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marciaz3

Yellowing foliage on daylilies

What could be causing this? Several are affected, and so are some of the irises. I don't notice any insect damage. We had a lot of rain earlier, but that hasn't done anything to them before.

TIA!

Comments (21)

  • northspruce
    11 years ago

    I don't know the answer but I think it has to do with the rain. I had it happen before and it didn't affect them in the long term.

  • nutsaboutflowers
    11 years ago

    I also vote for too much darn rain and maybe too cool temperatures. Last year mine were horrible. Lots of yellowing. This year, they're perfect so far =:)

  • marciaz3 Tropical 3 Northwestern Ontario
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    This has been a wierd weather year anyway. It's been too dry, too wet, too cold and too hot. Figure that out! LOL

    Lynn, glad yours are perfect! And i wish you'd get some pictures on here!

  • nutsaboutflowers
    11 years ago

    Well, hmmm.

    My daylilies aren't perfect anymore. Not all of them anyway. The old tried and true Stellas are perfect. The less established varieties from M&D in the back flower bed are now turning yellow. The ones in the raised bed, newer ones, are perfect.

    Go figure.

    I'm pretty sure it's the stupid excessive rain lately. The ones that are turning yellow are in the more poorly draining area than the others =:( They're also maybe in a little less sun than the others.

    Sorry about no pictures. I keep spending the $$$ on other things. A new computer just never comes to mind when I'm at a garden centre =:)

  • marciaz3 Tropical 3 Northwestern Ontario
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Lynn, order from Dell and you get low monthly payments! ;D

    My Stellas are pretty good too (blooming now!), but the TB irises in the same bed are all yellow and don't look as if they're going to bloom. I didn't have any luck with them this year, except for the one bloom on Supreme Sultan. Let's hope the daylilies do better!

  • Crazy_Gardener
    11 years ago

    I would say too much rain too, but then again, they might be telling you its time to divide. I did that all spring with my daylilies, what a chore that was, but they look so healthy and vigorous again. The irises will get done here soon too.

    Sharon

  • marciaz3 Tropical 3 Northwestern Ontario
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    These are only a few years old, Sharon, and i don't think they're big enough yet to divide. It has affected my irises too (TBs not sibs), so i think maybe it's the stooooopid weather. It's about 30 again today, maybe higher. I don't want to look! LOL

  • weeper_11
    11 years ago

    I agree, I think some daylilies are just prone to yellow leaves...I have one that has had yellowing leaves ever since I planted it. It has beautiful flowers, and seems to grow well, but it looks kind of hideous as a garden plant. Don't think I'll be keeping it permanently. Then there are others that never seem to yellow even if we get rain constantly.

    I do have some other ones this year that are yellowing, I think because I have heavy clay soil and we've been getting quite a bit of rain..they are just too waterlogged.

  • north53 Z2b MB
    11 years ago

    I agree it must be weather related. I have one that has so many yellow leaves, if I pulled them off would be left with nothing. I'm hoping they recover. I do have heavy clay soil.
    But I didn't think we had that much rain.

  • marciaz3 Tropical 3 Northwestern Ontario
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    None of them are older varieties. Here's a picture:


    To the left are Darius, June Bug (not much yellowing) and anoher Darius. Can't remember the names of the ones to the right, though one is Savannah Suburst. These have't really bloomed, and when i read the other daylily post, it made me wonder if i have them planted too deep.

  • prairie_chick
    11 years ago

    Hi, I don't post much, but I love to read about all of your wonderful garden lives.

    I have the same issue with my daylilies this year, as do most of my friends and family that grow daylilies in southern Manitoba. Look up daylily leaf streak. It's caused by a fungus that can be present in the soil and affects daylilies, iris and lilies when the conditions are right. This is not something that usually affects gardens this far north, so I'm blaming the mild winter and the crazy spring we had. Oddly, some varieties seem almost immune, while others (mostly my favourite or most expensive ones) are completely decimated. Our local nursery advises us to start using a fungicide now to save the plants we can, and to start a fungicide program at the first sign of foliage in spring. I'll have to research a bit more before I start that.

    Hope I could be of some help.

  • marciaz3 Tropical 3 Northwestern Ontario
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    I'll have to look more closely, but mine are mostly just yellowed - i haven't noticed the brown spots that are showing in the pictures of daylily leaf streak. You could be right, though, and i was just saying to someone the other day that with this global warming (except in the middle of winter! LOL), we could be having to deal with different types of pests and conditions for our plants.

    Thanks for the tip! (and feel free to post more!)

  • marciaz3 Tropical 3 Northwestern Ontario
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Yes there are brown streaks in with the yellow. I've read that it could be confused with rust or aphid feeding. I've seen no evidence of aphids on them. Guess i'll removed the affected foliage and see if i can find some kind of fungicide. Has anyone else had experience with this?

  • nutsaboutflowers
    11 years ago

    I can't remember what university website I was on, but there's some school of thought out there about whether or not there's approved fungicides that will work.

    Marcia, you could try home brewed fungicide made out of garlic simmered in water. Sure seems to work for some fungus and I doubt it can hurt =:)

    My daylilies don't seem streaky at least not so far. I think my problem is more poorly draining soil and too much water. Time will tell.

  • Crazy_Gardener
    11 years ago

    Yikes Marcia, are you sure you didn't get Roundup on them ;)

  • north53 Z2b MB
    11 years ago

    It's my Canadian Border Patrol that looks the worst, barely a green leaf. It's in the perennial bed surrounded by healthy plants. This clump of dying foliage looks quite ugly.

  • prairie_chick
    11 years ago

    If it is leaf streak, I've read that conditions of the plants will improve if the temperature stays up around 30 degrees for a while. Nothing but heat in the forecast, so there's hope!

  • marciaz3 Tropical 3 Northwestern Ontario
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    No Round up near any of them, Sharon. I've been picking off the foliage of some of them, and yes, there's hardly any left. :(

    Wonder if DH will give up any of his garlic.... LOL

  • FrozeBudd_z3/4
    11 years ago

    Near ideal weather conditions this spring and early summer in this part of Alberta, so I do vote for leaf streak or whatever such disease being the cause. So far I have one that's hard hit and of course it's my favorite variety :(

  • nutsaboutflowers
    11 years ago

    The University of Massachusetts website had a great description and picture of leaf streak.

    It was much too hot out today. I didn't have time or energy to examine my daylilies after watering the tomatoes and flower beds. I probably shouldn't have watered the daylilies that are showing bits of yellowed leaves =:(

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