y Lilies

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Delightful Day Lilies (Hemerocallis species)
The genus name Hemerocallis comes from the Greek words hemera, meaning “day” and kalos, meaning “beautiful”. The flowers of most species open at sunrise and wither at sunset, some replaced by another one on the same stem the next day. Some species are night-blooming.
Once considered part of the Lily family, it is now more botanically correct to place it into the Hemerocallidaceae Family. Day Lily was originally brought to America by early settlers, who rcherished it not only for its ease of transport across the ocean, but as a nourishing food.
All parts of the plant are considered edible. Of course, only use organically grown flowers and those collected at lest fifty feet from a busy road.
The sprouting leaves that appear in the spring, The young shoots have a pleasant sweet flavour and make an excellent cooked vegetable, though older shoots quickly become tough and fibrous. In the spring, cut the 3- to 5-inch outer leaves from their grassy clump, taking care not to damage the flowering stalks. The Chinese used the leaves as a painkiller, so use only small amounts..
The heart of the shoots is especially delicious. Depending on the species, young shoots can be harvested from late winter and for much of the spring.
Small buds less than two inches long are considered best as bitter ones are more bitter.

the summer buds and blossoms, the leaves and even the rhizomes — are edible. dined on for months.
The petals are quite thick, crisp and juicy with a delicate sweetness at their base due to the nectar they contain. At this stage they are also at their most nutritious, containing reasonable quantities of protein (mainly from their pollen) and carbohydrates (from the nectar) as well as good quantities of iron and vitamin A. In the Orient they usually harvest the flowers just as they begin to wither. The flower are then dried and used as a flavouring and thickener in soups etc.
The second harvest is during the summer when the daylily flower buds and blossoms appear. These — especially the pale yellow and orange varieties —
are the sweetest, most delectable parts of the plant. They can be eaten at all stages of their growth, raw or cooked. The tightly closed flower buds and the edible pods add interest to salads but also can be boiled, stir-fried or steamed with other vegetables. The blossoms, with their flowery taste and slightly mucilaginous texture, add sweetness to soups and vegetable dishes. Half opened, fully opened and even day-old daylily blossoms may be dipped in a light batter of flour and water and fried in a wok, tempura style. Dried daylily petals, called “golden needles” by the Chinese, are an ingredient in many Chinese recipes, including hot-and-sour soup.
The small white tubers attached to the roots are crisp like water chestnuts can be used raw or served with a dip. The young shoots are edible. Harvesting hybrids is expensive, as it destroys the plant and they can be expensive. Petals can be pulled apart or blended to make a chiffonade. Sample flowers before collecting as some species can be bitter, acid or even metallic in flavor. Use as a garnish. Petals and buds can be dried and used in soups or added to pasta dishes.

At almost any time of growth you can harvest the thick, fleshy, tuber- like roots. You will find them quite crisp, with a nutty flavor. They can be eaten raw on the spot, or added to salads and all kinds of soups and stews. You can also boil, stir-fry or cream them, serving them as a side dish in place of potatoes. They are at their best in late fall or winter after they have stored nutrients from summer growth. This is also the best time to rejuvenate any overgrown clumps. Just dig the plant up carefully, divide the sausage-shaped roots, select a number of firm, white ones for your table, and replant — or share — the rest. The roots are sometimes used in China for their mild diuretic and laxative properties.

PHYSIOLOGICAL EFFECTS
MEDICINAL USES

OTHER USES

ENERGETICS

CONSTITUENTS

Daylilies spread by these underground roots, sending them out to form broad patches. Plant them giving them the space they need to multiply, with the crown no more than 1 inch below the soil.
Daylilies brighten beds and borders and succeed in mass plantings on steep slopes.
Their vigorous underground rhizomes and dense weave of roots hold soil in place, crowding out even the most persistent weeds. If you plant them in a damp, slightly acid, rich loam with good drainage and give them an occasional top-dressing of organic compost or complete fertilizer, you will insure heavy flowering.
Daylilies used to be limited to rust, yellow and orange hues, but now, after years of hybridizing, they are available in almost every color of the rainbow, even bicolor with contrasting eyes or stripes. Some hybrids boast blossoms that last two or three days, and some are reblooming.

Possible allergies: Daylily leaves, flowers and tubers are listed in virtually every book as edible. However, some people have allergic reactions to unusual compounds in plants. It’s important to be cautious. The first time you sample any part of a daylily, taste only a small piece and have a friend with you. Wait at least an hour before trying more, and then take small amounts, tasting before swallowing. If it tastes bitter, too spicy, weird or unpalatable, don’t swallow it. Spit it out.
Cultivation: Daylilies are hardy herbaceous perennials, tough and trouble free. They grow in almost any kind of soil, in sun or half shade, and establish themselves as quickly in the garden as they do in the wild.
Because they grow from tuberous, somewhat fleshy roots rather than bulbs, they are not true lilies — although they are related and their flowers are lilylike trumpets.

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I have to add a few words of caution here. There is a report that large quantities of the leaves are hallucinogenic. Blanching the leaves is said to remove this hallucinatory component, but the report does not make clear what it means by blanching, it could be excluding light from the growing shoots or immersing them in boiling water. As far as I know eating the cooked leaves is perfectly all right, it is only the raw leaves that have the effect. You would also need to eat quite a few pounds of the leaves to obtain the effect.
Many species also produce tuberous roots, or fibrous roots with occasional spindle-like swellings. These roots are also edible – Ive only eaten H. fulva but any of the other species are said to be similar. The roots can be eaten raw or cooked and have a very pleasant nutty flavour that is like a blend of sweetcorn and salsify. Young tubers are the best, though the central portion of older roots can also be used. Dont expect large crops of roots though, this will be just an occasional bonus crop when you are dividing plants.
Hemerocallis also have a number of other uses. Many species make a very good weed-excluding ground cover, succeeding under and around trees and shrubs in low-maintenance gardens. Plant clump- forming species such as H. dumortieri, H. lilioasphodelus and H. middendorfii about 18 inches apart each way. Running species such as H. fulva can be planted up to 1 yard apart. Since the plants die down for the winter, the dead leaves should be left on the ground to ensure effective cover.
Whilst young leaves are sweet and tender, the older leaves become very fibrous. These tough fibrous leaves can be dried and plaited into a cord then used for making footwear etc. The shoes are not going to be that hard wearing, nor will they be waterproof, but they will make a good sandal for the summer.
There are also a number of medicinal properties attributed to these plants. In particular, the juice of the roots is an effective antidote in cases of arsenic poisoning and the roots also have a folk history of use in the treatment of cancer.

The flowers of some species are edible and are used in Chinese cuisine. They are sold (fresh or dried) in Asian markets as gum jum or golden needles (金针 in Chinese; pinyin: jīnzhēn) or yellow flower vegetables (黃花菜 in Chinese; pinyin: huánghuācài). They are used in hot and sour soup, daylily soup (金針花湯), Buddha’s delight. The young green leaves and the tubers of some (but not all[citation needed]) species are also edible.

Are hardy in most parts of North America.
Daylilies are perennial plants. Daylilies are not commonly used as cut flowers for formal flower arranging, yet they make good cut flowers otherwise as new flowers continue to open on cut stems over several days.
Originally native from Europe to China, Korea, and Japan, their large showy flowers have made them popular worldwide. There are over 60,000 registered cultivars. Only a few cultivars are scented, scented cultivars are appearing more frequently in northern hybridization however. Some cultivars rebloom later in the season, particularly if their developing seedpods are removed.
Daylilies occur as a clump including leaves, the crown, and the roots. The long, often linear lanceolate leaves are grouped into opposite flat fans with leaves arching out to both sides. The crown of a daylily is the small white portion between the leaves and the roots, an essential part of the fan. Along the flower stem or scape, small leafy “proliferations” may form at nodes or in bracts. These proliferations form roots when planted and are the exact clones of the parent plant. Some daylilies show elongated widenings along the roots, made by the plant mostly for water storage and an indication of good health.

Hemerocallis dumortieri is a vigorous clump-forming species that grows about 1½ ft tall. Each flowering stem carries up to eight trumpet-shaped flowers that are about three inches long. This is one of the first species to come into flower, in May and June, each flower living less than a day. It is also quite early coming into new growth and makes a good ground cover.
Hemerocallis fulva. This species is one of the most interesting for the gardener, as well as being perhaps the best one as an edible crop. A running species, it grows about 3ft tall and will spread as far as you let it. This species is so vigorous that it has been known to grow through tarmac! It flowers from June to August. There are a number of named forms, most if not all of which are sterile triploids and will not produce seed. The pollen, however, is fertile and can be used to fertilize other plants. Cultivated for its flowers in China and Japan, these are usually harvested as they start to wither and then dried.

CONTRAINDICATIONS
Consumed to excess the green buds might be irritsting on the throat. Do not confuse the similar looking yet toxic narcissus, iris or daffodils.

These sun loving plants with upward facing flowers will thrive in partial shade (though will produce fewer flowers), but dislike low wet spots or high dry places. Colors can range from shades of yellow, orange and red. Upward facing flowers. This perennial grows in gardens and along roadsides growing two to four feet tall with green lance shaped leaves, From April to November, the tubers can be collected by digging up the plant and taking afew.

Hemerocallis lilioasphodelus is a clumping species growing about 3ft tall. This is one of my favourite species and has lovely yellow flowers. These look very attractive in a salad but a word of caution is needed here. Most people find the taste delicious but about half of the women who try it say that it leaves a very unpleasant aftertaste in the mouth. On a couple of instances this has been likened to sweaty armpits (who goes round eating sweaty armpits?). To date, no male has detected this aftertaste. The plant has a long flowering season, from May to July, and individual flowers live longer than in most species, sometimes for three days. The plant has a fibrous root system with occasional spindle-like edible swellings.
Hemerocallis middendorfii esculenta is a vigorous clumping plant growing about 2ft tall. I only obtained this species recently and so have not yet tried the flowers or young shoots, but it is cultivated in the Orient for its edible flowers and so should be well worth growing. The flowers, which are produced in June and July, are up to 4 inches long with 5 – 6 blooms carried on each flowering stem. This species does not have swollen roots.
Hemerocallis minor grows about 1½ft tall, flowering in May and June. The flowers are about 2 inches long with, up to 5 being carried on each flowering stem. They open in the evening and are relatively long- lived, with individual blooms lasting up to 3 days. This species has small bulbous swellings at the ends of its roots, these have a mild radish-like flavour.
If you want a tasty food crop that is easily grown and also very ornamental, then this genus must be worthy of consideration.

Day Lily Delight
1 quart ready today day lily buds
1/4 teaspoon chopped thyme
1/4 teaspoon Celtic salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
The flower consists of three petals and three sepals, collectively called tepals, each with a midrib in the same or in a contrasting color. The centermost section of the flower, called the throat, has usually a different and contrasting color. There are six (sometimes seven) stamens, each with a two-lobed anther. After pollination, the flower forms a pod.

Care must be used as some species of lilies can be toxic.