I do not always feed all daylilies annually and this summer one of my goals is to feed all. Sunday and yesterday, I started this Herculean task. I used 240 pounds of alfalfa pellets and I am only half finished.

I always use a lot of alfalfa when I plant, but these plants need a lot of feeding.

Wow, that is a Herculean task for sure. I haven't used alfalfa in a couple years now. but may again in the fall.

I use alfalfa pellets on daylilies, iris, roses, hostas.....

I used to use alfalfa pellets. They did OK, but I really could not see much difference from using standard fertilizer.
I sprinkle two to three tablespoons full (depending on size of the clump) of 20-0-10 (non weed-killer Fall formula grass fertilizer) around each daylily in the early Spring (March). I pick it up cheap in late Fall and store it in a cool, dry place. In late April I scatter a light feed of 10-10-10 to harden growth and promote flowers. It works like a charm, is less expensive, and easy to apply. Also, I found that alfalfa brought lots of weed seeds into the garden--not good! My garden is too large and varied for me to go through soil testing every year (the proper way to judge fertilizer). So, I err on the light side and I get great results.

Never even thought about alfalfa pellets being a source of weed seeds. I have always wanted to use alfalfa meal, but have not been able to find it locally. My main complaint about using alfalfa is that there seems to be almost no limit to how much you can use.

Seedfork said:Never even thought about alfalfa pellets being a source of weed seeds. I have always wanted to use alfalfa meal, but have not been able to find it locally. My main complaint about using alfalfa is that there seems to be almost no limit to how much you can use.

When we wanted it for livestock feed we had to special order alfalfa meal from the feed store, whereas it was much easier to get the pellets. Weed seeds are much more likely from hay than from pellets which have been ground and possibly heated and gone through an extruder. If cost is important then figure out the cost of a fertilizer as $ per lb. of N based on the analysis (I'm not taking anyone's philosophy re organic versus synthetic into account there).

I've only ever used alfalfa pellets. Not from a desire to go organic, but simply because I've been wary of ending up with too much phosphorus. So glad you shared your Fertilizer regimen @Sscape. I actually researched all those turf builders last winter. Then promptly forgot I wanted to try them. I'm thinking one with supplemental iron. Hubby just ruptured his Achilles tendon and is awaiting surgery, so big bags of alfalfa are out of the question right now. I'm sure I can manage a bag of Scott's. Thanks!

Hope All goes well with the surgery!

Thanks. He did this on his golf vacation. 27 holes a day, sounds more like work to me. It would appear that my hobby is safer than his.

all goes well with the surgery and rehab, Tina. Always heard an Achilles tendon injury nags for a good bit of time.

Daylily don't seem to do well in my yard, even though most other perennials do great. I think it might be the soil, which is mostly a heavy sand. I do amend the soil with mostly potting soil when planting new plants and I add a half shovel full of composted manure to each plant every spring, and I ferilize a few times each summer with Miracle Grow. Yet the day lilies tend to degrade each year until, about 3-4 years later they are hardly blooming. When I dig them up, 3/4's of their root system is rotted. It's not too wet here at all. Well, normally not! It's been a very wet spring/summer here this year. Not normal at all. I had to spray some plants to stop moisture related leaf blights this year. Unrelated to the day lily problem.

Any ideas?

Connie, do you have named cultivars that are known to be hardy in zone 3?

Sue, some of them, yes. Some of them were split from my mom's day lilies and hers were, and still are, doing great! She says she doesn't do anything I don't. She might fertilize with Moracle Grow more often than I do. Are they heavy feeders?

I have pretty sandy soil, and I don't have any problem growing daylilies. Is your soil sand from the backfilling around your house?

Does anyone feed heavier when they are hybridizing? I've read that some people will feed nitrogen in the spring. Was curious if it was worth to feed plants that I'm making seed with.

tracked,
I suppose how much you feed your daylilies is dependent on how good and fertile your soil is. I fertilize my daylilies even if I am not hybridizing with them. I have a few daylilies in two locations that don't get extra water or fertilizer during the year. They have barely grown any since they were planted two years ago. The plants that receive regular supplemental water and fertilizer have grown, multiplied and are many times more bloom productive than the other plants.