Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Garden Bloggers Bloom Day June 09

I actually meant to write my GBBD post on the official day (the 15th of each month) but having just gotten back from a trip I had too many post-trip chores to do. So I took the photos, stewed about not having enough time to write a post, and then realized, ah ha! Tuesday is Bloomsday, which I try to celebrate in some fashion each year, so why not be a little cheeky and do my Bloom Day post on Bloomsday?! ;-)

The backyard was in pretty decent shape given that I was gone for 5 days and the summer heat officially hit. Here are the raised beds.



The black-eyed susan vine (Thunbergia alata) is really starting to climb the fence now. It came in a hanging basket, which is the dumbest thing I've ever seen. Well maybe not the dumbest but that vine really wanted to grow up, not down!



New for me this year is Red Cascades miniature climbing rose. It's doing quite well and I hope it gets as big and rambling as I've seen in other gardens.



I rarely give the lowly verbena much press and I don't know why. It's a great filler plant. This one, being crowded by a prostrate rosemary, is Lanai Bright Pink. I bought it to match the Homestead Pink verbena I had in an adjacent bed (I couldn't find Homestead Pink anywhere in my area). It looks so much like Homestead Pink but it remains to be seen if it'll survive the winter as well.



Old reliable Victoria Blue salvia is blooming away. It was planted as a nice contrast to my coreopsis but I had to chop all the coreopsis back when it had a big powdery mildew attack.



Behind the salvias is a Buddleia davidii ‘Pink Delight’. I haven't decided if this is the best color for this space yet and the plant itself is still a little puny. But it has all summer to prove itself.



The Mother of Thyme thyme was in full bloom when I got home.



Here's the last of my daylilies that are still blooming. Sorry I don't know what the name of this one is but it's a very prolific bloomer.



The Gaura 'Whirling Butterflies' is blooming away.



But it's covered with aphids. Can you see them?



The purple coneflower is blooming as well. I really must get more of these plants.



There are a lot of other plants blooming as well: all the roses, the peppers, larkspur, ox-eye daisies, Verbena bonariensis, Salvias like 'Coral Nymph' and 'Black and Blue', the hydrangeas, cleomes, arugula, Blue Daze, 'Elvis Lives' hosta, etc.

Now I'm off to visit other garden blogger's Bloom Day posts. Carol of May Dreams Gardens hosts this event every month, where you can find a list of everyone's GBBD posts. Oh, and stay tuned for my next post about Chanticleer Garden - all I can say about that place is "yowza!".

13 comments:

  1. Jean,
    We are really starting to develope and affection for coneflowers too. I want to increase our collection of them. --Randy

    ReplyDelete
  2. What were they thinking with the vine in a hanging basket? Your garden looks great!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hi there Jean, wow what wonderful blooms and stunning photos! I loved hearing your chat about the colour of your blooms too. I’m always considering and changing plants around for different colour schemes myself. Happy Bloom Day :-D

    My post is up now too if you would like to visit. I've some videos for this month :-D

    ReplyDelete
  4. Coneflowers seed so freely, you'll have more in no time Jean! I tried so many different coneflower cultivars, but none were happy here. Finally I gave up on them all and decided to start the native from seed last spring. They're doing wonderfully well.

    Your beds look great - so many pretty blooms! I love the color of the salvia, and the black-eyed susan vine looks beautiful and healthy. I'm smitten by your new climbing mini-rose too.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Wow, your garden looks so bright and cheerful. Everything looks so wonderful.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I love the photo of the Gaura with the containers. It just says "summer." You probably won't need to get any more Coneflowers if you leave the seedheads. Even though I deadhead most of mine (leaving a few seedheads for the goldfinches), I always have plenty of seedlings and pull them out like weeds.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Hi Jean...Welcome home...I know you are glad to be back. It's deep into summer up here, so you must really be feeling the heat. Your garden looks wonderful...I especially love the pink verbena. If you run across one named Salmon Tapien, it's a beauty, and worth getting, too. Have a great week....gail

    ReplyDelete
  8. Your garden certainly looks beautiful even if you have been away from it for a few days, jean. "Old Victoria Blue" is one of my favorite annuals, too. It's one of the few plants still blooming here when the first frost hits. I also like the "lowly verbena." Last year I planted "Homestead Purple" for the first time, and was thrilled with how it took off. But it can't stand the winters here; I bought two more this spring, but so far they're not looking as good as last year.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Jean I came to your garden yesterday but with my hurt shoulder it was too hard at that point to leave a note... love your raised beds and your outdoor seating area looks so lovely ... especially like the large pots! I think my gardens would be too wild like for you... you would miss that cozy seating area! Your garden is so lovely and tidy ... unlike my wildness with invasive plants growing everywhere... i have a garden of thugs really.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Visit your garden is beautiful.Congratulations!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Jean, this is an awesome gardening blog! I've bookmarked it and will return when I have more downtime. Totally love all the photos!
    Mary

    ReplyDelete
  12. Oh, I just love the salvias! I got a few seed packets of salvias, but just haven't started them yet. Maybe your pictures are the motivation I need to get those going!!!

    ReplyDelete
  13. I have to admit, your recliner on the patio was one of my favourite shots in this series! Aphids are bad this year here too. From where I'm sitting I can see them on my clematis, which reminds me I'd better get off the computer and out to spray them (organically) on this cool, cloudy morning. Will return to enjoy your garden visit post above.

    ReplyDelete

Thank you so much for visiting! I truly appreciate your visit and comments. If you ask me a question in your comment, I will answer it here.