Thursday, June 21, 2007

in the gloaming


Isn't this a fun photo? I was sitting on the porch steps watching Mark work and the dogs play, and decided I should probably get some photos while the wind was calm and I still had some light. The landscape lights by the porch came on while I was shooting, and I thought the way the lights lit the Jackmani clematis on the lattice under the porch was very cool.This is one of the yellow lilies by the porch that just opened. I love when the lilies start - I have a good collection of colors, and they are all big clumps, so lots of color around the gardens right now.
This is Madison - a short but sprawly rosebush. (Is "sprawly" a word?) It will bloom pretty heavily from now until it freezes. The blooms are quite small, but the color and number of blooms really make this a standout. A neighbor has Madison right next to the road, and it survives winter salt and sanding - a great city rose!
A repeat blooming daylily - it opens a light lemon color and ages to a light gold. I'm interested to see how long it actually will keep blooming. I like the bloom time of Stella de Oro - but I don't like the gold color as much as I like yellow in my gardens - so I'm hoping this will be good.
Old fashioned single hollyhocks. I love these flowers.
A very pale pink lily.
Alexander MacKenzie. I bought this rose 3 years ago and planted it in a bad spot - not enough sun. So last fall, I cut it way back and moved it. The blooms are pretty small this year, but it looks healthy, so I think it will make it. Maybe by next year it will be ready to really take off.
This is my Annabelle hydrangea. I've had it for at least 10 years. The first 2 or 3 years I moved it many, many times. Once I finally left it alone, it just took off. The plant is huge and blooms like crazy. Every spring I think I'll cut off a chunk or two and start a new one in another garden, but that has yet to actually happen. I cut the dried blooms in the fall and decorate outdoor containers, wreaths, the Christmas tree, etc - and I leave some blooms on the plant for winter interest. In the spring, I cut it back to the ground, and it just shoots right back up - taller each year.
I think this is some kind of coneflower or rudbeckia. It's a volunteer in the lakeshore garden. I have 2 lakeshore gardens - one has the potential to be wet all the time in high-water years. That one has siberian iris, monarda (bee balm), turtlehead, etc. The other side is usually very dry - who knows why! Anyway, this is on the dry side. The leaves are skinny and hairy or fuzzy. If anyone knows what its proper name is, let me know!
The purple coneflower are starting to bloom. I used to have 2 gardens that were full of this great plant - but I've taken out a lot of it now. It self-seeds like crazy, so when I decide it's time to fill the gardens again, it will be an easy task!
I just did some whiskey barrel plantings for the driveway - more on that project later! For one of them I bought a Knock-out rose for under 10 bucks at Home Depot. When I bury Gertrude Jekyll next fall, I'll stick this guy in the same hole, and then find a permanent spot for it in one of the gardens next spring. I am very impressed - in only a week, it's growing and blooming like crazy. Could be a keeper.
This is an annual I picked up to use in another barrel - with some purple fountain grass and double red petunias. In a few weeks, this could be a cool group, I think. Anyway, I threw the label without really looking at it - but totally cool leaves - green with purple - and it's kind of irridescent. I like it.
Happy Summer to everyone - hope you totally enjoyed this longest day of the year!

15 comments:

Trailhead said...

You have some righteous lilies!

Melissa said...

Yes Bunker is the park with the wave pool. As far as the Twin Cities go Lake Minnetonka sounds like the other side of the universe!

I live in Andover and we are about a mile from Bunker via trails in the Coon Creek Nature Corridor.

Your cone flowers are further along than mine. I think I ought to lift all mine this fall and amend the soil. They are getting stressed by sandy soil with no nutrients.

I planted hollyhocks this year and I look forward to blooms next year. They are a tremendous nostalgia flower imo.

meresy_g said...

YOu have so much blooming! Everything looks lovely. I love the single hollyhocks. How lucky you are to have a wet bed. You can grow so many exciting things in moist soil.

Karen said...

Thanks for your nice comment about my blog. The pictures on this post are beautiful, especially the first one -- so unusual. And I don't think I've told you how much I love seeing pictures of your dogs! They remind me of the Snuggle teddy bear -- their thick, wooly coats. I love the large size poodles. They seem like a totally different breed than the little guys! Never cared much for the little ones (hope that doesn't offend anyone, I think it has to do with an early life experience with an apricot poodle)

Jean said...

All your pictures are great! I love the light on the clematis. Your gardens must all be beautiful!

Chitweed said...

Your pictures are wonderful. You have such an assortment of flowers.
Like you, I just love the Annabelle hydrangea.

Laurie and Chris said...

Everything looks so nice. Coneflowers and blackeyed susans are my favorites. Your hydrangea sure looks like it is doing good. Have a good weekend!!

Kitt said...

I love the clem photo. They glow!

Moe said...

So any gorgeous flowers! Wow!

kris said...

Thanks trailhead - new lilies are opening every day - it's very fun!

Hi me - I know, it's like you have to pack a lunch to get from here to there! That's a beautiful park and trail - lucky you to live so close. My coneflowers are just starting. We have clay, but luckily our yard was filled with wonderful black dirt many years ago. I use lake weeds to make compost that I add every year too. Hollyhocks definitely take me right back to being a little girl!

Thanks Meresy_g. It is fun to have different conditions in various gardens - I get to play with lots more plants that way! I'm still learning about wet-feet plants - very fun.

Hi Karen - thank you! We had a toy poodle/terrier mix before these guys. Totally different! I love the standard poodles. When we were deciding what kind of dog to get, I would stop every person I saw with a standard. To a person, they LOVED their standards. Everyone said as long as they get exercised every day, they're great dogs to have around. I would totally agree. (and, no shedding!!! - lol)

Hi Jean - thanks for visiting my blog. It's nice to meet Laurie's mom!! Thanks for the kind words - that clematis photo was fun - I'm kind of amazed I got it actually!

Thanks Chitweed - and welcome! I do seem to have a ton of different flowers here! Annabelles are great.

Hi Laurie & Chris - thank you. I love the purple coneflower and black-eyed susans too - I had an entire garden full of what I think of as native, wildflower type plants. It was very fun, and I'm sure I'll do that again sometime. I get bored and have to rearrange and try new things - but that was a look I really liked.

Hi Kitt - like I said above, I'm totally amazed I got that photo. The flowers just looked so cool with the light shining on them - I'm glad the photo came out.

Thanks Moe - it is really fun to share my gardens with everyone.

Diana LaMarre said...

Hi Kris,
I love the hydrangea. Every year I say I am going to plant one, but never do.

Great lighting on the clematis, too.

Your gardens are so much further along than mine. My first lily did bloom today, but coneflowers are weeks away.

The yellow unknown is a wild black-eyed Susan.

Your irridescent purple beauty is Persian Shield. I love that one, too.

Tristi Pinkston said...

Absolutely gorgeous flowers -- did I mention I used to be a florist? and the photography is great too.

And "sprawly" is most definitely a word. :)

kris said...

Thanks for the plant ID's, Zoey! I think my gardens are earlier this year than usual too. I'm thinking about putting one or two of the bigger hydrangea in next year - Tardiva, Pink Diamond, Brussels Lace, or ?? I have two All Summer Beauty too - I've resisted Endless Summer thus far - too much money, and here EVERYONE has them! We'll see!

Thanks Tristi - you didn't mention that you were a florist - tell me more - did you own/work in a floral shop or do floral design? My photography is usually just passable - lol - but I am getting better. My brain doesn't seem to hold the finer points of taking great photos!

Iowa Gardening Woman said...

I LOVE your Annabelle hydrangea, what is your secret to it getting so large in your garden zone? We planted Endless Summer and Pinky Winky this spring. I will admit to killing quite a few hydrangeas but I keep on trying!

The Clematis photo is very interesting, if you had planned it that way it never would have happened.

kris said...

Hi Iowa gardening woman - Annabelle is a monster! I think it must just love where I have it. I love hydrangea - but I've lost a few over the years too.
You're right - the clem photo was pure luck!