While many might think the world doesn't need another new daylily or hosta, Sarah and Steve Zolock disagree. One trip around their 3-acre property could change even the most stubborn mind.

Flowers and leaves of every color, size and shape are in abundance at Zolock Gardens. In fact, their colorful space, down a hill off busy Rt. 201 in Belle Vernon, is a popular place for brides to take pictures after their wedding ceremony.

"We never charge them," says Mr. Zolock, a short, sturdy man with a dark tan from laboring in his garden. "And we always insist they ring the bell in the center of the garden for good luck."

The Zolocks are also responsible for the new hosta garden at the Cathedral of Learning at the University of Pittsburgh in Oakland. They even named one of their hosta hybrids "Cathedral of Learning" in honor of the school. Several of them were included in the planting, along with stalwarts like 'Pilgrim' and 'Paul's Glory."

Mr. Zolock, who says he is the only hosta hybridzer in this state, supervised the plantings by university groundskeepers last fall. When he saw the plants leaf out this season, he says he couldn't have been happier.

He credits the school with supplying good soil and lots of drainage. He said the students aren't walking through them, and even more amazingly, nobody has stolen the plant tags.

Hosta are the No. 1 garden plant in America, he says. But daylilies -- the other half of the Zolock love affair -- have to be a close second. Mrs. Zolock, who labors right alongside her husband, is a retired teacher like him. They have been actively growing hostas and daylilies for about 15 years, since their last child left and they ended up with a steep hillside they didn't want to mow. They planted daylilies first and their business grew from there. These days, they devote 12 hours a day year-round to their passion.

When they can't be outdoors working, they are inside taking care of all the paperwork it takes to register the plants with the American Hemerocallis Society and American Hosta Society. They have notebook after notebook filled with data so they can precisely locate and give the entire family tree of any of the plants they are developing.

Mr. Zolock estimates that the couple have about 1,800 hosta hybrids and 2,000 daylilies -- not counting the many seedlings that are waiting to be culled. The thousands of plants are divided among several display gardens. One contains plants that the Zolocks have introduced into the trade, another has seedlings that have made the first cut and another garden holds all the Stout medal winners, the highest honor a daylily can achieve. In the center of the Stout garden are the orange roadside daylilies, H. fulva, from which all these modern beauties have sprung.

It takes four or five years to develop a good daylily and eight to 10 years for a good hosta, says Mr. Zolock.

"We look for good plant habit, good bud count, good form, disease resistance, and also (a plant) that grows well here," says Mrs. Zolock.

Distinct clear color on the flower and nice green foliage are other attributes they strive for.

"I want a plant that stands up and looks at you," says Mr. Zolock with a laugh, as he dabs more pollen on a plant he'll be using for a cross.

The seedling garden is amazing, but about 100 of the plants blooming there will be discarded for various reasons, from skimpy growth to bent flower petals, says Mrs. Zolock.

"We want no wimpy stuff," she declares.

But don't worry about the plants that don't survive the elimination round. The Zolocks donate the rejects to individuals or sometimes to communities to be planted in urban landscapes. They still make good gardens plants, even if they are not medal contenders. Mr. Zolock says he has yet to compost a reject.

The couple introduces about 10 daylilies and three or four new kinds of hosta each year. They sell plants only through their Web site, www.zolockgardens.com. Since they cater to collectors, many of their plants are pricy, costing $100 or more. However, a few can be had in the $20 range.

The Zolocks do not register a plant unless it is unique in some way. What may wow a visitor might not pass muster with the growers, who are extremely particular. Of course, there are exceptions.

One daylily was named 'Yakshe Mush,' which is Slavic for "How are you?" Mr. Zolock does not like its reddish-brown flower and entered it in a show as a joke.

The joke was on him.

"They loved it," he says, shaking his head.

Zolock Gardens can be reached at 724-929-6644 or www.zolockgardens.com.