Daylilies that change color.

[SPedigrees]

This is the second time I've witnessed this phenomenon, and it has me wondering what factors cause a daylily to produce blooms of a color different from the advertised photo on a tag when first planted, and then over the course of a few years, gravitate to the color it is supposed to be.

The first were some red daylilies whose blooms were at first a muddy reddish hue, but after about 5 years bloomed a pure crimson scarlet, the color they were supposed to be.

Now there are the "tiger swirl" daylilies, pictured on the tag as orange with dark red center, and pictured in this photo two years ago. To be fair, sunlight made the petals look white, while they were actually a very pale yellow. And perhaps the image on the tag was more orange than the actual photo printed there, but these flowers differed wildly from the picture.

Now, two years later, here's what a bloom from this same plant looks like now.

The petals are still yellow as opposed to orange, but a richer yellow, much easier to live with than the anemic pale flowers of 2023. In a couple more years - who knows? Maybe they will yet evolve to be what they are supposed to be! This color-changing behavior has me baffled, but all seems to be well that ends well.

 

[flowerbug]

maybe pH shift as the potting soil is broken down and replaced by the native soil pH that is around the planting location?

i do know that pH can have some effect upon bloom colors so if it does gradually change that would explain it enough for me.

one way to test it would be to divide the plant and do some amendments for the different clumps and see what happens.

 

[SPedigrees]

maybe pH shift as the potting soil is broken down and replaced by the native soil pH that is around the planting location?

i do know that pH can have some effect upon bloom colors so if it does gradually change that would explain it enough for me.

one way to test it would be to divide the plant and do some amendments for the different clumps and see what happens.

I was thinking that some element in my soil perhaps differs from the soil that they were grown in, and a different pH makes a lot of sense. Perhaps they simply have to adjust to that new pH and it takes time.

The testing method you suggest sounds like it could prove this, but honestly I'm too lazy to implement it. I'm afraid I am a lazy gardener! Especially since these plants seem to color-self-correct given time. It's interesting though, and your take on 'why' seems a likely answer to the mystery. Thanks for the reply.