2019 brought the great news that IDA MAE NORRIS won the coveted AWARD OF MERIT (AM) from the American Daylily Society. That means that IMN will be soon be included on the short list for the Stout Medal which is the highest award a daylily can earn, the year's best in the eye's of the garden judges of the ADS. 

IMN continues to be used by top hybridizers as well backyard hobbyists to produce seedlings of exception beauty and merit. 

IDA MAE NORRIS seedling 03-3 (TAKE MY HAND X SUBSTANTIAL EVIDENCE) 7" DOR 34" M  DIPLOID This is the new flagship of the SUBSTANTIAL EVIDENCE line. IDA MAE NORRIS is one of the most beautiful of all our introductions to date. The three images above give evidence of three aspects of this proud introduction. The first image was typical of the look under greenhouse conditions. In these conditions IDA MAE NORRIS has the ability to stop a visitor in his/her tracks. It has the ability to stop the owner in his tracks despite having seen the flower hundreds of times. The second image shows the outdoor look. Under outdoor conditions the pink is not quite as strong. The third image indicates the type of plant habit, budding and vigor. A picture is worth a thousand words. Be sure to click on all four images to see them well. Bud counts are in the range of 25 to 30. 

Besides being a superb garden specimen, IDA MAE NORRIS is a grand parent for knock-you-dead babies. They are big and flat with a presence that is unique. It is the size of the green throat that puts IMN and many of its babies over the edge. The colors are very clear and bright in the progeny and with those wonderful throats, they are not to be denied. Highly recommended to anyone interested in breeding distinctive and unusually beautiful dips. While we have not been able to set a pod on IDA MAE NORRIS the pollen fertility is good. It is currently the heart and soul of our diploid program. Anyone who is able to successfully convert IMN will have a world class breeding tool.                                                        

We all know that any daylily cultivar benefits from establishment. We learned in 2009 that this doubly true of IDA MAE NORRIS. The budding and branching were improved on the remaining clump that was not lined out for sale. We were impressed by the performance of the plant in the second year in place, 2008. In 2009 we were simply blown away by that performance, just as were the visitors here. 

2010 note: The 2010 seedling bloom out IMN was over the top in quality. We bloomed about half of the seedlings in a bed of some 3,000 seedlings direct from IMN. There were perhaps some 30-40 that could qualify as introductions. Of course, we will not introduce that number or anything close to it. We point that out to illustrate the breeding potential in IDA MAE NORRIS. We can't wait to see what this phenomenal daylily will be able to do with the tetraploids.

IDA MAE NORRIS won an H.M. from the American Hemerocallis Society in2003 with enough votes to place third in the voting. For such a new cultivar to do that it must be very well thought of by the garden judges. We certainly think highly of it here.                 DOUBLE $25

2008 INTRODUCTIONS

 DIPLOID

PIGMENT OF IMAGINATION  seedling 04-11 (BIG APPLE X SUBSTANTIAL EVIDENCE) 5" DOR 26" M This is a very unusual introduction for us. This would be a very unusual introduction for anybody. When we first saw this as a seedling our mouths dropped open and we were speechless. There were colors on the petals we had never seen anywhere in the daylily kingdom. But let's go back to the beginning. The flower begins the day as a reddish purple or perhaps purplish red might capture it better. As the morning progresses the red/purple disappears from the petal surface. What is revealed underneath is a shade that has described by consensus as turquoise. That was consistently true when this was grown as a seedling in its original location. When we brought PIGMENT OF IMAGINATION in to the line out beds and a richer soil other shades appeared in addition. Besides the turquoise we saw jade as well as gun metal gray. We suspect that an interplay of weather and and soil chemistry determines what is seen. There are times when the color is quite blue which is what the camera often picks up. All images shown here are just as they came off the camera. 

The pattern in which the red/purple surface coloration disappears adds another interesting dimension. The color in the outside layers washes away from the center of the blossom and progresses towards the edges of the petals. This leaves the turquoise/jade/bluish/gray pigments below exposed. For a time during the course of the day PIGMENT OF IMAGINATION takes on the appearance of the much desired edge/no eye pattern. As the day proceeds the second pigment layer follows the pattern of the first layer until it takes on another variation of the edge/no eye look. This time the outside edge is the same unique color as what was seen on the main area of the petals a few hours earlier. 

We saw just enough evidence in the seedling beds this past summer that PIGMENT OF IMAGINATION passes along this unique ability. We saw several babies from it that went through similar transformations in the course of the day. You don't have to work real hard to realize what we are hoping may come from this fascinating. plant.  

In our original assessment of the plant qualities we were not very encouraging about the vigor of the seedling, 04-11. That was entirely based upon its performance in the seedling bed in which it was crowded badly and overgrown by neighbors on all sides. At that point we were having to weigh the uniqueness of the plant with a perceived lack of vigor. However when we moved the plant to the line out beds and decent soil magic happened. PIGMENT OF IMAGINATION grew like a weed. At 15 or so bud counts are still not what we would prefer but there is no question of vigor. From just a couple of small fans lined out in the fall of '05 we now have a sufficient supply to meet the demands of introduction.

Our thanks go to Dick Henley of Baltimore, Ohio for the inspired name, PIGMENT OF IMAGINATION. As is our policy Dick will get a free division of the plant in the spring of 2008 when it is introduced. 

The pollen is quite good on PIGMENT OF IMAGINATION. Pods are a bit difficult but not that hard. We even had a few bee pods in 2009.

PIGMENT OF IMAGINATION was awarded an AHS H.M. in 2012. This introduction received more than the needed 20 votes to win. In fact POI received 74 votes to put it in 3rd. place in the voting. 

                                                                                                                                                           double fan $20

   SUBSTANTIAL EVIDENCE (seedling 00-6) [(LIGHTS OF DETROIT X WHEN I DREAM) X (LIGHTS OF DETROIT X WHEN I DREAM)] X SPECIAL INVITATION 2008 note: SUBSTANTIAL EVIDENCE was just rewarded an HM from the AHS This diploid has the flat, flat face of LIGHTS OF DETROIT along with the greatest substance of any cultivar I have seen, including all tets. SE is a large yellow with an orange overlay, very popular with visitors. It is breeding the most distinctive kids you can imagine. The flat face is passed along to many of them due to the inbred pedigree. If you are not familiar with the ancestor, LOD, you may not visualize what I mean by flat. Many people introduce flowers that are "flat". SUBSTANTIAL EVIDENCE puts that description into an entirely different category. SE shows no trumpet at all. SE also can survive a driving rainstorm which shreds every other blossom in the garden. It has the ability to pass along sun and rain resistance to its progeny. The blossom is also an early morning opener of the highest order. Despite the early opening the pollen is almost always good. Fertile both ways but the pollen is easier. 33" M 6" DOR EMO                                                           double fan $20