I am just curious whether there are many growers of daylily seeds on this forum. I see that there are so many buyers on the LA but I don't see that many posting seedlings pics. Where are all these folks? Do they post pics on a different platform or website?

Karen, I bought seeds last year and this year. Last years seeds are really nice fans out in the field bed. This year's seeds are in the fridge or not here yet...

If I can stand the mosquitos I'll get some pics... Really looking forward to next spring- might get some bloom from them!

I bought for the first time last winter. Actually had a bloom on a 6 month old seedling this year! Made some of my own crosses this summer, and won some seeds from Spunky1's auctions on the LA, that I will start this winter. What a wonderful way to get genetics I can't afford. Just have to show some restraint this winter. I'm not going near the LA!
Daredevil Daylily seed from last winter.

I will look forward to see more of your seedlings next year, Diana and Tina. When you posted that seedling, Tina, I was shocked how fast that bloomed esp that you are in zone 6. It seems that there are a lot of buyers of seeds on the LA than the number of those who posted their seedlings on here. I just wonder whether they post their seedlings somewhere.

Anyway, I am going to check out seedlings posts from years past on here. I am interested to see what some of the recent intro's kids look like. Recent intros are intros from the last 10 years to about 2 years ago. I have seen seedlings threads on this forum going back to 2013 on here! Wow! I am going to have a lot of fun going over them this winter.

These four pics are LA seed seedlings. Yes, they're crammed together! I figured I'd have less weeding and they'd shade each other's roots and I really didn't expect them to get this big this year.
The tags are faded, but I took pics earlier in the season, so I do have the crosses. The no-tag visible one that just looks like a hot mess of plants is Dotted Fever x Pink Stripes (and probably some neighboring seedlings from my own crosses)

I buy seeds on the LA and grow them. The first year I planted seeds, it was almost all bought seeds. Now, I grow my own crosses from a combination of plants I have and the seedlings from seeds I bought. However, I'll probably always buy some seeds to keep mixing in new genetics into my crosses.

Another fun thing about buying seeds off the LA is some of the sellers give bonus seeds! Often they are from expensive plants you wish you had, or crosses you would never think of. Bonus seeds add a little mystery to the garden.

From bonus seeds when purchasing other seeds from the LA:
Believing In Design (Nall-S.) x Heavenly Blue Butterfly (Gossard)


Lavender Blue Baby (Carpenter-J.) x Red Star of Krypton (Polston)


Shirley's Delight (Todd '12) x Valence (Matton '10)

I decided to convert my mixed cottage style perennial beds to almost all daylilies. The reason being they would be easier to care for as I aged. I liked the really beautiful ones with good B&B . But to get the number of plants I would need seeds were my best option. I now have 2492 seedlings in my garden. Seeds were from the Lily Auction started mid April. I put them in my beds in June and July. I already have double fans on some and one has a triple fan! In Wisconsin I have to hope they will make it though their first winter. Next Spring I will start more I won this past winter. I expect to get some beautiful plants from those LA seeds I couldn't afford otherwise.

I also have gotten plants from the Wisconsin Daylily club I belong to and the forum's classifieds. Both great choices of plants.

@ShakespearesGarden Diana, I wish I did the same with my seedlings - planting them closer! Because that would prevent a lot of weeds growing in between them in the last 3 years. THe daylilies seedlings struggled because of the weeds. I deeply believe that my seedlings would have fared better if I had planted them closer than 8".

@Lyshack Tim, thank you so much for sharing your seedlings pics on this forum this summer. Your seedlings are gorgeous! I enjoyed them and learned from the crosses very much. What's your experience with growing your own crosses? Do you find them bloom the way you hope or expect them given their parents' traits? What were your favorite own crosses?

@ppeachpit Priscilla, that's A LOT of seedlings! Wow! I hope they all make it through the winter for you too. I sure hope you will share your seedlings blooms and crosses info on here next year. I look forward to seeing them.

I did buy off of LA a couple years ago. I should start seeing blooms 2019 I hope. I am doing most of my purchases off facebook now from Daylily Dreaming Sales Page. The hybridizers there are very helpful and will work with you if you tell them what you are looking for. I also trade with a couple local daylily growers. Last year I had a poor season, most of mine rotted and a lot of my seeds just would not germinate. This year looks like a better year.

Thanks for the compliments about my seedlings, Karen. It helps that I don't post the truly yucky ones. Since seeing and "trusting' what seedlings look like is a three year cycle for me, I'm really only two years into figuring out what to trust. I've gotten some great advice from people I've bought plants from, and a lot of them give great advice right here in our forums.

But I tend not to believe things until I see them. So I'm deliberately trying to put odd combinations together, not looking for a pretty result, but trying to see what happens.

For example, if I put a big dark eye (Totally Awesome -- medium purple w/dark eye) with a different one-color self (My Friend Charlie -- bright coral orange self), and I cross them both ways, what will the Totally Awesome pod seedlings look like? What will the MFC pod seedlings look like? Will the big, dark eye be more successfully transferred the TA seedlings or MFC seedlings? Will either parent's lovely color survive, or will they all be a pretty hideous blend of purple and coral orange?

So I think I'm really curious about what you are asking, and I'm trying to figure out the answer. At this time, though, I don't think I've done enough of this, long enough, that I can feel very confident about predicting the kids. Maybe I never will.

All right, I confess -- I buy them, mostly now from Spunky1, Ahead and Jwwc. And each year I vow not to because I have a fridge drawer full of my own seeds; but then I see something(s) from newer introductions from one or all three of these guys and I just have to bid on it/them because I know I can't make that cross on my own at that point. And so it goes...

And worst of all, I really don't have any space plus our summers are now so hot that I pretty much stay indoors, so I lose a big chunk of my working outside to that excuse. And I continue to lose a lot of little seedlings each summer to excessive heat, even when they're under umbrellas -- bummer, and it seems to be getting worse each year!

But I do manage to plant at least all the seeds I purchase, and each year I do get a few blooming seedlings from a batch I managed to get into the ground in previous years.

Here are pics of a few of this year's first-time bloomers whose seeds I know I purchased:

Sibs from SILOAM GOLIATH x ROSE F KENNEDY

(Purchased from James (JWWC) in 2014, but just bloomed for the first time in spring 2018)

Sibs from BLUE GOBLIN x TET OUT OF THE BLUE

(Also purchased from James in 2014 and FFE's in spring 2018)

Sibs from RUFFLED PINK PERFECTION x WONDER OF IT ALL

(Seeds purchased from Dot (Ladylovingdove) in 2014, and FFE's in spring 2018)

Sibs from ORANGE BLOSSOM TRAIL x SACHA

(Purchased from Dot in 2014; the first bloomed last year and the second bloomed for the first time in spring 2018)

Sibs from DRAGONFLY DAWN x COBALT RINGS

(Also purchased from Dot in 2015 and FFE's in spring 2018)

And my avatar pic -- my favorite seedling to date -
WILD DREAMS x FASHION ICON

(Also purchased from Dot in 2014 and bloomed for the first time in spring 2018)

And I also have a few FFE spring 2018 keeper seedlings from my own crosses; but as you can see, I'm certainly running a few years behind...

Betty, sweet, sweet, sweet

Thanks, Mary!

Ina, I am glad you have a better performance this year! Hope they will bloom for you next year. I would love to see your seedlings.

Tim, I have yet to see a bloom from a daylily seedling that comes from my own intentional cross. I have been lucky with others' seeds that I bought on the LA. I don't know whether I will get as nice a result from my own seeds as I have with those I bought on the LA. I will know next year though when some of them start to bloom. When you mentioned that you had seedlings from your own crosses, I wonder how they performed for you and whether they bloomed close to what you envisioned the offsprings would bloom when you made the cross? This year, I had made some crosses specifically for certain traits - rebloom, edges, teeth, branching, mini, eyes, etc... I don't know how many of these crosses will bear offsprings with these traits that their parents possess. I also made some crosses that did not target any specific goals except that the pollen parent was the newest in my garden. Not sure what a lot of Sea Change kids will bloom like but I have gotten a lot of seeds with this daylily as the pollen parent.

Betja said:And worst of all, I really don't have any space plus our summers are now so hot that I pretty much stay indoors, so I lose a big chunk of my working outside to that excuse. And I continue to lose a lot of little seedlings each summer to excessive heat, even when they're under umbrellas -- bummer, and it seems to be getting worse each year!

But I do manage to plant at least all the seeds I purchase, and each year I do get a few blooming seedlings from a batch I managed to get into the ground in previous years.

Here are pics of a few of this year's first-time bloomers whose seeds I know I purchased:

And my avatar pic -- my favorite seedling to date -
WILD DREAMS x FASHION ICON

(Also purchased from Dot in 2014 and bloomed for the first time in spring 2018)

And I also have a few FFE spring 2018 keeper seedlings from my own crosses; but as you can see, I'm certainly running a few years behind...

Wow, Becky! I did not know that came from a seedling! I thought that was the newest intro from a seasoned hybridizer. I cannot believe that is a dip either! The pattern eye and colors are so amazing and complex.

Betja said:All right, I confess -- I buy them, mostly now from Spunky1, Ahead and Jwwc. And each year I vow not to because I have a fridge drawer full of my own seeds; but then I see something(s) from newer introductions from one or all three of these guys and I just have to bid on it/them because I know I can't make that cross on my own at that point. And so it goes...

I am in the same boat if this helps you feel any better. A fridge drawer full of seeds and I still look and bid on the LA. But I am really trying hard to limit my seeds purchase this year for now...

I occasionally buy a pack of seeds on the Lily Auction, but never more than a two a year. I have too many of my own seed crosses in the refrigerator. I didn't post many photos of my seedlings this year because most of them were dogs, or were so splotchy I didn't want to post them. I had a bad case of the thrips, heavy dew much longer than normal, and lots of rain in June.

I see lots of seedling pics being posted on a Facebook group called Daylily Pictures. The pros like Emmerich and Maryott post photos of their seedlings there, and so do a lot of backyard hybridizers.

Debra, do you have a link to that site? Facebook gives me a headache.

Thank you, Debra! I should have guessed as much - that most folks post their seedlings on Facebook. I don't like Facebook's business practices and have been reluctant to open an account there. Though I may have to make the jump now and open a Facebook account there in order to check these pages out.

Mary! It certainly is not user friendly.

Still not ever getting Facebook :harrumph: (dunno what that would look like as an emoji )

ShakespearesGarden said:Still not ever getting Facebook :harrumph: (dunno what that would look like as an emoji )

I'd use: 😖 or 🤨 ...

kousa said:When you mentioned that you had seedlings from your own crosses, I wonder how they performed for you and whether they bloomed close to what you envisioned the offsprings would bloom when you made the cross?

I think one difference between us is that I'm so new, I try to keep expectations out of it. Almost like a science experiment where every outcome is something to learn from. Looking at my pictures in hindsight, I'd say I do best when I cross trait with trait. Watermark with a Watermark, Eye with an Eye, Very Late with a Very Late.

kousa said:This year, I had made some crosses specifically for certain traits - rebloom, edges, teeth, branching, mini, eyes, etc... I don't know how many of these crosses will bear offspring with these traits that their parents possess.

I think these will match your expectations best, look-wise. Occasionally, you'll put two ornate faces together and get a plain looking "self", but for the most part, it looks like when I do this, I get something that looks like the parents.

kousa said:I also made some crosses that did not target any specific goals except that the pollen parent was the newest in my garden.

I think these will be harder to predict, look-wise, but I think this is where innovation and surprise come from. I try not to expect anything with these. In 2017, I thought Chasing Your Dream was awesome, and for fun I used it with all my little reblooming plants... Stella, Happy Returns, Going Bananas... hoping for a reblooming plant that wasn't all yellow or gold. Almost everything that bloomed this summer was yellow, except this one here which bloomed in July and then again today for me:

Chasing Your Dreams (Gossard '15) x Going Bananas (Meyer-C '04)


You couldn't really predict this from the parents, but I like it and I can work with it. Needs higher bud count, though.