Background history:

'Rocket City' is a dormant introduced in 1967 by Hardy.

It has earned the following AHS awards:
Honorable Mention: 1970

This plant can be found in our Plant Database at:
Daylily (Hemerocallis 'Rocket City') .

Please join in, if you own this plant! We would love to know more! I award an acorn for performance information posted to this thread.



Daylily (Hemerocallis 'Rocket City')

I've had Rocket City for more than 20 years. It's as carefree as any perennial I've ever known, as I have it planted along the foundation of the south-facing side of my house and it's flawless: it flowers without fail every single year.

Moreover, it's below a 2-story drop where the snow slides off the roof every winter and buries everything below under an average of four feet of snow and ice for five months. Yet every spring, it comes back as pristine and perfect as though nothing ever happened.

This daylily goes dormant, so zone 3 winters never faze it... and it's been through temps as low as -50 F. in the years I've had it. No rust, no pests, no problems ... just a splash of brilliant charm every summer and always blooms profusely. A definite winner!

I've had Rocket City for at least 20 years also. A prolific bloomer, never any issues. I had it in a bed that until very recently was awash with weeds and grass and it did fine anyway. It hasn't started blooming yet this year but last year it bloomed from July 10 to August 2nd, almost a full month of brilliant bloom.

I have a large [30 fans 2021] clump in MI that has yet to bloom in 2022. Last year FFE was 7/11. This year it will probably be another two weeks.
2021 5-6" bloom 32"scape 26 scapes up to 26 buds w/3 way branching.
2020 FFO 7/13 5" bloom, 33" scape, up to 4 way branching, 22+ buds...didn't get a final count
2019 FFO 7/28 up to 7" bloom, 35" scape, 23 buds, up to 5 way branching

I've had Rocket City since the early 90s and I've brought a start to our new home when we moved in 2011. It's a huge clump and I've shared it more than once. It's an amazing bloomer and very consistent.

A lovely daylily, very hardy and reliable and makes a real splash of colour in the garden.

I have had H. 'Rocket City' for several years now. I tend to get some daylillies that have some ressemblance. For instance, I have Eye-Yi-Yi which has a higher flower stem but a similar flower in coloration. There is also H. 'Copper Medallion' which has some similarity. I am located in Canada, in a south of Montreal suburb, in Quebec. Here is a picture of Rocket City taken last year:

I don't have stats but this Daylily is a strong performer. Tall with a high bud count and long bloom time. No rust. It really stands out.

Has some difficulty setting pods here. Haven't used the pollen enough to give an objective report.

I have had "bee" pods set on RC. Haven't tried the pollen.
Seedlings from RC. Probably selfs

I've had Rocket City only a couple of years, but am very impressed with it. I have some in a pot, and some in the ground. You can't go wrong with this one if you like orange lilies. It has huge, bright orange blooms held on high scapes, superb plant! I received mine as dead looking plants from Gilbert Wild in early spring a few years ago and I was disappointed. They were a buy one get one free sale item. I potted up the roots and hoped for the best. They made a miracle turnaround and bloomed that same year. Apparently they were dormant roots!

Rocket City always pleases, stand out in the garden. I have 2 huge clumps in different areas, lots of blooms every year. Like any thing, if you give it enough space, you will have a big clump of it. I. Going to cross it with outrageous, see what I get.

Wow, this one sounds like a winner. No rust? I see from the database pictures that others have grown Rocket City in the South, so maybe I'll try it. I have been looking for some neon orange blooms that are rust-resistant. Edit: I see it's rated 5.0 for rust susceptibility! I don't know what to make of that.

DeweyRooter said:I have been looking for some neon orange blooms that are rust-resistant. Edit: I see it's rated 5.0 for rust susceptibility! I don't know what to make of that.

That rating likely comes from this study:
https://journals.ashs.org/down...

Edited to add, a caveat on this study is that 'Plum Perfect' and 'Frankly Scarlet' may not be the registered daylilies with those names

Thank you, Sue. I have seen that study before. What surprises me is the discrepancy between such a high rating (5.0) for rust susceptibility and the experiences of people posting in the thread. I know that there are different strains of rust out there, but still.

DeweyRooter said: Thank you, Sue. I have seen that study before. What surprises me is the discrepancy between such a high rating (5.0) for rust susceptibility and the experiences of people posting in the thread. I know that there are different strains of rust out there, but still.

Perhaps you could ask people to clarify whether they live in an area that gets rust. I notice Dianne is Zone 3 so it would not overwinter there and would have to be brought in. @3Will can you tell us your hardiness zone? Did I miss anyone?

One of my most vigorous daylilies. From a small plant purchased at Home Depot seven years ago, I now have three large clumps, one of which is massive (almost 3 feet across).

Here's one growing by the pond in my Bucks County, PA, garden.



Here is the original plant. This clump is almost three feet across.

Hemerocallis 'Rocket City' 7/2021 Dily- (Hardy, 1967) Orange Daylily Dily, Mature size: 36", Bittersweet Orange with Burnt Orange eyezone, USDA Hardiness Zone 3, Michigan Bloom Week ISO WW27, In Garden Bed Y2 for 5.9 YEARS (-). Planted in 2015.

American Daylily Society: Rocket City (Hardy, 1967)
height 36 in.(91 cm), season EM, Dormant, Tetraploid, Bittersweet Orange with Burnt Orange eyezone. (Crestwood Gold × sdlg)
Awards: HM 1970

Honorable Mention in 1970.

Photo by F.D.Richards, SE Michigan. Additional photos of this plant from 2015, 16, 17, 18, 19, 21:

https://www.flickr.com/search/...

Mine started blooming July 9th this year and has been going for it. It seems to be happy that I cleaned up the Island bed and gave it some room. Here it is today, July 13, 2022

Took this one today

Rocket City stays vibrant over several weeks,
even in a dry rather shady area of yard and demands even less attention than most here in Zone 6. Very reliable.