Hi ATPers,

I planted a nice little clump of Thin Man a few weeks ago. It already looks perky and healthy and I love the photos of the blooms I find online. But I can't find any consistent information about its cold hardiness.

For those of you in zone 6a and lower, how has this one performed for you? Can it handle snowless winters with no mulch? Has it multiplied? Or can I expect it to dwindle and fade after a couple of seasons?

Just wondering what to expect with my first registered "evergreen" plant. I know foliage type does not equal hardiness, but I am having trouble finding information about this specific plant.

Thanks in advance for any input or comments,
Ispahan

Ispahan, this one is on its second year here. It has increased and doing well. I mulch here. I am sure others that have it longer will comment as soon as they see this thread. Mike

Thank you, Mike! How do you mulch, and with what?

Mike, does yours stay evergreen there in the winter? I grew a couple of evergreens in Utah, but bought them locally, from someone in my same zone that had grown them a few years. By the time I got them, they were more semi-evergreen, and almost dormant. I think plants have a way of adapting that I had never thought of before that.

I have never grown Thin Man before, so I can't help with this particular plant, but I hope it does well for you, Corey. I would mulch, without a doubt though. Use some bark if you have it. Smaller bark, to me, is better than large chunks. Even straw is a good thing to use, or leaves will work good too. Just make sure and remove whatever it is from the crown area in the Spring, so that the plant doesn't rot. Some people have a problem with rot, and some don't. I guess it depends on how wet or dry your winters are. I lived in Great Lakes for 4 years, and while we did get a ton of snow one year, it was mostly just too cold to believe. That is why I'd mulch - because of that dreadful cold!

Hi Ispahan

I've grown Thin Man in zone 4 with no problem for around 7 years...the earliest image I have is from 2007 so it most likely came in 2006. Thin Man has been moved several times, seen temps -30 with and without snow cover and I do not mulch. If they happen to get some leaves blown their way as they fall from the trees they get to keep them through the winter but many of the dl's here get nothing. This is one of my favorite UF's, big, bright and is now planted in the bed against my deck where I can see it bloom without needing to walk down to the main garden. It does seem to multiply a bit slow compared to others , but I don't mind, and it has never been one to slowly dwindle away.

Thin Man 2007


Thin Man 2013



and from the deck looking into the garden 2012

Corey,

I live in northeastern Indiana, almost inside the corner created by Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio.

I planted Thin Man in 2007, did not know about leaf habit, did not worry, and every summer it blooms.

Sometimes ignorance is bliss.

Now that I have a lot more knowledge, I worry. This summer I have potted almost all newly purchase daylilies, and they will winter in a cold greenhouse where the temperature will not go any lower than 42 degrees. Next spring they all will go in the ground.

Gerry

Sorry, this is going to be a bit off-topic, but Gerry, how do you keep your "cold greenhouse" from going below 42 degrees? Mine hasn't been heated, and it always gotten down to below freezing. Therefore, I figured that the daylilies would be just as safe outside as they were in the unheated greenhouse. The only difference is that they would get a good blanket of snow on them outside, and I wouldn't have to make sure that they got a little water if inside. I'm just wondering if maybe this is a better way to grow daylilies that are evergreen, if you get them in the fall. I haven't lost one yet, but I also haven't planted them too late, giving them enough time to settle in. I guess it really doesn't matter if they are evergreen, or dormant. They all need some time to settle in. But, I'm very curious about your greenhouse not getting below freezing!

For the rest of you who have had Thin Man for a few years, has it become a little more semi-evergreen? I really love it, but have always hesitated to buy evergreens!

Natalie, Thin Man have some green on it through the winter. Bare in mind that the last two has not been super cold.

Natalie,

In the beginning I kept tender plants in the greenhouse over the winter, and I did not let the temperature lower less than 65 at night. Daytime temperature with sun would reach above 90 degrees.

I used one or two oil-filled electric heater, depending on the outside temp. These heaters usually cost less than $50, and at the end of the season they cost much less. They have a thermostatic control which is a great help.

For the daylilies, I'll pay more attention during the coldest months. More recently I have overwintered hosta tissue culture plants using 42 degrees as the lowest temperature allowed. Hosta TC may not freeze the first year, after that, they will grow outdoors, some in the ground while others grow in larger pots.

This process should also give me advance growth by the time I plant them outdoors. This is a safe way to transition Florida and California plants to my much colder climate.

Gerry

Thanks Gerry. I thought you meant that you didn't heat it. I couldn't figure out how you kept it so warm with heat!

Daylilies aren't tender plants, so I'd just stick them in the ground. That's me though. Maybe if I spent a huge amount of money on one, I'd build it a little house! I'm cheap though, so I don't worry about them being outside, and I haven't lost one yet.

Natalie,

In my zone, most daylilies are rather tender and need a lot of protection. Evergreen and semi evergreen daylilies may very well not survive our winters.

Gerry

Before moving to Idaho earlier this year, I was in Utah, in zone 5a, and never found them to be tender plants at all. They usually did better than I did in that cold!

Gerry are you closer to zone:4. I don't have any problem here.
Natalie, I must say that, "I'd build it a little house!" bit was very funny!

Thin Man is growing in my zone 4 garden and doing well, love the huge blooms.

One more thing here most daylilies are not rather tender and do not require a lot of protection. There are some that do not like the north but overall for me it has been very few. Believe me I would not grow them if them if they were weak tender plants. I have been growing hundreds of daylilies for years with all types of foliage including evergreen, semi-evergreen and dormant as do many other gardeners in zone four. We mulch with a couple of inches of chopped leaves in fall if we have enough to cover the entire garden to improve the soil and help control weeds every one of our daylilies is planted in ground, other than that they are on their own.