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Consider growing native lilies like Michigan Lily, or other native wildflowers in your prairie and meadow garden, which could serve as a haven for local wildlife such as birds and butterflies.
Did you know that not all daylilies are created equal? Daylilies refer to perennial flowering plants in the genus Hemerocallis. The genus name “Hemerocallis” is a combination of two Greek words meaning ‘day’ and ‘beautiful’, in reference to the attractive flowers which bloom for only a day. The flowers are brilliant orange to orange-red with some striping in the middle of the petals. While each bloom does only last a day, as there are multiple flowers on each stalk, daylilies can actually continue to bloom for weeks. Their attractive flowers make them a very popular choice in gardens, with 20 daylily species worldwide and over 20,000 daylily hybrids. While most are harmless, non-invasive garden additions, one species in particular is highly invasive and to be avoided in your garden.
Why Orange Daylily Gets the Thumbs Down
Orange Daylily or Ditch Lily (Hemerocallis fulva) is a common sight when it flowers along road ditches across the province in mid-June and July. This popular garden plant has been admired for its beautiful showy blooms, hardiness, and ability to spread. Unfortunately, these same characteristics are what has made it so invasive. Once established, it is able to spread rapidly through its seeds and network of tuberous roots, with even small root fragments generating new plants. Orange Daylilies commonly escape cultivation and encroach into urban environments, roadsides, meadows, woodland edges, and riparian (shoreline) habitat, where it forms dense patches that displace native plant species.
How it got here:
- The original Orange Daylily was introduced to North America sometime in the late 17th century by early European settlers, who brought the roots with them on the back of wagons as part of their belongings to add to their gardens. By the early 1800s, the species had already become naturalized along roadsides and other areas.
- Orange Daylily can still be found in gardens throughout North America and is still available in nurseries and garden centres.
- There are no daylily species native to North America. All 20 daylily species and over 20,000 daylily hybrids are originally native to parts of Asia, including China, Japan, Korea, and eastern Siberia. Note that daylilies are not true lily species (which belong to the genus Lilium).
Why it’s such a good invader:
Orange Daylily is a very hardy plant, and is tolerant of a variety of conditions, from full sun to part shade, in dry to moist soils. Its root system is unique in that it does not grow from a single bulb like a true lily or spring tulip, but rather from a mass of thick, tuberous, fleshy roots that can hold onto moisture and nutrients really well. The result is that roots can survive out of the ground for weeks, and even small root fragments can generate new plants, making them easy to transplant and grow in new areas. Their fast-spreading nature through both seed and rhizomes allow them to be very successful competitors.
How to remove it:
Orange Daylilies can be removed by cutting the flower stalks near the base, and then using a shovel or digging fork to remove, being careful to remove as much of the root system as possible, since any small fragment can regenerate a new plant. Alternatively, plants can be solarized by placing a black plastic tarp over small infestations in the spring, and leaving for at least a season, to prevent the plant from photosynthesizing.
Why Michigan Lily Gets the Thumbs Up
Michigan Lily (Lilium michiganense) is a native, non-invasive alternative to Orange Daylily:
- 👍🏼Can also be called Turk’s Cap Lily —although not to be confused with Turk’s Cap Lily (Lilium superbum), a different species.
- 👍🏼It is a gorgeous addition to the garden. It spreads slowly, maintaining a neat clumping habit and an attractive display of nodding, orange flowers.
- 👍🏼Several orange flowers are produced from one flowering stalk. The flower tepals (tepal = both petals and sepals are the same colour and can’t be differentiated) are a deep red-orange, purple-spotted, and curved strongly backwards. The six stamens and one style strongly protrude from the centre of the flower. The plant flowers from mid-June to July.
- 👍🏼The flowers are great for attracting a variety of wildlife including Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, Sphinx Moths, Hummingbird Moths (Hemaris spp.), and Swallowtail Butterflies.
Where to plant it:
Prairie and meadow gardens.
Growing conditions:
Prefers partial shade or full sun and moist soils (they can tolerate some drought once established). Its natural habitat includes wet meadows, fens, swamps, moist savannas, and open woods.
Benefits of a prairie and meadow garden (and other species to consider):
Consider the many benefits of having a prairie and meadow garden. These gardens are an attractive mix of native wildflower and grass species, meant to benefit and attract local wildlife to your garden including birds, butterflies, and other insects. In addition to Michigan Lily which is an excellent choice for any prairie and meadow garden, consider adding other native or near-native species that are beneficial to wildlife, including wildflowers such as Wild Bergamot (Monarda fistulosa), Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea), Black-Eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta), other aster species, or prairie grasses such as Yellow Prairie Grass (Sorghastrum nutans). There are also other non-invasive, native lily species to grow instead, including Wood Lily (Lilium philadelphicum) and Canada Lily (Lilium canadense).
Where to buy native plants:
The North American Native Plant Society (NANPS) offers a list of commercial growers.
Why Native Plants?
Not all flowers are created equal. Native plants provide habitat and food for a whole ecosystem of wildlife, from butterflies and native bees, to birds and mammals. Non-native plants, which may look the same to the untrained eye, take up space and resources but create a wildlife desert. Some non-native species are also invasive, which means that their introduction or spread negatively impacts native biodiversity, as well as the economy and society, including human health.
The horticultural and nursery trades are one of the primary pathways for invasive species introductions. While many horticultural plants are harmless garden additions, some can escape cultivation into natural areas and negatively impact biological diversity. Orange Daylily and its various cultivars are still widely available for sale in garden centres and nurseries. You can take a proactive approach by not buying invasive plants and choosing non-invasive alternatives instead.
The Grow Me Instead (GMI) Guide
To help gardeners make informed decisions about the plants they are buying for their gardens, the Ontario Invasive Plant Council (OIPC) developed the Grow Me Instead (GMI) guide. The GMI guide is a practical and easy to use guide that informs gardeners about the invasive tendencies of common garden plants and suggests appropriate non-invasive alternatives. It provides tips for ecologically sound gardening and choosing plant species that will benefit local populations of insects and other wildlife. The Ontario Grow Me Instead guide is available on the Ontario Invasive Plant Council (OIPC) website to download.
Want more? This is the fourth in our series showcasing native plants to choose for your landscaping, rather than invasive species. Read about Zig Zag Goldenrod, which is a good groundcover alternative to invasive Goutweed.
