Edna
Lankart was born in Goliad, Texas, the daughter of Christopher Samuel Lankart
& Matilda Ida (Horadam) Lankart. Christopher was known as "The Grand
Old Man of Texas & Oklahoma Cotton Breeders." He was said to have been
responsible for a large share of the cotton harvested in the Southwest. At one
time 98% of all cotton planted in Oklahoma and 65% planted in Texas sprang from Lankart
seed.
Edna’s contributions to the Daylily Society are too numerous to list, as well as remember. In 1976, the American Hemerocallis Society honored Edna with the Helen Field Fischer Medal, the Society’s highest honor and the official recognition for distinguished and meritorious service by a member. Region 6 awarded her the Regional Service Award for outstanding service in 1983.
She won many awards for her photography, winning the single bloom award in 1970, landscape award in 1970, 1971, and again in 1974. She won the award for the best color slide of a clump of daylilies in 1978.
She will long be remembered for her articles in the Daylily Journals as contributing editor for a number of years. These were filled with humor as well as excellent growing tips and other daylily interests. She also wrote many articles for the Region 6 newsletters.
As a member of Region 6 she served as 1964-66 Regional Vice President. When there were no daylily auctions to supplement the newsletters, she personally financed several. She also hosted a Regional Meeting almost single-handedly.
In 1987, Region 6 again honored Edna by retiring the Malcolm Collie Award for the best un-introduced cultivar hybridized by a Region 6 member other than the host society, replacing it with a beautiful metal sculpture of her famous Hemerocallis 'Little Zinger', a red miniature, one of her many introductions. H. 'Little Zinger' won Edna the Donn Fischer Memorial Cup in 1986. This award was known as the Edna Lankart Traveling Award.
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