Mike Fleche
My blogs
| Location | Rochester, New York |
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| Introduction | I started growing daylilies as a young teenager, when I ordered "6 tetraploids in assorted colors" from Park Seed. Most of them died, but there was one strong grower I called "Big Pink". After a heavy rain all the scapes would fall to the ground like the spokes of a wheel, the result of scape blasting. I came back to daylilies in the mid-nineties, after visiting the gardens of Karla Krogstad and Charlie Zettek. Then I joined Finger Lakes Daylily Society, which was just starting up. Through FieLDS I joined the American Hemerocallis Society. All of these opened my eyes to the wonder of our favorite flower. My first crosses were with Stella de Oro in 1997. Since then I have worked with dips and tets. My goal has always been to create a "GGP"--a good garden plant first, and a pretty flower second. I have come to see a spiritual significance in plant breeding: after all, I can only dab the pollen, I cannot produce the pod. And while I have an idea in mind when crossing, I cannot predict the outcome! Some of my most successful plants have come about by a "happy accident." After 15 years of hybridizing, I am glad to be able finally to share my plants with you. |