Friday, May 22, 2015

May Flowers and May Showers


The 'Globemaster' alliums I planted in my North Border last fall are making a good show this spring.


We're now entering the most beautiful time of the year, in my opinion: Late May and Early June. The foliage is lush and green, thanks to the rain and intermittent cooler weather we've been having here in Iowa. The alliums and iris are blooming, the peonies are gearing up and the roses are yet to come. I've planted nearly all the plants that I've bought so far, I'm nearly finished moving plants around, and I've (mostly) been staying on top of the weeds.

The weather is not so hot as to be uncomfortable yet, although we've had enough warm, sunny days that we feel we're enjoying a nice spring-to-summer transition. And it's been breezy enough that the usual May gnats aren't too annoying. In short, this has been a nice spring to enjoy being out in our gardens!

In my last post, I showed a few photos of areas I've been working on -- which don't look very pretty, I'll admit (you know, Work In Progress...). To make up for it, in this post I'll show only the beautiful flowers that I've been enjoying here in my gardens:


Pink irises and oxeye daisies in my North Border. The oxeye daisies want to take over all my borders, but they're so pretty I can't get rid of them. I'll deadhead them before they go to seed, even though I hate to remove their prettiness. 

This Verbascum 'Southern Charm' is becoming established in the North Border, after two years.

I've been planting lupine seeds in the shadier end of my North Border for two years and only have a few tiny seedlings as a result. I finally resorted to buying a dozen mature plants last month and two of them are already blooming. It's hard to be patient enough to save money in gardening....

This is my first rhododendron to ever bloom. We do not have acid soil here and I have to add soil acidifier to keep these acid-lovers alive. I just planted this last spring, and it's doing much better than the azaleas I've had for several years that never look very good and don't bloom.

My Front Border is a riot of oxeye daisies and irises, which I will definitely divide this fall.

More irises in the Front Border. I like these pink and yellow ones.

Painted daisies, more irises and oxeyes in the other end of the Front Border.

Baptisia in the Purple Section of the Rainbow Border. This plant has really established itself quite well here.

I really like orange flowers the more I see and grow them. These orange irises are looking pretty good this year.

I know most gardeners like window boxes and pots filled with assortments of flowers of different heights and growth habits (tall, trailing and fillers, etc.), but I think I might prefer simple displays of one kind of flower, like these pansies. Even this was adventurous for me, as I usually plant pure yellow pansies in this box. I'm enjoying the multicolored ones this year though -- I guess I like to live daringly.... :-)

I hope you are enjoying your late spring in your own gardens too, with rain when you need it and warm, sunny skies when you don't. Thanks for reading! -Beth



12 comments:

  1. What a rainbow of beautiful and unusual colors you have in irises. I like the pink, the first one, best. Good show!

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    1. Hi Jane, Yes, I agree that the pink iris is probably the prettiest of the lot. It's the first time it has bloomed, so I'm really enjoying it. Thanks for visiting! -Beth

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  2. You have many lovely iris, Beth! I like them all. Your painted daisies are pretty too. The oxeye daisies are attractive; I have them too and they do like to seed all over but I just pull them as needed. Your allium look fantastic!

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    1. Thanks, Beth -- I'm so glad you visited! -Beth

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  3. Beth.... I've been meaning to e-mail you for some time but between all my health issues the last two months and trying to get the gardens up to snuff, I just haven't gotten to it.... just wanted to let you know that I have faithfully been reading your blog and your progress with the gardens and devotion to them is really making itself evident in all the progress you've attained. Despite all the hard work here and the schedule of constant effort, it continues to be an extremely worthwhile endeavor... I am amazed this year at the sense of maturity coming over the gardens and it is a thrill to have gotten o the point where we are... I do have a magnolia that I've been trying to spot for a month and a half... I think we are literally to the point where there isn't room for another full sized tree! I did take down four of the fastigiate english oaks with three more to go... maybe that will free up some space... take care in all you do Beth... Friends, Larry

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    1. Hi Larry, I'm always glad to hear from you, and so happy that have been reading my blog --Thanks! I'm glad to hear that your gardens are coming along well after the changes you made, and I hope your health is recovering. Make time to enjoy your gardens this year -- sit back and enjoy the results of your hard work. Take care, -Beth

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  4. Your garden is lovely, I especially envy the Verbascum 'Southern Charm', a beauty, but your Irises and Alliums are doing wonderful too.

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    1. Thanks, Janneke -- I'm so glad to hear from you! Hope you and your gardens are doing well this season. -Beth

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  5. This is my first visit to your site. I'm in Illinois so we are neighbors with approx. the same growing conditions. It's nice to find a blog with with a similar climate and find the same things growing and blooming at the same time. Loved your pink iris. I hope I can find some in that color. I will revisit regularly.

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    1. Thanks so much for visiting and letting me know about your blog too, which I'm now following. I look forward to reading your posts and I'm glad to hear from a fellow Midwestern gardener! -Beth

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  6. Beth it all looks wonderful especially the irises...love the peachy/rose one and that pink one. I would love to plant a pink and peach one but have so many others now that need dividing.

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    1. Hi Donna, yes, I know the feeling too -- irises seem to need dividing every 3 years or so, which comes around more quickly than I realize. It seems like I just planted them! Thanks for reading! -Beth

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