Birdland Daylilies—the official name of my grandparents’ daylily sanctuary, located just outside of my hometown of Weston, Ohio— has gradually transformed into a daylily dynasty, spreading to other family members and friends. My mom has about 400 daylily varieties in her gardens. Aunt Fran has at least 750. And countless family friends, neighbors, colleagues, former teachers, local business owners, and admirers have acquired their own daylilies through my family.

And, like any proper dynasty, it’s a family affair destined by bloodline. Cousins, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews—we have all gotten our hands dirty in service to the family’s daylily kingdom.

I say this affectionately. As a now vegetation-deprived city dweller, I occasionally eye an untended plot of dirt or neglected community garden and think, “Imagine how great that garden would look with just a few Hemerocallis!” (Okay, more like, “I bet a few daylilies would look nice here.”)

But more importantly, my days of towing a spade and wheeling around unending loads of mulch taught me a great deal—not just about gardening, but also about family, community, and life.

So, with a special nod to my grandfather, the self-proclaimed hemaholic, here are the five lessons I learned growing up as a daylily enthusiast’s part-time apprentice:

1. Take time to appreciate seemingly insignificant details — it’s good for the imagination.

You see that flower above? It’s a purple and pink flower, right? Wrong. That flower is plum purple with a black purple eye and edge above a green throat. With tens of thousands of daylily varieties officially registered with the American Hemerocallis Society, every detail matters. (Bonus trivia: My grandfather created the plant pictured above. More on that later.)

In watching both my grandfather and mother cultivate and register their own flowers, I’ve learned that you can’t simply designate a flower “orange.” Rather, it’s a sherbet orange blend with a deep peach eye and a peach and gold double edge (no really, it is). Taking the time to truly see and creatively describe something — rather than simply yield a passing glance without a second thought— can be an extremely gratifying experience.

2. Sometimes, you have to live with a little dirt on your hands. And that’s okay.

Gardening is messy. If you walk away from an afternoon of tilling, planting, weeding, and mulching without a trace of dirt or grass on your person, you aren’t doing right. Gardening is more or less a free pass for grown adults to play in the dirt. And while an afternoon’s worth of dirt crusted beneath your fingernails could, in certain context, serve as a proverbial Scarlet letter (say, at a formal dinner party or in a job interview), it also presents an opportunity to simply throw caution to the wind by showing the world that, ¯\_(ツ)_/¯, it’s just dirt!

3. You don’t need to go to great lengths to enjoy a life of luxury.

Kale. Arugula. Mesclun. Daylily? As it turns out, daylilies are considered by some cultures to be a highly desirable delicacy. Speaking from my own experience, some daylily petals are quite delectable — the daylily I once sampled in my grandparents’ garden had a mildly sweet, lettuce-like quality.

Of course, my daylily taste test was the result of my grandfather’s provocation, not a personal whim. But beyond their colorful, elegant plate presentation, these plants are also high in iron and Vitamin A. So there you have it: A common daylily, grown right in your own backyard, can offer the same culinary experience as that overpriced superfood you purchased on your recent trip to Whole Foods.

(Disclaimer: Don’t eat plants unless you know they are safe for consumption. I trust that my grandpa has no interest in poisoning me, but I can’t make any promises regarding yours.)

4. The fruits of our labor are best shared with others.

What I find most admirable about my grandparents’ gardens is that, through the years, they have become a place shared among many. In addition to the frequent garden tours that my grandparents provide, it’s not uncommon for a passing vehicle to pull to the side of the road to admire the daylily fortress that sits before them. Birdland Daylilies also frequently serves as a picturesque backdrop for family portraits, a complementary stage for a kid-operated lemonade stand, and a learn-as-you-go classroom for the gardening newcomer.

If Grandpa has taught us anything about daylilies, it’s that each bloom offers something unique for just a brief moment of time. After all, each bud, if you haven’t gathered, typically only blooms for a day. So rather than fight the clock in solitude, why not share the experience with others?

5. The best gifts are those with no monetary value.

For my grandparents’ 50th anniversary, my grandfather cultivated a gorgeous white daylily — actually, near white with a green throat (remember, appreciate small details)— which he named after my grandmother, Shirley Jean. It’s an official registered plant. That’s pretty amazing. (What say you, Nicholas Sparks?)

My grandfather and mother have both cultivated dozens of their own daylilies, many of which are named after members of the family. My brother, my sister, my cousins — we each have our very own flower that was created by our grandfather. My flower — Chelsea’s Joy, pictured below — is tangerine with white midribs and a red eye with ruffled edge.

It’s yet another thing I love about our little daylily dynasty — we each have inherited something that was created so lovingly and carefully in our honor, but whose beauty can be enjoyed by anyone.

That is something truly priceless.