far. I’d still prefer to spend my money on some native milkweed, though! 💜

[@chantalrochon3566]

Dang! I have tones of them , they will go!

[@gardenforbirds]

They tend to do that! 😅 Hope they come up easy for you!!

[@timothyhowell8565]

I have been told they are fully edible, and the tubers can be cooked like potatoes. So maybe there need to be fashionable for different reasons.

[@gardenforbirds]

When I googled this, I found the yummiest looking recipe for daylily tuber fritters! 😂

[@manjuk1708]

In India, nurseries sell these for beautiful flowers. I myself bought 5 bulbs but they didn't give me flowers and foliage isn't beautiful. I read that some cultures fry and eat these bulbs.

[@gardenforbirds]

How interesting, I wonder if the bulbs were mislabeled? I read the same about some cultures eating them after someone else reminded me they are edible - looks like there are some daylily bulb fritter recipes online!

[@cindystuder9090]

Ditch Lillie's brought over by immigrants. Fully edible and supposedly good for you. Gonna eat me some plants I guess. Lol. When we moved into our current home 20 years ago they had a patch growing around a walnut tree. It's still there and about one of the onky things that does well around that walnut tree.

[@gardenforbirds]

Someone else had the same problem with planting near a walnut tree - this site gives some suggestions for alternatives! www.prairiemoon.com/black-walnut-tolerant I read that the US has also used ditch lily for erosion control - wish they’d used native plants, it seems like quite a few invasive species have been introduced to North America for this cause! 😣

[@kitty4tify]

Someone I know, eats the flower.

[@gardenforbirds]

Someone else mentioned the same - too funny! 🍽️

[@Jean-zz5lk]

No one who loves daylilies would plant ditch lilies!

[@gardenforbirds]

After making this video I started noticing quite a few Canada lilies in local neighbors’ gardens - they’re quite beautiful in person!

[@YSLRD]

No arrogance here. I have both, and hundreds of native plants.

[@theladyandthegarden]

Like 45

[@gardenforbirds]

Cheers!

[@justsayin5609]

They're TIGER lilies, not daylilies.

[@gardenforbirds]

My mother always called them Tiger lilies when I was growing up , but when I looked it up for this episode I saw there’s a different lily that is technically the Tiger lily (Lilium lancifolium). Apparently each day lily flower only blooms for one day, which probably gave it its name! Tiger Lily is highly toxic, while daylily is generally considered edible - although I’m seeing that about 1 in 50 people do have “violent intestinal issues” to daylily! www.mainegardenideas.com/garden-thyme-blog/is-it-a-tiger-lily-or-an-orange-ditch-lily

[@C123abc]

The orange is not milkweed, it's butterfly weed. Delve further into this subject, please.

[@gardenforbirds]

That one is Asclepias tuberosa, Asclepias is the genus of the milkweeds 😀 these ones are native to eastern and southwestern North America

[@kitty4tify]

I like the latin name, Ascelpias tuberorsa best instead of butterfly milkweed.

[@donnalindsey611]

🤔😒

[@gardenforbirds]

😀

[@theladyandthegarden]

new subscriber

[@gardenforbirds]

Awesome to have you!