Flowers From Across the Street

I have a flower bed across the street, at the same neighbors' where I have a vegetable garden that the rabbits think is for them.  I need to do some work there, and will soon.  I am in the process of cleaning out the room in the house that is full of clutter.  I have made progress, but it's very difficult and emotional.  There have been tears of frustration, and some items I've come across bring back good and not as good memories.  I am pleased to have found the remote to the TV, some shorts that fit, and the last several years' of bone density scores to compare to the most recent one, when I find it.  Plus, I can walk on most of the floor now.

I did go out this morning to take some photos to post for Tootsie's Flaunt Your Flowers/Fertilizer Friday.

Here is the view from our dining room window:

Before the current neighbors moved in, this area was overgrown with trees and weeds that overtook the smoke tree that had been there before.  I started this bed last summer, at the same time I started the vegetable garden, which is on the other side of the garage.  Most of the plants are from my yard, but some I bought last year.  I only added three daylilies this year.  Some of the plants that I thought were annuals, came back this year.  I am still battling weeds and the trees still want to grow.  The green to the left of the knautia is a group of trees I've been clipping back.

Yes, the knautia is from my yard.

The butterfly bushes were supposed to be dwarf, and they are smaller than some, but they are larger than they got last year.

I got one of these to put in the garbage can area, too, where it is about the same size as these.  I don't remember their name.  I wonder if they are 'Blue Chip'.  I found that by looking up dwarf butterfly bushes.

I am going to have to move the 'Fireworks' goldenrod  (from my yard) closest to the smoke tree, because when I told the owner of the home that it was coming up, he asked me to let it grow.  I was glad to, because I always liked it.

I wonder how long it will take for the smoke tree to get big again.  I sure like the color!

Here's the view from the side.  These daylilies are from my yard.

There's a locust tree trying to grow here.  This is from a different plant than the similar bloom above.

Here's the view from the house side.  I need to get a plant support for one of the rudbeckias that's falling over.

The black-eyed Susans are blooming a bit sooner here than where I dug them out from last year at our house.

These rudbeckias may be 'Prairie Sun'.  They were sold as annuals.  I hope they come back next year.  The coneflowers may be 'Ruby Star'.

I don't remember if this liatris is from my yard, or if I found it somewhere for a good price.

I bought three daylilies this spring from a sale put on by our local community garden group.  The tag on this said it was red.  It's more orange, but I like it.

The tag on this said, 'Strawberry Candy'.  I looked up images, and it does look like them.  I'll have to get a start from it in the spring for my yard.  The third one hasn't bloomed yet.

The catmint came from our yard, too.   The small plant in the middle is a snapdragon that came up from last year.

This bed gets minimal care, and I did not water it much last year.  It's rained a lot this year, so I haven't watered it at all, except for the new daylilies, which only got watered a few times after being planted.  I'd say it looks pretty good for a two year old bed.

I've cut back the couple clumps of boltonia, and they keep growing back tallish.  They will add lots of blooms later in the summer.

When I walk back across the street, if I have my camera, I always take photos of our house and yard.

I will be back upstairs, working to get rid of the clutter tomorrow.  I would appreciate prayers for me to make good use of my time, and make good decisions about what to do with things.

If I had Tootsie's energy, I'd be finished by now.  Be sure to see what's going on her way, and see who else has linked in this week.  Oh, and be sure to read her Tuesday post.  That woman is more creative than anyone I know!

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Flowers for Friday

I've been so busy this summer trying to keep up with gardening and housework, that I haven't done much else.  The Special Olympics National Games have been in my city this week, and I managed to go to a few of the events Tuesday and Wednesday.  I was disappointed not many other locals took advantage of this once in a lifetime opportunity.  I wish I'd have had my camera there.  Well, I did on Thursday, but then remembered the batteries were low, so I left it in the car.  I did get it out when I saw a butterfly.  I'll post the butterfly Saturday.  (I got some event  photos taken with my cell phone, but haven't looked at them to see if you can see what's going on in them.)

I going to have fewer photos than usual this week for Tootsie's Flaunt your Flowers/Fertilizer Friday.  I am sad that the daylilies are almost finished, but some of the annuals are finally starting to grow and bloom.  Some of the goldenrods are blooming, too, and the rest are forming buds.  The asters are forming buds, too, but they hold on to theirs awhile before they open.

The phlox, 'Orange Perfection' is blooming later than last year.  It almost looks orange in this photo.  The first time I saw it bloom, I thought it had come with the wrong tag.  When I looked it up, I saw it's not really so orange.

I did make it to a few garage sales last Friday, and this hen is one of the things I got for the yard.  It has a nice little drinking area for critters.  I wonder if you're supposed to put bird seeds there.  The annual black eyed Susan is blooming nicely.  The German statice looks good, even when it gets dry.  I had enough to cut for drying inside, and still have some for color in the garden.  It looks like I need to deadhead the Veronica.

I planted flower seeds in some of the tubs to save money, then got impatient and planted other things in them.  I was glad to see this gomphrena up awhile back, and now, it is blooming, quite close to the strawflowers I planted.

Some of the strawflower blooms are past the point to pick for drying.  I need to get out there and harvest them.  I use the blooms in baskets or other containers, and put other dried flowers in with them.  The gomphrena is in the lower left corner of this photo.  I'm glad I had extra sweet potatoes to plant in some of the tubs, because most of the ones I put in the ground were eaten by rabbits, and now, they've discovered the ones they had missed. I need to get the little fence material I got at a garage sale up around them.  I actually have some of it next to the fence, but need to do the rest of it.

Larry got some snail, also called corkscrew vines one year, and ever since, has gotten 3 or more of them every year.  He loves them, and I don't mind them.  The problem is that the lows need to be around 60 or else they don't do well.  Some years, they get a disease and don't do well no matter what the temps are.  When they do well, they are quite pretty.  I told him to just get 2 this year, but he got 3.  I put 2 in this pot, and one is in a hanging container.  This is the one in the back yard, with 2 plants in a pot.  These are the first blooms, so I don't know yet if this will be a good year for them.  They had to spend a lot of time in the house before it was warm enough to be outside this spring. 

The love lies bleeding has grown tall enough for the flowers to drape over the leaf burner dealy instead of growing inside it.  I got this hibiscus deadheaded yesterday. 

Well, each week there is always something different going on at Tootsie Time.  Go check it out, and find out what else is blooming in others' gardens.

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Some Nice Surprises for Friday's Post

I had been feeling sad that the daylilies and some other flowers were about finished blooming for the season, and was thinking the flower beds were going to be lacking in color until the fall flowers bloom.  Over the last few days, I have found plenty of summer blooms opening up to show for Tootsie's Flaunt your Flowers/Fertilizer Friday.  

The 'Gateway' Joe Pye weed  and 'Orange Perfection' phlox have joined the hibiscus, coneflowers, and such.

I have been wondering if my 2 surprise lilies were going to bloom this year.  The foliage came up the last two springs, but they didn't bloom last year.  I was very tickled to see a bloom stalk coming up a couple days ago.  I had to move a few things around to find the other one, because I had covered it with a pot.  It seems to be recovering fine.

I didn't think this 'Cherry Blossom Magic Fountains' would bloom this year.  It's less than a foot tall.  It's a nice surprise to see.

The 'Ruby Tuesday' helenium is blooming much later than the one I think is 'Mardi Gras'.   I just notice these blooms today. 

Another nice surprise is the delphinium that got so tall this summer, is now blooming again, only shorter.

See?

Kiss me over the garden gate is blooming shorter and later than last year. By the end of the summer, I have a feeling it will be much taller.  I remember it still grows while it's blooming.

My neighbor's celosias are huge and blooming.  These, that I planted from her saved seed last year, and then seeded themselves, finally decided to come up.  What a surprise!  I wonder if they will bloom before summer is over.  I need to move them, because they are right by the small delphinium, and this recently planted lavender.

We're leaving the main front yard bed.  I was able to get a better photo of the skullcap in the curb bed, I showed in my Wildflower Wednesday post.

This 'Black Night' butterfly bush I planted near the sidewalk on the west edge of the yard, next to the wash tubs last year, is a bit spindly, but the blooms opened a day or two ago.

I almost didn't notice the little bellflowers have opened.  I think they are 'Blue Clips'.   I love the  rudbeckia.  We still haven't sunk the tub so the bear's breetches don't spread too far.

Tootsie told us she was going to do something different this week.  I see she posted photos from a gardener who doesn't blog.  It looks to be a nice place.  I need to go back and look more closely.

I am needing to limit my computer time somewhat because of jaw pain, which seems to be affected when I use the muscles on my right side.  I am finding that sitting where I can lean back helps.  I  hope to visit the Friday posts after catching up from my last post.

Have a great weekend!

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Blooms

We've had some rainy, hot, and windy weather the last few days, and the conditions for picture taking have not been the best.  I braved the conditions at different times of the day Tuesday and  took some more Wednesday morning, getting ready for Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, hosted by Carol of May Dreams Gardens, which is the 15th of each month, and for Tootsie's Flaunt Your Flowers, which is on Fridays.  I'm glad I did, because right now, it's a little after 6:00 p.m. and the temperature is 94, with the heat index of 115.  It's supposed to storm later this evening, and cool off.  I think I'll stay inside.  (I ended up going out to put my car in the garage, and dug the last 2 hills of early potatoes that had died back, and pulled a few onions.)

Since the photos were taken at different times, there will be no order to the locations.  There are so many flowers blooming right now, that not all of them were included in the photos.  Off the top of my head, four o' clocks, bachelor buttons, larkspur, clematis, marigolds, moonflowers, and coral bells are some that are blooming.  Some of the daylilies did not get included, either.

I lost the tag to this lisianthus.  I don't know if I knew when I got it that the blooms would be two toned like that.  I normally get single colored ones. (I found the tag while deadheading this morning.  It's 'Laguna 3-4 Blue Rim'.  How's that for a name?)

The 'Paprika' yarrow, purple coneflowers that were white ones when I planted them a number of years ago, and agastache are in full bloom.

This hydrangea, 'Pia' had one set of blooms the first year it was planted, and I was disappointed it only had the one set again last year, its second year.  I am so pleased that it is so full, and the blooms are long lasting.  Maybe I'll try another kind some time.

The blackberry lilies are just starting to bloom.

Knautia, pentas, liatris, sea holly, and baby's breath have all been blooming awhile.

I love this pink lisianthus.  I think it's 'Cinderella Pink'.

I've deadheaded most of the pink and purple blooming betonies.  The rudbeckia on the right has something wrong with it.  I need to look to see if it's aphids.  These did get aphids last year, and I just washed them off as much as I could, and they pulled through OK.  I expected them to be annuals, and was surprised to see them push their way through the hyacinths as they were fading.

The Helen's flower is doing well.  I've been deadheading it when I'm out working on the daylilies.  I haven't deadheaded the red hot poker.  Normally, I would have had it done by now but the berries are looking interesting to me.

I have mentioned finding a number of things while cleaning out my "parlor".  I am so pleased that I found my Tracy DiSabato-Aust book, The Well Tended Perennial Garden.  I am forgetful, and like to refer to that to see what to cut back, when, and how much.  I'll have to see what she says about this plant.  It's right next to my 'Wally' daylily, which I'm sad is finished blooming for the year.  (Wally is next to the Helen's flower.)

I don't remember planting this.  Before it bloomed, I was hoping it was Solomon's seal.  I looked it up, and it seems to be an oriental lily.  My daughter says it looks like the stargazer lilies they've made arrangements with at work.

What a cool bloom!  Nature does put orange and pink together.

The gray headed coneflower and 'Herbstonne' have started blooming in the last week or so.

I don't remember planting this veronica.  I cut back the goldenrod, thinking it would bloom later than this.  When I checked last year's photos, I saw it was blooming then.

In each of my flower beds, there is at least one kind of flower that is also in another bed.  Not all flowers are in more than one bed, though.   I also like to have more than one variety of some flowers, if I can find them in our area.  Liatris is one kind I like to try different kinds of, and grow in different beds.  Black eyed Susans have planted themselves in other areas, too.  The coreopsis next to the Susans are starting to bloom.

I am in the basement because the weather guy said to go to the lowest level of the house.  I'll have to remember to look at the tag for this black eyed Susan I just planted this spring.   (I can't believe how easily I lose things!  I couldn't find it after we came back upstairs.)  I hope it comes back next year.

I like the blue of the gentian blooms.

The 'Little Grapette' plant is not little, but the blooms are smaller than most.  I've enjoyed how it has so many blooms open at a time.  The bees have enjoyed the veroncia 'Sunny Border Blue'.  This is the false sunflower I moved out of the veggie garden that gets taller than the others.

The yellow snapdragon is from last year.  I think it's the original plant, and not from seed.  The pincushion flower and 'Hello Yellow' milkweed are ones that come up later than most plants, and have been blooming a week or so.  That's 'Black and Blue' salvia on the right.  It's blooming, too.

This is the third season for this 'Autumn Joy' sedum.  I don't remember when it bloomed last year, but was surprised at how early this started blooming.  The ones in front are starting to bloom, too.

The short toothed mountain mint is about to bloom.

I planted the huge 'Jacob Cline' or 'Kline' (I've seen it spelled both ways) last year, and sure have enjoyed their huge blooms.  They are about finished.  I need to see if I should deadhead them.  I'm thinking I should, because the blooms are weighing the stems down a bit.
 

The variegated false sunflowers have lots of buds, and one bloom.

I grouped the daylilies that were in bloom while I was taking photos together, but they are in different beds all over the yard.  If you know their names, you can let me know.  I've mentioned that I got some of them from place where the house was about to be torn down.  Some were from yard sales, and others were from daylily nurseries or garden centers.

The first ones pictured look to be from the curb bed.  I got a good deal on them last August, and am tickled they bloomed so well this year.  If I don't say what one is, it's because I lost the tag or forgot to look.  It's pouring rain, so I can't go look right now.

This one is 'Fooled Me'.

The tag by this said this was 'Night Beacon'.  When I looked it up, the images did look like this one.    That means the one that was marked 'Bela Lugosi was mislabeled.

The 'Eenie Allegro' daylilies were the last to open.

I lost the tag for this one.

This is the one that was labeled 'Bela Lugosi'.  I like it, but I'm disappointed it's not what it was labeled.

This is one of my favorites.  It's 'Bonanza'.

This is one of several I moved from somewhere else in the yard to extend the daylilies throughout the whole curb area.

The next several are from the bigger bed in front.  This one is slower to wake up in the mornings.  It's one of my favorites.

I'm pretty sure this is 'Gentle Shepherd'.

This was from a yard sale.

I can't remember whether this was from the yard sale, or if I picked it up somewhere else.  I'm wondering if this is 'Strawberry Candy'.

Back to the curb, we see 'Octopus' bellflower in a pot, the rudbeckia I thought was an annual, more liatris, nice red pentas and petunias to go with the fire hydrant, catmint getting some new blooms after being trimmed, and some butterfly milkweed blooming next to the pot.

There are several colors of cleomes blooming in the bigger front bed and in the vegetable garden.

I haven't shown the love lies bleeding yet this year.

Last, but certainly not least, I have only a few nigellas that have come back, but I'm hoping for more next year.  They are one of my favorite flowers.

I hope you are having a great summer, and the next GBBD doesn't come too soon.  I'll be back to work, and lots of my favorites will be finished blooming.  I sure hope that room is clean and the gardens are in decent shape by then.

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