I think both contribute. I have noticed that the pod parent usually passes on it's plant habit, and the pollen parent form. The thing to remember is nothing is set in stone. The genetics of the modern daylily are so complex anything can happen. The best advice I could give you is to use the best parents you can. I will often use a newer cultivar with an older one. One exception is the really unique or distinct flower, I will use them even if plant habit is not up to snuff.

Disclaimer, I hybridize for myself and hope others like the plants, and I realy don't care if they don't.

I've not researched it enough to see how it affects flower blooms-I just hybridize for fun, but I do know one area where it matters. You can cross a tetraploid to a diploid but you can't cross a diploid to a tetraploid and get seeds.

Thanks, guys :)
I"m also hybridizing for fun, but since I have a really limited amount of space, I kind of wanted to limit things to my favorite crosses and had thought that if pod/pollen parent mattered as far as what it passed on, I'd choose the one I liked better.

I"m SO Excited.. I have this whole notebook of possible crosses I wrote out this winter (assuming my daylilies all survive.) I was kind of laughing though because I went on a database to check traits/fertility, etc. and almost everything I Have chosen has no record .. which I"m assuming means it's not a popular cross OR the ones I chose are just not that fertile.. guess I"ll find out. !!
:)

The early rule was, as Bambi says, Pod parent for plant habit, pollen parent for flower. This rule has been hotly debated over the years. My feeling is it doesn't matter; from experience. I try to make all my crosses both ways. I do feel each cross favors one or the other parent, but you don't know which until you try them enough times.

lisa, only in the very rarest of cases, can dips cross with tets. And I've never seen the results justify the efforts.
Ed

Ed, on the Dip X Tet crosses, the first generation doesn't show much, but when you use them for breeding you will see some interesting results in the next generation.

I am seeing where the pod parent passes on plant habit for sure in my seedlings. As far as the face goes, I'm not so sure to pollen parent has all the input but that's what I've heard.

OP just have fun!

Hey guys interesting thread. But I am new to this language shorthand. I feel dumb asking this. What does IMHO stand for.
Thanks Bob

In My Humble Opinion
Ed :0)

Ed, I use the H. fulvas with the reduced gametes, and why you ask? Well, I can't think of any plants that are more vigorous. I am sure you can see the advantages there.

I also do have quite a few conversions here that are used.

So would plant habit include branching and bud count? Or would bud count be part of the flower traits?

Deanna

I would include branching and bud count with plant habit.
Ed