Rich Howard's 'Explosion in the Paint Factory' Wins the Stout Silver Medal
About Rich
Rich Howard is an award-winning daylily hybridizer based in central Connecticut, known for breeding hardy, northern-grown cultivars at CT Daylilies. He has introduced a number of nationally recognized plants, most notably Explosion in the Paint Factory (2013), a late-blooming unusual form with striking broken color that has earned multiple American Daylily Society honors over the years.
About the Stout Silver Medal
The Stout Silver Medal is the highest honor a daylily cultivar can receive from the American Daylily Society. Only one cultivar is awarded the medal each year, based on votes from accredited Garden Judges who have observed the plant in gardens over multiple seasons.
Named in memory of Dr. Arlow Burdette Stout—often called the father of modern daylily breeding—the medal recognizes a cultivar that has proven itself both beautiful and dependable in real gardens, not just in a single location. To even be eligible, a daylily must first earn Honorable Mention and then the Award of Merit; only after that, and a waiting period of at least three years, can it be considered for the Stout Silver Medal.
For gardeners and hybridizers alike, “Stout Medal winner” is a shorthand for a truly exceptional daylily—one that has stood out nationwide for performance, consistency, and garden appeal over many years.
