"Those dates may well be misleading."
Are those dates from The Initial and Early Developmental Stages of the Floral Scape in Hemerocallis, Maurice? If so they based the conclusion on only three cultivars, an E, EM and MLa. If their finding for those three can be extrapolated to all daylilies in those flowering-time categories, then scapes must start earlier in colder areas because one of those that I found developing scapes with buds in November here was an EM. Although tiny, the scape was visible to the naked eye, as shown in my pic with the pen (although I had to use the microscope to find it in the first place). But according to Arisumi & Frazier it should not have happened until December based on their 'Crimson Glory' in Maryland.
One of their three, the MLa 'Purity' was one that I had dissected looking for a scape. I found two structures inside the bud in November but it was not clear if one was a scape-to-be.
