First off, we don't use herbicides or pesticides anywhere on our farm. I know how invasive hemerocallis fulva is, but surely there is some value to it? i'm talking about leaving it alone where it is growing in a ditch, not planting it in the garden! A pollinator friendly group posted the opinion that it should be killed with roundup so something more pollinator friendly could be planted there. I think it is beautiful and besides, it is edible. As far as permaculture goes, it is darn permanent! Does anyone have a kind word for it?

I would agree with you. It is beautiful and it is edible. It had stood the test of time and I wouldn't consider it invasive in the areas I have seen it growing.

Why use something like roundup just to plant something more pollinator friendly? What is wrong with that picture!??!

What pollinators is this group trying to attract? Because mine are busy little hot spots for butterflies, bees, hummingbirds, and a handful of flyers I don't know the names of.

Sharon,

In addition to those listed above, I have at least four kind words for the humble Ditchlily:

1.) It produces a fair amount of foliage, which collects energy from the sun. When dies or is cut, that energy gets added to the soil.
2.) The foliage and roots also helps to prevent soil erosion
3.) The foliage provides shade for the soil which helps to slow evaporation and keep the soil organisms cool.
4.) Animals come to it to eat and import organic material into the system (feces).

From a permaculture perspective, in situations where it is uncultivated like ditches, it is a successional plant that is working with the rest of the plants around it to prepare the soil to support more plant life. When the soil improves, which might not happen in a ditch due to mowing and other disruptions, other plants should take hold and crowd out the Ditchlily.