Thanks to the moderators for pulling this thread out!
I might regret posting this here, but I do data analysis as my profession. If the Society would ever like to explicitly collect data from the membership on these characteristics, I would be willing to volunteer and work with others within the Society who have either data or daylily expertise to generate good questions for the data, collect needed data, and report the results back to the membership.
Example:
Question: what is the correlation between registration label (dormancy) and hardiness, and does this vary by zone or weather?
Hypothesis or expectation: Correlation between registration label (dormancy) and hardiness will vary by both zone and weather.
Data needed:
1. Hardiness zone of hybridization (registration) as the same seedling could be observed to be dormant by a northern hybridizer and semi-evergreen by a southern hybridizer
2. Registration label (dormancy), the only characteristic already in the database
3. Performance (hardiness) in various locations (zone and state of observation)
4. Observer characteristics (number of cultivars at time of observation, credentials such as garden judge certification)
5. Year of observation (to allow linkage to NOAA data on weather patterns)
Method: SurveyMonkey or Qualtrics email survey to membership, or link/app within daylily database or daylily forum to capture data using a web form as member-users are able to provide cultivar-specific data
In my experience, gut feelings by people with extensive experience are often correct! What is interesting is that formal data analysis can help to reveal additional nuances. For example, someone's experience in the north is generally going to be a good litmus for their own decision-making; likewise in the south. But data analysis can sometimes reveal hidden patterns ACROSS these observers (between regions or zones). Data analysis also can help identify similar characteristics (such as lineage) among plants that buck the trend. Overall, this information could be really useful to help guide decision-making for both hybridizers and enthusiasts.
I've been pondering some of these questions for my own program, and am excited to hear more from others who also think about daylily resiliency and needs across regions.
Meghan
Disclaimer: I do data analysis as part of my **extremely busy** day job (day job, night job, weekend job....)
