A Passion for Daylilies: The Flowers and the People [Hardcover]

Sydney Eddison (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1992

A celebration of daylillies and the people who grow them provides the history of the flower and its many variations, combining how-to information with portraits of daylilly enthusiasts. By the author of A Patchwork Garden.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

For the past century American botanists and backyard breeders have been indulging in a love affair with the genus Hemerocallis. Through their ingenuity and perseverance, modern cultivars of stunningly beautuful colors, shapes, and textures have evolved. Eddison has written an extraordinary testimonial to the men and women who have succumbed to "daylily fever," including the legendary A.B. Stout, "Father of the Modern Daylily." From relatively simple hybridization techniques to more complex genetic manipulation (yielding the modern "tets"--tertraploids with double the standard number of chromosomes found in the diploids), bigger and bolder cultivars have evolved. Eddison's spirited tribute to the "quintessential hobby flower" and its passionate devotees is recommended for public libraries.
- Laurie Bartolini, Lincoln Lib., Springfield, Ill.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 322 pages
• Publisher: Harpercollins; 1st edition (May 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060164034
• ISBN-13: 978-0060164034
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 5.8 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,901,158 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

For her work as a writer, gardener, and lecturer, Sydney Eddison received the Connecticut Horticultural Society's Gustav A. L. Melquist Award in 2002; the New England Wild Flower Society's Kathryn S. Taylor Award in 2005; The Federated Garden Clubs of Connecticut's Bronze Medal in 2006; and in 2010, the National Garden Clubs Award of Excellence. Her garden has been featured in magazines and on television. A former scene designer and drama teacher, Eddison lectures widely and continues to teach a course on color at the New York Botanical Garden, Bronx, New York.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Extraordinary Flowers & Extraordinary People, September 7, 2003

By 

Jack Bilson Jr (North Carolina, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Passion for Daylilies: The Flowers and the People (Hardcover)

A Passion for Daylilies: The Flowers & the People
By Sydney Eddison

They're not just orange and yellow anymore. And the people
who have created them and collect them are people you would like as neighbors.

Among the hundreds of gardening books I have read there are few that truly deserve the tittle, "Absolutely wonderful -- a great read." Sydney Eddison has never written anything but great, educational books that are good reads.

However, her daylily book is not just about Hemerocallis, it includes information about the people involved with daylilies, some history of the plant and how it has evolved. Did you know that the modern, hybrid daylily is essentially an American bred flower? Or did you know that most of the hybridizers have been - and still are - backyard hybridizers. Very few of them have had any training in botany.

While enjoying your read, you will want to meet and converse with the people in Sydney's book. After you finish it, do not be surprised if you end up looking for a local "Hemaholic" or Daylily Collector to find out how you can enjoy the beauty of the flower and the camaraderie of those involved with daylilies.

How could the book be improved? A publisher should sign her to write a new and larger book. My second choice would be a reprint of this book with at least a hundred pages of additional material.

If you can find a copy of this out of print book, buy it. It has become one of the most sought after gardening books.