What's in full bloom now? MAY 16th - MAY 31st

Heheh k... I will chalk it up to the fact they're juveniles.... ;)

Another nice purple Rhody, but smaller in stature is Vibrant Violet. No spots or speckling, but intense colour.
Mine was totally crushed by a falling Doug fir monster branch. This pic in the plant files looks very "red-violet" compared to mine, which was color crayon purple.

http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/163496/

Sharon - how old is Peter & what's his size?

What's blooming in my yard is rust and powdery mildew and black spot. Cold, wet, damp. Perfect. Who knew that heuchera would get rust? My old fashioned one, the one everyone had before they started hybridizing them, had to be completely cut back due to pustules on the stems. I would just about rather rip things out than fight it at this point.

but here is a happier picture. The red rhodies are starting, as are the pinks and purples. Drumstick allium in full swing.

Katye, it's no good focusing on size with rhodies. It's how you place them that counts. :)

More alliums in the front border.

A grouping of cool whites in the berm. I am liking this. Makes me want to rip out anything that doesn't go with it.

Yes, but if Peter is another Rhody Tree, then i would plant him in a different location to ensure he could take full advantage of his alloted space.

Before I do any more Rhody purchasing, I must clear the space of Wild Cherry suckers that are dominating that area. Looking like some choice 2011 firewood to me.

I always thought that size was very important!

The rhode, on the other hand is now about 6 feet. It had a rough time getting started as it is back in my meadow where I have to water with soaker hoses. I have been doing that pretty religiously for a couple of years now, and that has made a huge difference back there.

Pix, love your white stuff.

Julie and I are having a Bloody Mary, trying to get motivated to do something. Anything! What a depressing morning. Don't even feel like working in the greenhouse, but we probably will soon. Breakfast, a nap, and maybe making the rhubarb pie i have been procrastinating on will be on the agenda. We will see..............(Lots of seedlings still to transplant, unfortunately.)

Blue Peter is a large shrub type. You could probably prune it up from the bottom, but it would be years before it got that big. I like the violent violet one also. Here's Mr. Lincoln. All my purples are beginning to show. They open one after the other.

This is Flora Pleno. It is very pretty and they can get large and be pruned like a tree.

I don't remember the name of this one. It has fire or flame in it though.

This is September Morn.

Another pretty pink

Willow, your pretty pink looks like Mrs. Furnival . I will post my picture of mine tomorrow.

Ah, yes, as the purples start blooming I feel it signals the end of the rhode season. Way too short to appreciate them all!

That 'september morn' is lovely! I haven't even been to Lakewold to look at the rhodies yet. It's just too nasty outside, until tonight. Now it's lovely. The weekend is over, and it's lovely out. I spent this morning changing pond filters, and doing a little algae removal. Then I spent the entire afternoon and evening on the boat, laying in the bunk reading. I won't be able to sleep tonight, but at least I'm well rested.

These chives are growing across the yard from some of the big Globemaster alliums, and they look so similar - except in scale of course. But to tell you the truth, I think I like these little dudes better. Plus you can eat 'em!

These foxgloves shot up and started blooming seemingly overnight.

This combination of Jupiter's Beard (centranthus ruber) and Lemon Balm has naturalized along the alley side of our fence. (Naturalized is a nice way of saying they are the weeds I've decided not to cut down). I like them.

I had a hard time getting a photo of this Geranium phaeum 'Lily Lovell' since it's under a maple tree and next to a fence, but it's an awfully cheery sight back there in the shade.

Hey, I like that centranthus with the lemon balm. Very nice. I would leave it. Look at how healthy they are! And the centranthus will continue to bloom all season if you keep cutting it.
I like the use of that mirror. I've been considering putting a mirror on the fence underneath the neighbor's huge cedars to reflect more light in that area.

A blue Siberian (I think) iris near my pond. We had a heron sighting there today - now I know why my fish are disappearing - but dang those birds are cool. They look positively prehistoric in flight.

I sure hope this Dahlia blooms all summer - I bought it this season, so I know it was forced. But this is the second flush of blooms since I planted it - so maybe it will keep it up? Who knows, it's pretty now.

Last one from me tonight. I'm taking both my rhodies out this year, as they are way overgrown and shadowing the house. So this is the swan song for this guy. Going out in a blaze of glory!

OH NOO! Not a heron at your pond! I lost 5 fish last year to a heron, two of which were koi. This year I lost my remaining shubunkin. I should have had my net over the pond. I agree herons are really cool, prehistoric looking birds, and I even kind of like seeing them in the yard, but I definitely do not like them near my pond. Definitely.

I went to Oasis Water Gardens yesterday (where I generally buy my koi) and replaced the white butterfly koi I lost to the heron last year. They have a cool koi pond with absolutely HUGE koi. They protect it from herons by using fishing line way high above the pond. The herons cannot land because their feet or wings touch the line and it freaks them out. I'm going to try that. The line is well above people's heads and it's not noticeable at all. I do not think it would interfere with smaller birds, either.

I love that dahlia!!

Thanks Pixy! Yeah, I've decided to let the centranthus and Lemon Balm do their thing.

You know, I got the mirror at a Goodwill. It's a cheap mirror - the rattan is actually some kind of plastic. But it's perfect for outside! It doesn't mold and it's really light weight. Definitely a good deal for 10 bucks.

Oops, we cross posted. You know Pixy that's an interesting idea about putting the fishing wire up in the air. I've been getting ready to put some across the pond at ground level to try to keep the racoons out, but I hadn't thought about repelling air attacks as well.

The racoons bother me more than the herons. For one thing, this is only the second time I've seen a heron in my backyard in the twelve years I've lived here, and it's really cool to see such a big bird in the middle of the city (even if they do eat my fish).

And for another, the racoons sit on my pond plants while they're fishing for their dinner. At least the herons leave my plants alone!

Anyway, our last remaining koi didn't make it thru the winter, so we're down to the $1.50 pet store goldfish. And I guess that's what we'll be sticking to unless we can ever manage to fortify the pond against hungry visitors.

Good luck with your new koi!

I love Goodwill. I almost always find something I can do something with. I had a collection of 'bad art' that I used to hang on the side of the shed. It would get surrounded by clematis vines in the summer. My favorite one was the unicorn in black and white, running through the frothing waves as the crested on the beach. It was very, very bad!

Cross posted again! I know a lot of people who hate racoons because they won't leave the pond alone. I had racoons the second year the pond was up, but they fell into the water and knocked over the large rock that was sitting up on a pot, offering shelter to the fish. After that, they never came back.

This is the second year in a row for herons in my yard. I've had the pond for 6 years now. Last year we had a kingfisher and the heron. This year, so far only the heron. I believe they are only a problem in nesting season, but I'm not sure. Last year it was early spring when we lost the fish. We never saw the bird during the summer. Same this year. It's spring. If you have goldfish, then maybe it's not so big a problem if the heron gets them. I heard of people who stock their ponds with goldfish just for the herons. I resent their looking at my koi, though. I love my koi. They are not for dinner.

This message was edited May 23, 2010 11:09 PM

One of my favorite Exbury Azaleas

An orange one

All the rhodie and azalea photos are gorgeous. I've never had much luck with either, perhaps because our yard used to be a pasture, so may not be as acidic as they like. The trip to Meerkerk also inspired me, I will likely relook at those plants, perhaps in the woodland areas I am slowly trying to tame a bit.

This azalea looks a bit scrappy until it blooms. Then: wonderful. I know I have the name somewhere, but can't put my fingers on it.

Mrs. Furnival.

Mrs. Furnival again.

I forgot to post one last night. Snapdragons blooming in front of catmint (Walker's Low) with snow in summer behind. I believe these snapdragons came from a wildflower seed assortment I threw on this bank a few years ago. Looking at pics from last June the snaps were tiny then. I can't believe how big they've gotten this year.

I also want to chime in with love for the September Morn rhodie. That's a great color.

This primrose is looking so cheery on another cloudy day!

The pond area is in bloom.

The curbside bed is crazy!

Isn't she lovely!

John Cabot rose has it's first bloom.

Fozglove growing into a rose bush with plenty of black spot this year! Wish the rainy days would leave for a while!

Beautiful pictures everyone. Love all the bird statues. Kym, love your row of weeds. Looks great. You have some nice combos.