Daylily Flowers' Language and Symbolism
Main content of this article: The language and symbolism of daylily flowers and the related knowledge of understanding the emotions expressed by daylily flowers, let's get to know them together.
Also known as "forget-worry grass," daylilies have lush green leaves and bright flowers, making them treasures in the field of floral horticulture. Due to their drought resistance, cold resistance, ability to withstand waterlogging, semi-shade, salt and alkali, and infertility, they are excellent materials for landscaping and are commonly planted in garden flower beds, borders, roadsides, and lawns, either in clusters, rows, or in groups to greenify and beautify the environment. In early summer, the daylilies planted in green belts bloom in contiguous patches, not only beautifying the environment for citizens to travel in but also enhancing the city's taste. However, because they look very similar to the edible daylilies (dried daylily flowers), a few citizens might pick them and eat them as such. So, can the daylilies in the green belt be eaten?
Streetside Daylilies in Full Bloom
1. Taxonomic Differences: The traditional Chinese vegetable "dried daylily flowers" and the ornamental daylilies such as Hemerocallis cultivars are both perennial plants of the genus Hemerocallis, but they are not the same species. Daylilies are native to China and have a long history of cultivation, with records dating back over two thousand years in the "Book of Songs, Wei Style." After being introduced to Europe and America, they have been bred to produce over 90,000 varieties, ranking them alongside hostas and irises as one of the world's three major perennial flowers. The main varieties introduced from abroad for environmental beautification are Hemerocallis 'Golden Doll' and Hemerocallis hybridus. It has long been inaccurate to confuse daylilies with dried daylily flowers.
Dried Daylily Flowers
2. Differences in Appearance: The petals of ornamental daylilies often resemble lilies, with larger flowers than those of dried daylily flowers, offering a rich array of colors such as orange, red-orange, and even red, which are quite vibrant. Dried daylily flowers, also known as golden needle flowers or Hemerocallis citrina, typically have light yellow flowers and narrower petals with瘦长的 flowers. The plants of dried daylily flowers tend to be taller, especially when compared to Hemerocallis 'Golden Doll'.
Single Flower of Dried Daylily
3. Differences in Blooming Habits: Dried daylily flowers usually bloom from noon to evening and wither by the afternoon of the following day. Farmers usually pick the flower buds in the morning before they open, as the quality is best at this stage. Daylilies, on the other hand, bloom in the morning and close at dusk.
Golden Doll Daylily
4. Differences in Alkaloid Content: Fresh dried daylily flowers contain a low amount of colchicine, which decreases or even disappears after drying or steaming, making them edible. However, ornamental daylilies such as Hemerocallis hybridus have high levels of colchicine, which do not decrease even after high-temperature treatment. Ingesting them can lead to symptoms of poisoning such as fever, vomiting, and diarrhea, harming the health of the respiratory and digestive systems, especially with the darker, double-petaled varieties, which should be taken note of.
Large Flowered Daylily
Additionally, the daylilies in green belts may absorb a certain amount of pesticides and pollutants from car exhaust during growth, easily leading to heavy metal exceedances, which can harm health. Therefore, the daylilies in green belts should not be eaten or picked. They beautify the environment and uplift people's spirits. Su Shi's poem is the most accurate depiction: "Although the daylily is a small flower, it can stand out in solitary splendor. Among the disheveled leaves, each flower inserts its fragrant heart." The flower language of daylilies is "forget all unpleasant things" and "let go of worries." May everyone have a beautiful living environment and good health!
This article shares the language and symbolism of daylilies and the experience of understanding the emotions expressed by daylily flowers. I hope this article can provide you with some help!