Rule of Plum has 3-inch flowers in one of the deepest purples found in daylilies. Even the buds are nearly black-purple, adding drama before the blooms open.
Compact and free-flowering, it blooms from early summer into midsummer and makes a bold accent in borders and mixed plantings.
What it looks like
Small flowers about 3 inches across with rounded petals in very deep plum purple, almost black in shade, and a small yellow-green throat; unopened buds are nearly black-purple. Each bloom lasts a day, but many buds open in turn on branched scapes rising to about 27 inches above a fountain of long, arching, strap-shaped medium green leaves. The foliage clump is about 16 inches tall and 18 to 24 inches wide. At peak bloom dark plum flowers and black-purple buds cover the top of the clump.
Growing it with lavender
Its dark plum flowers echo lavender's purple in a deeper tone and grow happily in the same sunny, well-drained soil.
Care
Grow in full sun to light part shade (at least six hours of sun for the best bloom) in average, well-drained soil; once established it handles heat, clay and dry spells. Hardy in zones 3 to 9. Snap off faded flowers for a tidy look, cut bare scapes to the base after bloom and divide crowded clumps every few years.
At a glance
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Botanical name: Hemerocallis
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Flower color: Very deep purple
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Foliage: Medium green
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Growth habit: Arching, fountain-like clump
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Mature size: 27 in tall × 18–24 in wide
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USDA hardiness zones: 3–9
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Light: full sun, part sun to part shade
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Bloom start: Late-June
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Peak bloom: Early-July
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Bloom pattern: Single Flush
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Deer resistance: Susceptible
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Pollinator value: Good
Sizes and shipping
Dormant bare-root plant, sold in boxes of 25 per variety (order in multiples of 25). Bare-root plants ship or are picked up March 1–May 31 only. They are soil-free, so they may ship to every state in that window. Dormant plants often show little or no top growth on arrival; plant or heel them in promptly.
Lavender companion · grow guide
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