How to grow daylily (Hemerocallis)

Hemerocallis

Daylily (Hemerocallis) — a tough clump-forming perennial with arching, strap-like leaves and lily-like trumpet or starry flowers, up to 20 cm across, in yellow, orange, red, purple, pink or white. Each flower lasts a single day, but many follow in succession through summer on stems 20 cm to 1.5 m tall. Daylily grows best in full sun. Water it about every 7 days while it grows.

Updated: October 28, 2026

When to plant daylily?

It tolerates light frost: plant divisions into the bed about three weeks before your last spring frost.

It flowers about 92 days after growth starts and keeps flowering for about 60 days.

Frost dates · When to plant

Quick facts

Type	Flower
Latin name	Hemerocallis
Family	Asphodelaceae
Planted as	divisions
Life span	perennial
Planting season	spring
Light	Full sun
Frost	tolerates light frost
Soil for planting	from 5 °C
First flowers	92 days after growth starts
Flowering lasts	60 days
Grown in	Open ground

How long does daylily take from planting to flowering?

From planting to the first flowers: about 92 days, or 13 weeks.

Step	Day
Planting	0
Growth starts	0
First flowers	92
End of flowering	152

Days count from the day of sowing or planting, by the figures of the card.

Where does daylily grow?

59,117 records of the plant in gardens, fields and the wild worldwide; most photos come from United States, Russia, France, Germany, and Norway.

World map: where daylily has been recorded — Darker green means more records. Photos are real observations from those countries — tap one to see it. Map and records: GBIF.org (2026-10-28), © OpenMapTiles © OpenStreetMap. Photo: sandysloan720, Юлия Богородская, jérémy Goulene, Theodor Korsgaard, Alexandrine Bob Duclos, David Cunningham, Krammer Franz, Urgamal Magsar (CC BY / CC0).

Daylily, United States — Darker green means more records. Photos are real observations from those countries — tap one to see it. Map and records: GBIF.org (2026-10-28), © OpenMapTiles © OpenStreetMap. Photo: sandysloan720, Юлия Богородская, jérémy Goulene, Theodor Korsgaard, Alexandrine Bob Duclos, David Cunningham, Krammer Franz, Urgamal Magsar (CC BY / CC0).

Daylily care by growth stage

Open ground

Stage	Watering	Temperature	Feeding
Growth	every 7 days	—	balanced (NPK), at the start of the stage
Flowering	every 7 days	—	—

Growing notes

Light

Flowers best in full sun and does well in partial shade; in heavy shade it grows straggly and flowers poorly. Rich colours can bleach in scorching sun.

Soil

Prefers fertile, well-drained soil but adapts to poor soil and heavy clay; it dislikes sitting in waterlogged ground.

Care

Plant in autumn or spring with the crown level with the soil. Established clumps survive drought but flower best with plenty of water in the growing season; water deeply in dry spells. Feeding is optional, a general fertiliser in spring; mulch with compost each spring. Deadhead faded blooms often — this also helps control hemerocallis gall midge, which distorts flowers and stops buds opening — and cut each stem to the base when it has finished. Divide every three to four years in spring or autumn; hybrids do not come true from seed. Watch for daylily rust (orange pustules under the leaves), thrips, spider mites, aphids and leaf miners. Toxic to cats (ASPCA), which can suffer kidney failure; not toxic to dogs.

Pests and diseases of Daylily

4 problems are recorded for daylily; each has a page with symptoms, treatment and prevention.

Daylily: all pests and diseases with photos

Diseases

Pests

Other plants of the Asphodelaceae family

Daylily belongs to Asphodelaceae; 3 other plants of this family have a guide here.

Plant lists it is in

Cold-hardy crops for early spring

Part of: Garden flowers · Perennial garden flowers

Sources

Figures checked against these sources.