A Few New Blooms and Some Repair Work!

Garden Bloggers Bloom Day, June -2008 was quite a success! And all of the credit goes to Carol at May Dreams Gardens. I spent most of Sunday afternoon and evening visiting many old friends and along the way made some new acquaintances. It was a wonderful way to spend time on a hot, muggy day. I so enjoy seeing the varied gardens and climes and in the process I am learning so much. I hope you enjoyed seeing all the wonderful flowers and gardens. And thank you to all who visited my post!

I didn't think I had too much more to show this week, but in the gardening world, I have learned never say never. One of my favorite Asiatic Lilies-name unknown-has started to open. This is one of those DIPT ones I mentioned in my last post. Every year this lily produces more bulbs, and I guess it must be the original one, has up to 15 blooms on one stalk. It truly amazes me!

The camera didn't quite catch the color of this one. It is more of a creamy pale yellow than it is white. Maybe in a different light I can capture the truer color.

This one is white and is in with the brightly colored yellow ones. Such a pretty combination...I wish I could take credit for it.

I know I showed Apple Blossom before, but now there are these 3 lovely ones on the same stalk.

Okay, now we get to the heart of this post. I went plant shopping, yet again! And I called Rose to join me. You know to 'enable' me. We met at a nursery in a nearby small town. No sales yet, but some very healthy looking plants. I bought several 'superbenas' in burgundy and deep purple. A 'verbena' lani, upright purple mosaic. I had not seen this one before and fell in love! Also purchased were 'angelface' dresden blue, 'mexican heather' allyson lilac, a cleome-linde armstrong, an Astilbe, and a pink perennial phlox.

But there was a good reason for the new plants, as you can see below.

This poor purple wave petunia in the top of one of the whiskey barrels looks pathetic. It has not grown and is struggling to even survive. It might, by the end of September start to look okay, but I am not willing to wait. I want pretty now.

I replaced it with one of the new superbenas. Looking better already!

Now, we are getting there. Some of the other plants went in to already planted containers as well. The more I looked at them, the more bare they seemed. So I will give them a little while to settle in and fill out and then I will show them to you.


I have been so impressed with photos of the skies on other blogs, that when I looked out my front door late Sunday evening and saw this, I ran for my camera.

We had severe thunderstorm warnings for our area and I was keeping an eye out for hail and damaging winds.

Fortunately, we got only some wind and very little rain. I ended up having to water my plants!

Have a good gardening week!

Plant Shopping, Rock Gardens, Lilacs

This is a field just south of our little town. When I saw it I knew I had to take a picture. This is what I think Ireland must look like with it's heaths and heathers. Well, kind of anyway.

Unfortunately, it is not heath or even heather. It is a field of weeds and the farmer will soon be plowing and or spraying to kill it so corn or beans can be planted.

I just couldn't wait any longer. I had to have lilacs in the house. I picked a couple of purple tulips, added some peach blossoms and am enjoying the bouquet as I write.

I promised last post to show some of the plants I found when Rose and I went plant shopping. It was a really good day! I could have taken at least one of most everything we saw. That would mean a lot of planting! These are a few of the ones I did bring home.

Delphinium 'Black Knight'

My yellow impatiens! 'Fusion Glow'

Dianthus 'Frosty Fire'

Phlox paniculata 'Super Red'

A Steppable-Isotoma fluviatils 'Blue Star Creeper'

Origanim vulgare ' variegated sweet marjoram'

I did get several planted today and then decided I wanted rock garden. I am starting small, but plan on enlarging as time and rocks permit.

Before:

After!

Lastly, the African violet I am plant sitting(3 months now!) has decided to bloom.

Don't forget the "HOE DOWN" May 3rd!

Warm Wonderful Weather!

What a glorious few days we have had! Temperatures were in the mid-60's, the sun was out, and the breezes were warm! I worked outside two days with no jacket! I got the rest of the flower beds cleaned and the ones I cleaned earlier, finished. I fluffed mulch, I cut back Engish Ivy, and I got our not-working-now-but-hubby-promises-to-fix-it water feature cleared of leaves. Of course it is supposed to start raining tomorrow and be cooler, but I can take that after having experienced at least the beginnings of Spring!


Rose of Prairie Rose's Garden and I went to the 2nd open house and seminars at our garden center this past Saturday. We had a session on 'Hot New Perennials" most of which were new sports of existing varieties. All, though, improved in some characteristic, a new color, more disease resistant, or longer bloom time. I did enjoy seeing these and took some notes on ones I might want to try. A couple really grabbed my attention. The first being columbines that now come in red-one called spit fire, and in yellow-called Denver gold. I am definitely going to plant one each of these. There are new colors, also, in Echinacea which now come in a pale green, yellow and orange. I may buy one plant this year,and save the seeds to have more next year! We also heard about new types of phlox. David White, Tenor, and Starfire are shorter and less affected by powdery mildew. Ever since seeing the tall one's growing in a cousin's garden at a family reunion last year, I have planned on incorporating them into my some of my beds. I think the shorter ones will work better where I am planning on planting them.

As you can see, I did get some pansies. They are one flower that always says spring to me. Something I can plant when I can't plant anything else. When we walked in that morning the shelves were full. And by the time we left, there were hardly any left. So we were not the only ones captivated by their beauty.

When I went to plant them, after cleaning out my pot and adding new soil(this is supposed to be law according to the container police), I found the plants were extremely root bound.

When plants are like that, I either rough them up some or do like below and make a criss-cross cut in the bottom of the plug. It may set them back a little, but in the long run they do better as the roots will grow out into the new soil.

Speaking of soil...I did, finally, get my seeds planted April 4th. Today, when, I went to spritz them, I had plants! Statice, Zinnias, Tomatoes, and Dwarf Sunflowers called Teddy Bears. Those are the ones Cheryl from My Wildlife Sanctuary sent me.

Instead of putting them under grow lights, I put both flats on the top shelf of my garden window.I don't know why I haven't thought to do this before...Duh! So we will see how this works.

I hope spring has come to you, and if not yet keep the faith..it will soon!