Did you see a UFO?
Is an Unusual Form daylily a spider?
First of all, it is not a Spider Form Daylily. Nor is it a 'spidery daylily', nor a 'spider variant' as some describe it.
What is an Unusual Form Daylily?
Unusual Form classification was introduced several years ago and is defined as follows: This class is based exclusively on form, not on colour or colour patterns. The flower must have distinctive petal or sepal shapes on all three petals or all three sepals. It includes three basic forms: crispate, cascade and spatulate. The flower often has a very 'open' appearance with spacing between petals/sepals as opposed to round, so called bagel forms. Although 'open', the purpose of this class was to recognize daylilies whose length-to-width ratio puts them outside the Spider classifications which must have a length-to-width ratio of at least 4 to 1.
What is a Crispate Unusual Form Daylily?
These forms exhibit pinched, twisted, or quilled floral segments. Ideally they should have minimal overlap with a v-shaped space between 3 or more floral segments
- Pinched Crispate Daylily segment have sharp folds giving a folded effect.
- Twisted Crispate Daylily segments present a corkscrew of pinwheel effect.
- Quilled Crispate Daylily segments turn in upon themselves along their length to form a tubular shape.
Pinched Crispate Daylily Twisted Crispate Daylily Quilled Crispate Daylily
What is a Spatulate Unusual Form Daylily?
A Spatulate Unusual Form is termed segments are markedly wider at the end like a kitchen spatula.
Spatulate Unusual Form Daylily
What is a Cascade Unusual Form Daylily?
Cascade floral segments have narrow curling or cascading segments, resembling wood shavings. I liken the curling to long curled hair or loosely curled ribbons. I love all forms of daylilies, but to me, this classification presents with the most beautiful form. See below:
Vectis Nora Malone showing Crispate and Cascade form
