Daylily Path

A lily of a day Is fairer far in May, Although it fall and die that night – It is the plant and flower of Light.

– Ben Jonson, 1573-1637

The daylily’s ephemeral blossoms last only a day. The Greek botanical name for daylily, hemerocallis, actually means “beautiful for a day”. Happily, each daylily along the curving Daylily Path boasts a multitude of blossoms so visitors are treated to a month of glorious bloom.

In spring, Dwarf Iris line the walk with a rainbow array of petite grace. As spring turns to summer, their beauty gives way to colorful sweeps of annual flowers, which ornamental grasses artfully complement. At the very height of summer, color and form crescendo with the brilliant debut of daylilies. Two hundred plus varieties, including some of the newest cultivars, grow in profusion. In July, at the peak of their bloom, raucous waves of festively colored daylilies sway and nod on every breeze!

Thanks in part to generous plant donations made by The Daylily Society of Southeastern Wisconsin, Boerner is able to offer garden visitors the opportunity to see many of the newest daylily cultivars.

Today’s exciting new daylilies can be found blooming in a variety of specially developed flower styles, from pointed star shapes and doubles to flat saucer shapes and “spiders” (flowers with long twisted petals).

Click here to visit The Wisconsin Daylily Society for more information.