Stella de Oro is the most popular daylily in the world, and for good reason. Its 2¾-inch bright gold flowers have mild pie-crust edging and a subtle fragrance, and each one stays open 16 hours or more.
It blooms heavily in early summer and follows with waves of flowers into early fall on a compact 15-inch plant. Use it for edging, mass plantings and containers.
What it looks like
Small flowers about 2¾ inches across in solid bright golden yellow throughout, with mild pie-crust edging on the petals. Each bloom lasts a day, but many buds open in turn on branched scapes rising to about 15 inches above a fountain of long, arching, strap-shaped medium green leaves. The foliage clump is about 10 inches tall and 18 to 24 inches wide. At peak bloom in early summer the compact clump is blanketed in small gold flowers.
Growing it with lavender
Its golden flowers make a classic, long-blooming edging in front of lavender in full sun and 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. Deadhead regularly and pull spent scapes to keep new buds coming, and divide crowded clumps every few years.
At a glance
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Botanical name: Hemerocallis
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Flower color: Bright gold
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Foliage: Medium green
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Growth habit: Compact, arching clump
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Mature size: 15 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: Mid-June
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Peak bloom: Late-June
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Bloom pattern: Long Blooming
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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.