Visiting with the "Long Island Daylily Society."

Hello Daylily Friends,

I've just returned from having the pleasure of visiting with the Long Island Daylily Society on Long Island, New York.  I arrived in New York after only a 2-hour flight from Atlanta, and I was promptly met in the Baggage Claim area by my new friends, LuAnne Madden and Pam Milliken.  How glad it was to meet my hosts, and we had a wonderful ride to their home where I was privileged to spend the evening.  LuAnne and Pam have a wonderful little dog who is only about 5-months old and who is named "Sandy."  We had a wonderful time together, and then later in the evening we met with George and Joan Rasmussen, and had a grand Italian dinner together at a local restaurant.  Guess what we talked about?  Oh, the dinner was delightful!

The next morning LuAnne and Pam took me to breakfast at the "Buckram Stables Café."  We had a wonderful breakfast and plenty of coffee to get the day started.  The waitress sounded like she was from England, and the Café reflects a time when there were plenty of horses on Long Island.  We then went to the Planting Fields Arboretum where the Club would soon meet.  However, 10 or 12 Club members joined together to prepare their daylily garden at the Arboretum to be ready for summer display.  I was genuinely surprised to see so many Club members doing such difficult work only a few hours ahead of their meeting.  They explained that they could get more accomplished with this plan.  I had to take the time to work on my program, and after I finished with my work I walked through the Greenhouse.

As I walked through the Greenhouse I thought back to about 10 years ago when the Long Island Daylily Society hosted the AHS National Convention.  The attendees at the Convention visited the Greenhouse, and we had lunch on the grounds.  The Greenhouse is just as beautiful today as it was back then.  As I entered the Greenhouse I saw gorgeous Hydrangeas, and plenty of white Easter Lilies.  I could have stayed in the Greenhouse for hours but the time had come to join the members of the Club for our meeting.

I was astonished at the number of members of the Club who were present for the meeting.  Just before the meeting began there were sandwiches and desserts, and there a particular dessert prepared by Ms. Laura Chaloupecky.  I liked Laura's dessert that was topped with pecans.  Then I talked to Mary and Liana Pirraglia, who are Mother and Daughter. How precious it must be for a Mother and Daughter to enjoy daylilies so much that they can sit together and listen to a speaker talk about new flowers.  I admire Mary and Liana.  I then gave the presentation to the Club, and I am so pleased to say that the Club seemed to enjoy the discussion.  Then the auction also went well.

I ultimately was on the plane back to Atlanta, and this morning I went immediately to my own Greenhouse.  Although I liked the Planting Fields Greenhouse, I like my own Greenhouse much better because my Greenhouse has "new daylilies."  One daylily that I saw this morning was Seedling 4-500.  A lovely blue eyed beauty, but I must have made a mistake in recording the parentage.  Another new daylily is Seedling 4-504, and the parentage is SAWYER'S GIGGLES x TET. ELOQUENTLY EDGED.  So far, all of the seedlings from this cross have opened poorly, but 4-504 opens well.  Moreover, its large eye is so alluring, and the bright yellow color makes a bold statement.  I hope this beauty continues to perform.

It was a tremendous delight to visit the Long Island Daylily Society.  Thanks to LuAnne and Pam and the members of the Club for a wonderful daylily adventure.

Bill