Rebloomer daylily (Hemerocallis ‘Stella D’Oro’)

Iris ‘Immortality’ at NC Arboretum in Asheville, NC

Re-bloomers are specific cultivars that bring on a repeat floral show – two and sometimes three in one season. In my garden re-blooming iris and re-blooming daylilies return for another round of bloom in late summer and fall. Also, deadheading some perennials will cause them to flower again.

You, the gardener, must supply needed soil moisture and nutrition (primarily nitrogen) as these plants should not struggle through an environmentally stressful summer. Plant vigor gets recharged by frequent irrigation and adequate fertilizing. In some situations you may need to monitor and treat disease and insect problems.

As plants finish blooming in “prime time”, remove all  spent flower heads to prevent seed formation. For iris prune off old flowers in late May, daylilies in late June and July.

Deadheading: some perennials re-bloom a second and third time when old spent flowers are promptly removed, and plants are properly nurtured. Here are a dozen of easy to re-bloomers: yarrow (Achillea), blanket flowers (Gaillardia x grandiflora), perennial salvia (Salvia x nemorosa), tickseed (Coreopsis verticillata), coneflower (Echinacea purpurea), redhot poker (Kniphofia), gayfeather (Liatris spicata), summer phlox (Phlox paniculata), Shasta daisy (Leucanthemum x superbum), blackeyed Susan (Rudbeckia fulgida), Stokes aster (Stokesia) and speedwell (Veronica spp.).

Note: not all daylily and iris varieties are re-bloomers.