Q How far apart should Eenie Joys be planted ?
A About one foot apart (10-14 in.), with some irregularity, will make a pleasant appearance, and
will cover the ground well. Or, for a formal appearance, measure the ground into 12-inch
criss-crossing rows, and plant in straight lines. The number of plants required will be the same
in either case.
Q How many Eenie Joys will I need ?
A You will need one plant per square foot of planting area. Measure and calculate the square footage,
subtracting any areas which may have other kinds of plants. As an example, you might have a
bed 4 X 10 feet, or 40 square feet. One clump of Iris in the bed occupies about 9 square feet,
leaving 31 square feet for Eenie Joy Ground Cover. You will need 31 Eenie Joy plants.
Q When is the best time to plant Eenie Joy Ground Cover ?
A There is no preferred time. But fall plantings in frost-prone regions will need to be mulched
for good winter survival.
Q Are Eenie Joy Ground Cover plantings Guaranteed ?
A Yes. All our Daylily plants are Fully Guaranteed.
Q Should I plant 1-fan, or 3-fan, Eenie Joy plants ?
A 1-fan plants are much more economical, especially for a large area of Ground Cover. Our standard
3-fan plants will make an attractive and satisfactory Ground Cover about one year sooner.
Q When will it look like a good Ground Cover ?
A Growth will occur mainly in the warm summer months. If you plant 1-fan plants, then during the
second summer of this growth you
will have an attractive Ground Cover with quite a lot of bloom. During the third summer you will
have a dense cover of foliage, and heavy bloom. If you plant our standard 3-fan plants, then the
Ground Cover will look mature one year sooner.
Q Do I have to weed the Ground Cover ?
A Yes. For several months following planting you should prevent fast-growing weeds from overtaking the
Eenie Joy plants. Frequent hoeing is often much easier than waiting for the weeds to become large
and troublesome. During the second summer of growth you may need to weed only 3-4 times.
During the third summer, the dense foliage will suppress most weeds, and a single weeding may
be sufficient.
Q Should I mulch the planting ?
A Maybe. Fall plantings in frost-prone regions must be mulched for good winter survival.
Also, spring and summer plantings will often benefit from a mulch, first to suppress many kinds
of weed growth, and second to retain soil moisture. However, if you find that your local
weeds come right up through your choice of mulch, then you may discover that weed control
is easier without any mulch.
Q Do I have to divide the Eenie Joy plants ?
A No. The clumps will grow larger and denser year by year, until the Ground Cover is practically
a solid mat.
Q When does Eenie Joy bloom ?
A Here in Connecticut (Zone 5), from about late June to early August. In warmer regions, it will
begin sooner and continue for about 5-8 weeks. (Early, Early Midseason,
Midseason).
Q How high does Eenie Joy Ground Cover grow ?
A The foliage is about 12 inches high, the flowers about 14 inches.
Q What if I make the bed bigger 2-3 years from now ?
A You will need some additional Eenie Joy plants. You can either purchase more plants, or you
can dig some of the plants in your original planting, dividing them into as many as you
need for the extended bed.
Q How winter hardy is Eenie Joy ?
A It is fully winter hardy, surviving in Quebec, northern Minnesota, and Anchorage, Alaska.
Q Will my Eenie Joy Ground Cover bloom this year ?
A If planted in the spring, most of the 3-fan size will bloom, but only a few of the 1-fan size
will bloom lightly. If planted in the summer or fall, none of the plants of either size will
bloom the same year. However, summer and fall plantings of both sizes will bloom fairly well
the next year, and the following year they should all bloom heavily.
Q Will Eenie Joy Ground Cover grow out of the bed into my lawn ?
A No. Eenie Joy will stay exactly where it is planted. The clumps will expand slightly in size,
but they do not have rhizomes to extend themselves into new ground. They are not invasive.
Q Should I remove old blossoms ?
A The old blossoms will dry and fall off in 2-3 days. If you want a very tidy appearance for a
special occasion, you might wish to remove them by hand that morning.
Q Should I cut back the leaves in the fall ?
A No. In most situations the dying leaves of fall and winter will not be ugly and will create a
good mulch for the following spring. This will suppress future weed growth.
Q Should I cut back the leaves in the summer ?
A Not normally. Sometimes it is recommended to cut the foliage back to 3-5 inches following the
flowering period. This is not at all necessary, but the continuing growth of fresh young leaves would
show more fully. The overall effect would be of bright new foliage.
Q Should I remove flower stalks after they bloom ?
A No. There is no need to do this, though it would improve the appearance of your Ground Cover planting.
If you choose to cut back the foliage in the summer (cf. previous Question), then you will want to cut back the
flower stalks also.
Q Do I need to remove seed pods ?
A No. If some seed pods do form, however, removing them would give a slight boost in growth.
Q What is Eenie Weenie ?
A "Eenie Weenie" is the name of another Daylily variety. It was created by Paul Aden of Baldwin, NY,
in 1976. The variety was registered as having 10-inch flower scapes, and tiny flowers of
only 1¾ inches. Most of the "Eenie Weenie" in the horticultural trade is actually Eenie Joy.
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