Gardening Flowers & Foliage

The spirea decided to look as nice as it will, while we're still here.

 

Yesterday was a beautiful day for a change so I was able to get out and get pictures of things that weren't just dejected pictures of soggy and drooping flowers.

Crab apple - I think the best it would have been was during the heavy rain of Friday into Saturday




Flowering almond


creeping phlox in the driveway


creeping phlox that planted itself further up in my sitting area. It gets larger every year which I'm not unhappy about


A small rhodie under the treeline in the back yard. Best it has ever looked. It really likes all the rain and cooler days we've had this month

 

The overflow bulb flower bed.

Our rescue Azalea that we moved to my wife’s flower garden to hide it from the deer. It’s recovering pretty well.

 

Azalea and Rhody at the Y in our common driveways.

Coming up to the house
Under the bird feeder. Must like the sunflower seed hulls!

 

I am glad you are having success with the daffodils. I had heard that too but never tried it. I was arriving at a small town where we lived before and watched two deer snack on the daffodils that were around the village sign. Whether they ate them or just snipped them off and spit them out, I couldn't tell.

Deer love roses as well. Mine had to be fenced in as they were continually stripping them.

 

The last of the tulips are open now. Things are starting to open all over the back yard. The apple and pear trees are just starting.

 

The Wif snapped a picture of the Clematis on the trellis on the back fence. Finally got the squirrels to stop eating the buds. They would run down the top of the fence and stop for a quick snack on the way to the bird feeder!

 

Walked out through the pear trees yesterday and they were buzzing loudly with honey bees. All 4 of our old pear trees are loaded with blossoms this year. No idea what kind of pear they are, the raccoons seem to clean them out just as they become ripe. I cut the last of the black cherry trees that were shading them last winter. They were not taken care of before we moved in, covered in grape vines, ash, and black cherry trees growing up around them. I get it the woman that lived here was in her 80’s and alone, and gardening became a low priority.

 

Mock orange




Early day lilies




Rhododendron





The rhodi had some winter kill I need to trim off

 

My big rhodies also sustained some damage from over the winter. If it ever quits raining here, I should trim some of that back too. However, mowing and weedeating will be the priorities since they yard looves the coool wet weather and goes into overdrive.

 

Our lilacs have started opening, and buzzing with honey bees from the farm two properties away. They need to be cut back and moved away from the house. Going to have to do some research on digging them up and moving them. The tree in the background that looks dead is our Catalpa.

 

Siberian irises.


Very fragrant roses. Way too short of blooming season.

 

And suddenly yesterday, the yard was full of color. Some in full flush, some with buds that will open soon (or not, in the case of the peonies - they'll take a while)

False indigo (baptisia)



Lupine


Just one area of peony buds


Root beer mini iris (my mom dug up rhizomes from her garden years ago and sent them to me)


Variegated willow


Variegated weigala


Gnus Flash zebra iris


Lceleaf Japanese maple has been loving the cloudy weather and really stands out

 

It's nice when there's multiple things in the yard that show off at the same time. Nice Irises!

 

Pretty

 

Excuse the lawn, it’s been a few days of rain showers again.

 

Pic heavy today, things are opening up finally with some sun. These have started popping up near the house, the old bamboo patch, and raspberry patch. We’ve moved a few clumps of them, not really sure what they are.

Our little Bleeding Heart from a neighbor.

Some Irises have started opening, from same neighbor.


Wife’s garden, native Geraniums, Anemones, and some Giant Alliums that got frost bite this year.


Our Cigar plant that we over winter inside. The hummingbirds love it, we had 7 plants, and some didn’t make it through the overwintering very well.

 

That Cigar plant is what I'm used to calling a Firecracker plant. I usually have some on my porch railing, but I haven't put up flower boxes yet. They do draw the hummingbirds. Also, can be quite startling at night, as they will reflect off any ambient light. Picture taken in 2019