AR11AR.82

18", EE, 4", LightYellow with PeachOverlay, ?, diploid, 3 way branching, 13 buds
(AR09MH.16 * AR09MH.33) ---> ((A Small Multitude * Swiss Diplomat) * AR09MH.33)
A light yellow extra early! It first bloomed June 16th this year (normally some earlies would have started blooming at this time, but because of the extreme winter we've had here in New England, things are pushed back about two weeks). Both parents are early, so I'm not surprised by its bloom season. If it was only an early, I probably would not have kept it because the flower isn't too special and the bud count is kind of low. Two aspects of the flower that I like, however, are the delicate ruffles that it has and a peach overlay, which I have tried to capture on camera, but sadly my efforts have been fruitless. I'm planning on crossing it with colorful things this year to hopefully achieve extra earlies in other colors than yellow. I anticipate that the F1 generation of these crosses will be muddy and probably won't be extra earlies, but that's why hybridizers must not be so rash when selecting seedlings: an F1 that doesn't have all the qualities you desire could be the key to the "dream" garden plant when used in breeding.

AR10AR.51

29'', 3'', Magenta w/ yellow to green throat, dormant, diploid, fragrant, 4 way branching 19 buds
(Sugar Candy * Vanilla Gorilla)

This really is a standout over all the others of this cross. It has around twenty buds and the scapes are nice and strong. Already has a clump! Like many darker colored flowers, it does slick mildly, so I'm trying to cross it with more sunfast cultivars. My goal in this cross was to create a clear colored pink unusual form. I didn't get this with any of the seedlings of this cross but this one, which had the best plant habit, was back-crossed with Vanilla Gorilla in order to achieve this. Since I was so impressed with the branching, I crossed this with 'Peak Experience' an amazingly tall and well-branched plant (I highly recommend it!) from Margo Reed. This flower has another form which I think to be old-fashioned and unattractive:

Also, not so seen on the pictures that I have provided, sometimes AR10AR.51 has a white edge. I think that this is attractive and I plan to cross it with a white-edged unusual form (again, drawing from the hope that the unusual form gene is dormant) like 'Santa's Pants'.

AR10TD.75

28'', M, 4'', yellow self w/ green throat, tet, 1 branch, 13 buds
(Summertime Splendor * Forestlake Ragamuffin)
I was going for teeth and I got them, sort of. While some blooms show clear signs of teeth, others are merely toothy ruffles. Also interesting is the little dents in the petals. Not exactly my favorite. It looks like tracts made in the dirt by the wheels of a tractor and I don't find this attractive. I saved this one because of the promise of teeth that it gave me and I hope that its offspring will not have this dented feature.

AR10AR.114 and it's sib AR10AR.119

(Sugar Candy * MH0873D)

Unfortunately, I have no data on AR10AR.114, pictured above, but to be fair they would not reflect the true nature of this plant even if I did. Quickly running out of space, I made the terrible mistake of planting some crosses on the side of my house. This particular side only gets a few hours of morning light, has relatively terrible soil after years of neglect, and it is narrow, leaving me to place the seedlings closer together than I would have liked. It's a plus that .114 bloomed in these horrid conditions, and I'll put that into consideration when I continue to evaluate this (in a much better bed!) during 2015. What stood out to me about the flower was 1) the lavender watermark and 2) the gloriously green throat (this photo may enhance it a tad due to the yellow light of the sun). I have no idea where this came from, as neither parent appears to have such a design. It looks very contemporary, in my opinion. It's sib,
AR10AR.119, is also interesting

The eye is a nice touch. I am fully aware that the color is fairly muddy. To help this problem, I crossed it with some clean near-whites, which I hope will help. This one fades terribly. The purple facade vanishes leaving a tan color on the outer parts of the petals. Again, it was the pattern that caught my eye.

During the end of summer when most of the daylilies were gone (I desperately need more lates in my garden, would love any suggestions!),  I used a family tree software program called Reunion 10, and, through the Huben line, traced these seedlings back very far. It's a fun project and if you have any spare time, I would recommend trying it out on a seedling or a registered plant that you have in your garden.

*UPDATE 5/13/15* both of these plants have spring sickness in varying degrees, .119 has spring sickness all over the plant and .114 in about two-thirds. I don't know if this means that they're prone to it or not because many plants, that have otherwise been fine in past years, are now displaying it.

AR10AR.92

30'' EM 4'' SalmonPink with Yellow to Green Throat Dor Dip 2 Branches 10 Buds
(Sugar Candy * Helicopter)

Not very excited about the branching and bud count but the scapes are very slender and graceful. However, they're almost too slender and they bend mildly when flowering. I'll see how it performs next year in terms of scape bending. In 2014 there were 6 pods on one scape and it bent terribly and, alas, I forgot what it looked like with just a blossom open and no pods. Love the color and it is heavily diamond dusted. Fast increase and good foliage. Has the delicateness of a wedding.

Highlighted in this photo is the light yellow halo that surrounds the throat. If you click to see the full photo, you'll also see the diamond dusting.

AR10TD.26

32'', M, 4.5'', orange polychrome w/ lighter midribs, Tet, 3 branches, 10 buds
(Tangerine Horses * Forestlake Ragamuffin)

The standout of this cross. The bud count is lower than I would like, but it preforms well compared to the other pathetic, washed, poor opening seedlings of this cross. It really does glow, and can be spotted from across the garden. More ruffling than teeth, but I crossed it with 'Vampire Fish' a couple of days ago and the pollen took! Has great potential for my still-small tetraploid teeth program. Although I realize that I'll never achieve any ''breakthroughs," I would rather create my own plants with teeth than pay the outrageous prices that daylilies with teeth have.

2014 was the 2nd year it bloomed, and look at the teeth! They're nowhere close to the teeth coming out of Ohio, but it certainly is a start. In my mind, there is a such thing as too much teeth, and some dayliles could certainly use a less. The plant also increased and looked wonderful in a small clump.

Below is a photo taken at around 6:20 in the evening. You can see that the color has faded. I don't see this as a flaw. It still looks wonderful and tones of pink are now more visible. 

Here it glows on an overcast morning: 

Here's another. Notice the teeth to the left:

AR10AR.53

23'', EM, 3'', bright cherry red w/ tones of wine, dorm, Dip, 2 branches, 7 buds, frag, diurnal
(Sugar Candy * Vanilla Gorilla)

This is the first year that this seedling bloomed. I'm very excited about it because it shows promise for the beginnings of a red program. This isn't a pure red. By the end of the day, the color had turned to a wine color, not unattractive but unwanted. I'm not too concerned about the branches and buds, as it is currently being encroached by its nearby sibling. That is also the cause for the slow increase (I hope, as both parents increase well), 2 fans in three years. As I am clearing out the 2010 bed later in the summer/fall, I'm hoping to give this one more space. I have high hopes for the breeding potential of this one color wise.

This is later that day, demonstrating how it fades to a wine-pink color.