It's Fertilizer Friday so be sure to go over and visit our hostess Tootsie and see what's blooming in everyone's gardens after fertilizing religiously every Friday! Join in on the fun while you're there too.

Tall Campanulas



A fuchsia colored Spiderwort - the purple one bloomed earlier - it was an experiement I put in a really bright location and they like part shade. The one in the sunny location is doing great so now I know I can put them just about anywhere.

Salvia May Night

Dwarf Snapdragons

Poppies

Purple Spanish Lavender


This Snapdragon stayed green all winter and is now blooming great. My other 2 I had died back but came back growing on the old wood. Sure has me puzzled.


Sweet William 'Sooty'

Weigela not sure of name - this one is full size where my other I believe is a dwarf


Yellow Daylilies

What's Happening In My Gardens

I think since I have so many plants coming now I’ll just do half. I don’t want to bore everyone with too many little sprouts and tiny blooms all at once. They’ll get bigger cause we’re getting sun this weekend to make everything grow.

I was very excited to see some new growth on my Hardy Fuchsia Santa Claus. I already had spotted some on Double Otto. Now I have 2 more to check on and hope they come back. They are on the graves of our two little dachshunds Prissy and Schatze. Up there I have Phyllis and Brutus. Phyllis has the slightest bit of growth starting to show so I'm pretty confident that Brutus will too. They are in a lot of shade up there so they take a little longer to bloom. But this was their first year so I was especially anxious to know if they made it through our harsh winter. I've also planted Columbines around our two little friends graves and they are doing well. We lost Schatzee last year and I wanted to make changes to the flowers up there.
Hardy Fuchsia Santa Claus

Another plant I was concerned about was not having seen any Hostas yet. Guess I was needlessly anxious about them because they are all peeking through in three different places. One we moved last fall and it wasn't looking good then so I'm happy to see it's back.

The Calla Lilies are finally peeking through and there's a viola that popped up next to them. I eventually plan on having Callas line the whole front of the house to cover the foundation and they will make a nice backdrop for other flowers.

My Japanese Painted Fern is also showing now.

Around the corner from them still in a shaded area I have Brunnera Jack Frost he's getting bigger but his leaves are still a lot smaller than usual when it's blooming. Usually they are around 6" long or more but this year are only half that size. Hopefully he'll be full size soon.

Pulmonaria Smokey Blue

Jacobs Ladder Blue Pearl

Dicentra Spectabilis or Old Fashioned Bleeding Heart

The Columbines in here are looking good and so is my Heuchera Plum Pudding - just a wonderful wine color with silver in the foliage.


Down a little farther where a little more sun comes into the bed is an Armeria loaded with blooms.


Down that side of the house are also some other plants I started and planted last year that are showing green. A Weigela, Abelia, Red Valerian, Sedum Linda Windsor, Sedum Autumn Joy.I was concerned about my Spirea Little Princess because she looked brown and pretty lifeless but she's got new growth on her so I can relax now.
Spirea Little Princess

Fertilizer Friday . . .

It's Fertilizer Friday so be sure to go over and visit our hostess Tootsie and see what's blooming in everyone's gardens after fertilizing every Friday! Join in on the fun while you're there too.
Self Heal

Campanula - in my treasure 'Hometown Hardware' wheelbarrow

Gee, the deer missed this Red Valerian - thank goodness I still have a couple to bloom.

More Campanula in an old milk jug


A different color Spiderwort

This Peach Leaf Bellflower Campanula Persiciflolia is my showiest right now - if I keep it deadheaded I think it blooms all summer.

Carnations you can smell a mile away

Catmint Walkers Low - to the left you can see the other Red Valerian stripped by deer

My cobweb Hens & Chicks with a bloom - don't know the name of these but they are the tiniest I have - about the size of a cooked pea.

My cobweb Hens & Chicks with a bloom - don't know the name of these but they are the tiniest I have - about the size of a cooked pea.

A pink Salvia my sister gave me no name also

Looks like the Lacecap Hydrangea will put on a show this year thanks to our acid clay soil. I was going to change it until people kept telling me it was such a brilliant blue and they loved it that way. So I went and bought a pink one and put in in a pot so I can keep the soil controlled.

The Phlox are getting ready to bloom.

Spirea Little Princess

The BBQ Recycled Twice

Years ago I recycled our old BBQ and filled it with annuals and a Sedum on each side to hang down. I loved the way it looked stuffed as full as could be but decided to change it year before last because of an upcoming back surgery not knowing how much I would be able to get outside and do. I put some Sedums in it and in a lot of my planters for easier maintenance. Now I wouldn't have to plant as many annuals on the deck. Here is a picture of the BBQ when it had annuals and then one after the change. The gray green one top picture to the left and to the right are Cape Blanco. And the one blooming in front I think is Dragon's Blood but I'm not sure. Behind that I added a bucket for some height and dimension and filled it with Sedum Tri-Color. Oh and the fern? That's a 'happy accident' that just popped out of the bottom in front.

Sedum Tri Color

Sedum Tri Color is sprouting out in spite of the snow and freezing weather we have been having this year. Below is how it will look in the coming months.

A Few More Flowers Showing

It was fairly clear a couple of days ago and I was able to walk around and see if anything new was peeking through. I didn't hold my breath as I had already posted quite a few. So I got a little surprise to find my Columbine Clementine Rose was doing well and some Creeping Charlie peeking out behind it. I always thought it was a little tiny Columbine but maybe it just didn't get very big at first because the tag says 14-16" tall. I guess that isn't real tall when I think of some I have that are over 3 feet but I think it was only about 10 or 12 inches if that. If it gets too tall maybe I'll take it out of the old wheelbarrow.
A small group of Crocuses - I believe the spring and fall blooming type. You know the ones that bloom in the spring and then lay all over the ground looking like crap all summer? Looks like something has really been chewing them.
A larger group of smaller Crocuses. Can't remember what they look like.
I stuffed this bucket with Tulips and Daffodils. At least the critters didn't bother them. 19 years ago when we first moved here I bought over 100 Tulip bulbs of all kinds and colors and planted them. Come spring I think I had about 3 show up. I never planted them after that. So this year a friend gave me some and I decided to put them in a container and cross my fingers. I did have 1 other one a friend in Missouri sent me when we exchanged some flowers and it bloomed 1 year. I still have a small bulb from it I stuck in here so I'm anxious to see if it shows.
Some Heather Mediterranean
And my Pulmonaria Smokey Blue I'm glad to see has made it through our winter. I love the way it blooms pink and purple. Perfect for my flower colors.

A Vase For Every Bouquet

I thought I'd do a post on the variety of vases I have. Not because they are so beautiful but because I just keeping getting more. I'll start with the ones I have for giving a bouquet to a friend and not needing to ask for my vase back - and save the best for last.

These are pretty plain but I can pick them up inexpensively and when giving a bouquet to someone I don't need to have it back. Some are plastic, some are bottles and there are some glass ones too. A couple didn't make it into the picture like the neat clear plastic cut glass vase. It looks just like cut glass until you touch it. The blues and cobalts that I like to use for our bouquets here at the house.
A variety of colors, shapes and sizes.
Some crackled vases either from being vintage or just made to look that way. The pitcher is yellow crackle glass and I'm really not sure if it's old or not.
A couple of vintage decorator pieces. The smaller one from West Germany has built in holes to place flowers in and arrange.
Now for my personal favorites that will never be used to hold flowers but they are vases. I have a small collection of vintage head vases that I just adore.
My daughter thought I needed a 'body' vase to go with all of my head vases. How cute is that?
And last a bouquet that Bob picked to take to Mom on Father's Day. With the whole family over to see Dad he thought she needed a bit of extra attention with all she is going through right now with my Father being sick. She just loved it and especially knowing that Bob picked and arranged it just for her.

Rosa 'Veilchenblau' and Surprise In Greenhouse

'Veilchenblau' is a hybrid floribunda Rose cultivar that was bred in Germany in 1909. Other names include 'Blue Rambler', 'Blue Rosalie' and 'Violet Blue'. It is one of the bluest of the old rambling roses. The cultivar is a near-thornless climber, growing approximately 12 feet tall by 12 feet wide and is hardy in zones 5-9. The flowers are small, semi-double mauve or a mauve blend and have a fragrance reminiscent of Lily-Of-The-Valley.


My Veilchenblau is growing - hopefully it will continue to grow and bloom well this year and the deer will leave it alone. Looks like we're going to have to lasso it to bring it back down to the lattice – at least the deer can’t reach it there. Last year just starting to bloom.
A friend of mine owned a nursery down the road for years until she retired. She had this rose climbing up over one of her greenhouses. It isn't the prettiest but it goes crazy with blooms and the color was right for me so I had to have one. When she finally did a few starts to sell I jumped at the chance to buy one. Here's a picture of her Veilchenblau. Click on this picture to really see those gorgeous blooms.
I was out puttering around in the greenhouse and watering some plants. I pulled out a tray to water the back ones and look what I found.
The day before I had seen one of the rose colored finches fly in there and then fly in again but completely forgot about it by the next day. I hated to take the nest out but I know they wouldn’t like it with me in there all the time so I put it in one of my Lilac trees for a decoration.
Speaking of which, the lilac tree is getting ready to bloom.

Sedum Vera Jamison

Sedum Vera Jamison with her dark wine colored leaves and pink blooms. I went out and looked in the planter the other day and there are lots of little veras sprouting out. Once in a while we get a day without rain around here and the sun actually shows up and I'm outside looking for signs that spring is really on the way.

Fun with Sedums

This is Sedum Cauticolum on each side of what I think is a Sweet Potato Vine 'Blackie' and some Ice Plant in front that hadn't filled in at the time of the photo. Cauticolum looks so much like October Plant I can hardly tell them apart when doing starts because of the beautiful blue green foliage trimmed in pink that they both have. In the background you can see my 'bloomin' stairs' that I planted in Thyme. I have one on each side of the bank for easier access farther up in the back of the yard.

My only 2 tall Sedums so far. Autumn Joy on top and Linda Windsor, my newest. I thought the dark wine colored foliage would be a great contrast with all of the greens around here. The bloom is almost the same color as the foliage.

The 3 planters above have similar plantings in them of Hens and Chicks, Cape Blanco, Tri Color, Vera Jamison, I think some Purple Form, Cauticolum, October Plant Sedums, an Armeria, Viola and Johnny Jump Ups. Another nice green one you can see on the top right I'm not sure about the name. I haven't decided if I will stick them here and there in the flower beds or sell them if I decide to do some markets this summer.

3 old canisters my husband riveted together to put Sedums in. The large one has Purple Form, on the left is Babys Tears and I don't know what the third one is. The picture below shows them in bloom. The yellow bloom sure matched the flower on the canister

Gray Jays Entertain Us . . .

We really do have some characters around our place. But I think most amusing are the Gray Jays. They fly in and let us know that they 'have arrived' landing here and there. Sitting in front of Sedum Vera Jamison

Then if I don't jump up immediately and go get them something to munch on they come over and peek down at me from the roof. They know they'll get something now because I can't resist them being that cute!
Then it's time to pick up as much as they can all at once.

How Exciting - A Ladybug In My Garden

A couple of days ago I finally got out again to walk around and see if anything else was sprouting or could I possibly hope for a bloom? Not likely around here as we're usually a couple of weeks later than everyone else because of being higher. But I do have a friend whose flowers are even later than mine - that'll teach her to live 5 miles straight up. But it's worth it - you should see the view she has!

Ok back to my stroll. Right out the door I checked a few containers on the deck and found some Sedum Tri Color, Bertram Anderson,
Vera Jamison,
October Plant
and some life showing on the rose my husband put in a container as the deer were chewing on the main plant. We don't often get to see roses bloom so we moved them closer to the house and we got to see a few but now the deer are checking there too.
Then I saw some little Johnny Jump Ups with the yellow tops. I had already shown one with the purple top on an earlier post that had bloomed all winter through the rain, snow and freezing weather.
In a bed next to the deck is some Spiderwort - I love this flower and I have it in 2 different colors. Now that it's good and established I plan on putting some everywhere to fill in and keep the flower buying $s down.
and some Columbine that is a really tall purple one I don’t know the name of as I think it was given to me.
Next, up to the greenhouse in a flowerbed I started on one side of it last year I found some Purple Coneflower,
Sedum Linda Windsor,
and Siberian Irises. This is a mauve one I bought about 5 years ago and it has had the hardest time getting going. It was blooming the year I bought it and then quit until last year. Hopefully it will continue to grow now. I have lots of purple and lavender ones and I give them to everyone I have so many. But this little guy hasn't done well.
I went into the greenhouse and decided to take a picture of one of my Lacecap Hydrangeas that I started last summer. It looks great so I hope it makes it.
And there was a little pink viola blooming – I have one blooming outside too but it was hanging it’s head down so I grabbed this picture.
Back outside I have a little pot of hyacinths that were in a bed last summer but spread out everywhere and didn’t look so great so I stuck all of them in this pot last spring and will replant them at a later date. I took this inside to force a bit since I didn’t have anything for the experiment I posted about forcing bulbs and trees.
In fact look how much they’ve grown in about 3 days. And there's 3 little blue blooms you can see if ya look really close.
Then I looked over and was really happy to see some color up by the pumphouse where I have some Crocuses blooming.
3 days ago they looked like this when I took a picture and didn't get it posted.
Then I headed back over to where I had been by the greenhouse and was looking at a bunch of starts I have in 5 inch pots and there sitting pretty as you please on my Wormwood plant was a little ladybug. That had to be the thrill of the day to see her and get a picture.
Over at another bed I found some Phlox peeking out
then across the yard some Hardy Bachelor Buttons – is it Cornflower,
some Lupins
and Autumn Joy.
Around the corner where it’s a bit shadier I found Heuchera Plum Pudding, and as you can see we have lots of needles from all the fir trees around our place.
Bleeding Heart
and Brunnera Jack Frost.
I hope this wasn't too long, drawn out or boring for you but I didn't want any of my flowers to feel slighted for being left out. They are, after all, part of the family!

After The Rain . . .

Thought I'd go out after the downpour and get some pictures with water drops on blooms the other day. So I bundled up because warm it was not, grabbed my camera and off I went out to find the perfect bloom with the perfect droplets for me to capture. Then I remembered (Ding) I didn't have any blooms yet. Right! Well I have some tiny Johnny Jump Ups that are probably smaller than the drops and some Crocuses that have by now croaked! Well here's Sedum Vera Jamison but I don't know how good droplets will show on her with such small foliage. Better give it a try bright girl it's all ya have. Then I found a variety container I had with some Hens and Chicks and ironically enough there was a small web with drops in front of it. Ok I accept - it might work.
There was the little green leaf with pink trim of my Columbine that actually had some pretty good drops on it. No blooms but some drops - I can work with that.
Then out of the corner of my eye I saw something. Color? I turned my head and actually jolted a little as I hollered 'holy crap' I don't believe this. There was nothing here the day before - or was that two days? Who cares! I was just happy it was there and really happy we don't live close enough to anyone that might be outside watching me over here acting like a bumbling idiot in my stupor of excitement.
My pretty pink Azalea was starting to open up. I finally had something blooming that was bigger than a nickel or better yet larger than a quarter. Oh happy day!
No, not starting to open - by cracky it is open. And it even has a few droplets on it!
Ahhhhh it's posing for me!

What's Happening In My Gardens II

More Flowers Coming . . .

Here's a view across the bank going to the upper yard. I can't believe it looks so cruddy with orange marks and all - I think my camera is working too good because when you look at the grass it doesn't look that bad. Bob got my bloomin' stairs weeded and I have almost finished the other set. I'll show a view from the opposite direction later when I get them finished and get the path where they lead to my greenhouse cleared of pots with flowers.


We have some natural springs that pop out of the bank when we have too much rain so my flowers on this end kind of fizzle sometimes from being too soggy. We eventually plan to put a pond on the bottom and one on the top with a waterfall in between. Then my plan is to make the rest of the bank solid with flowers in between the 2 stairways. When we designed the deck we put in a set of stairs on each side facing the stairs on the bank.
Looking up from the bank to the upper back yard where I have a raised bed, Lilac tree, Mallow, Rhodies, picnic table and hammock to lay in and enjoy it all.
One of my Verbascums is finally opening up. I think that's a tall purple Campanula next to it.
A close up of the Verbascum opening.
My first Campanula bloom.
Some purple Columbine buds getting ready to open.
My favorite Columbine Cardinal Song almost ready to burst open.
Hardy Bachelor Buttons.
Close up of hardy Bachelor Buttons.

Color To Get Over The White Blues

I started this yesterday when we got dumped on again thinking some color would revive my good spirits. But I combined photos in groups because I had so many and it took a while. Well, thank goodness it did take a while because I really needed them today.

Thought I'd put in pictures of my container plants that I do. The first one isn't one of them but they are so cheerful I had to stick them in. Last summer my girlfriend kidnapped me on my birthday and we took off for Seattle and spent the day at The Pike Place Market. I was way overdue to go there and we had a ball. She bought 2 of their huge bouquets and gave them both to me! These are so big I swear they weighed 20 pounds each - at least carrying them around they felt like it. We got to see the guys that throw the salmon around (and never miss), street entertainment and of course had lunch and then ate our way through the rest of the place. What a fantastic day it was. Ya know paybacks are heck and I have to think of something equally as fun for her birthday! You might want to click on these pictures so you can see them better as I did groups and their rather small. I have since changed the cast iron shelf because some of the flowers didn't get enough light and watering was hard on the shelves too. I planted a Clematis in it and hopefully it will be covered with gorgeous blooms.
My teacart has 3 or more colors of Lobelia and something else not sure and the hot pink iceplant wasn't blooming yet.
My vintage wash tub with a number of annuals plus some Creeping Charlie and usually some miniature Snapdragons.
I still wonder how I ended up snagging this old wheelbarrow at an estate sale. In a town with hundreds of antique shops and I showed up late and it was still there? I think they must have just put it out. It didn't have the rust at the time either. It says 'Hometown Hardware' on the side. It was a keeper and never made it into the shop where I had my antiques for sale.
The top left is Purple Heart and it isn't hardy here so I have to bring it in for the winter. I've read that people like it as a ground cover. In the wheelbarrow is some Ice Plant just getting started. I love lopsided in my gardens every chance I get! The bottom left is called Celosia I believe and it is just so pretty. I'm going to have to look for another one this year. In the old breadbox hanging over the side is a Geranium (annual). It is just the tiniest one I've ever seen.
A few more deck planters - one on an old wicker barstool I found running around hitting garage sales with my sister. I said the stool is mine as we pulled in and I spotted it - she was getting ready to say the same thing but she wasn't quite fast enough. Ya snooze ya loose!!!
Guess I should have lightened this one up a bit it's a little dark. Verbena sitting next to the sweet little path my hubby made going to my greenhouse from the stairs on the bank.
Some Dianthus in my old coal bucket. Oh and my headless swan. It was a really pretty rock swan but didn't take the weather well and the neck and head broke off. I couldn't part with it so it's just a novelty conversation piece now. Found the little tricycle with Hens and Chicks already in it at a garage sale.
Some Impatiens and Lobelia.
More lopsided. This bed has got more in it now. I'll have to get another picture later with everything blooming. I have another milkcan angled the same way with Campanula in it too down in my woodland garden.

I do feel so much better now. And the sun is even shining. Maybe I'll go separate my little plants that I brought in here as seeds and the Cosmos are almost 3 inches tall. I see some of the Coneflowers are showing now too.

New Flowers Make It All Better

Well thank goodness I had new flowers to plant and make it all better after the chomping machine went ripping through the property eating everything in sight.

This is my new Deutzia - I don't remember if they told me anything about it at the Farmer's Market except it gets 7 feet tall? Guess I'll run down there today and see if they have a name and double check on the size because I'd like to do it in a grouping with some of my next new pretties. She said this gets pinker as the season goes by and the picture she showed was very pink - so far mine is still white. Maybe because it's young. I have Spanish Lavender in the regular purple but didn't know they had different kinds. This is Boysenberry Ruffels and it is gorgeous with more of a pinkish tint to it. I thought it would look nice planted by the Deutzia.
Hosta Albomarginata. I'm going to replace those big honkers in front of my Callas that I'm unhappy with. Now they will be smaller and the same size and color - I hope!
I wanted some more Lambs ears because mine don't seem to be spreading - at least not that I can see anyway so I thought I'd just get more and put them somewhere else. I did that last year and they ended up being Lychness of some sort marked wrong. When I first got there I asked the lady at the nursery if they had any so I wouldn't forget. She picked one of 2 up and I asked her if they could set it aside for me while I looked around. I mentioned that it looked a little darker than mine and she said probably just where it was sitting in the light. I got home and was reading the tag and it's a dwarf. Hmmm do I want to keep it? I seem to have a hard time bringing Lambs Ears home - just plain old fashioned Lambs Ears. O'well, I didn't double check what she picked up so it's my fault and besides it might be nice to have a little one on a border somewhere. It is kinda cute! It will get 10" tall.
This is a Miss Kim Lilac - a dwarf that only gets about 5 feet tall I believe.
A Japanese Maple they were selling for an amount we couldn't afford to pass up.
I've wanted one of these for the last couple of years - ever since my girlfriend had a fellow employee bring some branches to her job and she said they had fuchsia (some are purple or lavendar) berries on them. After reading and finding out the birds also love them I have had it on my wish list. It will fit right in with the colors around here. It's called Callicarpa Bodinieri 'Profusion' or sometimes it's just called Beauty Berry. This one was in their discount section needing some TLC so I'm going to try and give it that. If the deer don't work against me!
And now for my biggest thrill of this buying spree - or would it be the summer? I saw these last summer when someone got one. I had been at the same little town celebration but didn't see this anywhere so I missed out. I call it my 'bad hair day' plant. It's a Japanese Willow but this one has been grafted on to another trunk (forgot to ask what kind) so it's taller than normal. A friend of mine has that kind and they are really pretty too with their pink foliage coming out on the ends but this little guy standing tall and kind of ruffled up is just so cute!!! I'll let the branches grow and just keep them trimmed above the ground so I guess it won't be a bad hair day tree when it grows up. There are actually 2 of them together in this picture since my girlfriend, and partner in crime, wanted one too and the guy lives out here by me so I just grabbed her one also. What a cutie pie this is - I absolutely love it.
I guess I'm a little late getting my annuals for the deck this year and the place I went to locally was sold out so I had to get something different. This big pink Sugar Daddy Petunia is one I always get but she only had a couple left.
So I had to buy some different ones. This is a Tidal Wave. I don't usually do waves but guess I will this year. The Tidal Wave is even bigger than the waves I guess.
Another Tidal Wave in a different color.
A pretty colorful Verbena. I love Verbenas but they were out of them too. Guess I'll have to pick some up somewhere else.