in your garden that is different, tropical looking or just plain strange?
I have to say that my Frittilaria is the most different plant in my garden.
I didn't think they would survive the winters up here but this is the third year they have come up.
They are planted on the north side and have survived without any mulch or protection.
Some people think my hellebore is strange but I think my strangest plant is allium bulgericum http://www.vanengelen.com/catview.cgi?_fn=Item&_recordnum=1145&_category=Allium
Your allium is very different Dave but I think it is beautiful.
I may have to try to find that one and try it. It says it is hardy in zones 6-10 but maybe with protection in the winter I can get it to survive.
The site you gave says the Fritts I have are hardy in zone 5-8 but they have done well here in zone 4 so maybe the allium will too with a layer of mulch for winter protection.
Dave - I think it's beautiful!
I have that one too, Dave!
My weirdest plant is more Japanese than tropical, but people always ask about it-
http://www.whiteflowerfarm.com/32590-product.html
Hey Ivy! I like those too. Very relaxing plant.
I think my allium is interesting before it opens too. I'll try to take a picture.
I always thought these flower heads look strange before they open
I just bought perennial bachelor's buttons, Centaurea montana 'Amethyst', which has a pale purple outer petal and a darker purple center. They have unusual looking flowers anyhow. I have already got the regular cobalt blue variety just like Al seems to have above. These were a find! I also find that people are amazed by my different colored daffodils. I have lots of whites, some pinks, and any number of orange and yellow combos. People get freaked by the idea that daffodils are not just yellow!
Martha
Bigcityal- I love those little pineapples ( I call them) when they come up every year!
Everything seems to be on hold here until this cold Monsoon passes.
I've been waiting for the Columbine to open for days, no change.
Only the Hosta and the lawn are growing.
Andy P
Unfortunately, lots of flower petals getting washed away. You wait all year then bad weather hits and you wait another year.
The only thing blooming great right now is the couple of garlic mustard plants I didn't yank last week.
My Astilbe are getting ready to bloom. Iris and clematis are also about ready. My Phacelia and forget-me-nots are almost done. Lily of the valley is still in bloom as well as candy tuft.
For get me nots, mid season tulips, flowering almond and the start of lily of the valley are in bloom in our yard now. I do see buds forming on two astilbes, and a couple of the clematis. Hostas are growing daily and I see even the gold ones are coming up. We are in zone5.
My Daffodils and Quince bush are the only things blooming here right now.
We've had rain and more rain and the forecast is calling for even more rain the next few days.
I don't dare even plant any seeds yet as I'm sure they will rot.
Daylilies and other perennials are growing well but no buds in sight yet.
Rain rain go away... I have brown lilacs, washed out tulips, phlox and some brown violas to show for all this rain. I never thought there could be too much rain , but I was wrong....
Same here ,Ivy, it came the worst time lf the year, should have been in April, you know......April showers may bring May flowers......instead it was 80-' around here
Wasn't it great? I was outside every day. I always say we have an Indian spring instead of an Indian summer around here. It's a false spring- gets beautiful early on, then a month or more of cold horrible weather after.
This year seems the worst.
What is growing best here are the caterpillars in the trees. 'Forest Tent', Gypsy and Winter Moth. It's too wet to spray.
My Apple looks bad, a few shade trees are also having a hard time.
We are up to 7 inches for the week of rain.
Andy P
Yesterday I spotted flower spikes on one of the heuncheras and the foam flower is blooming. Several trillium in the woodland garden are blooming too. We saw our first hummer yesterday.
I have this Apple Cedar Rust fungus on the cedar trees.
It only grows during long wet spells and disappears when the sun comes out.
Pretty, isn't it.
Andy P
It's kind of amazing... in a yucky sort of way
looks like someone flung something on the branch....
Alien Chicken! Andy, Watch out!
This is what it looked like this afternoon.
Andy P
A more pleasant sight.
The Strawberries are coming.
Andy P
Lesseee..... I just got and planted 4 Hardy bananas (Musa basjoo), a Chinese Yellow Lotus banana (Musella lasiocarpa) that I got when I went down to the Plant Delights Nursery open house in Raleigh, NC two weeks ago, two Needle palms, Japanese sacred lilies, my newly planted Semiarundinaria fastuosa bamboo as well as my large, 9 year old grove of Yellow groove bamboo (phyllostachys aureosulcata) are right in the middle oftheir shooting time (it started on April 30th), and some of the P. aureosulcata shoots are already 10 ft high.... My Rosa rugosa is also blooming, and the fragrant, wine-colored single flowers, combined with the unusual branches and foliage are a sight to see. My Jack in the Pulpits (Airasaema triphyllum) are just about done blooming, and I'm expecting a nice big batch of seeds of the one plant. My Arundo Donax is also waking up and is about 2 fit high right now.
As you can see, my woodland garden is anything BUT ordainary (although I do have a lot of native trees and some hollies in amongst the more exotic stuff).
Look what I found coming out of a pot in my front garden. :)
I have a Arisaema sikokianum 'Silver Center' getting ready to bloom I guess that is the weirdest and the plantt hat causes the most, "What the Heck is That ????" conversation.
phuggins I like the ornamental in that pot, it is very cute =)
Hikaro - PLEASE...post some pics as that sounds absolutely wonderful!
Phuggins, Save that pic.
What a cutie.
Andy P
Pam, You get most beautiful blossom!
We've mentioned our children on another thread. How fun to see him.
I'll see about posting some pics soon... I need to dump my memory card for my digital camera, then take some pics. The interesting part is that in order to make room for the new plants, I had to evict about a dozen large multiflora rose bushes from the spot (multiflora rose is a nasty invasive weed in PA), and some of the stems were over 2 in in diaimeter! Hopefully the new plants will fill the space in nicely.....
The new plants are growing kind of slow right now due to the fact we've been having cold, damp weather for the past 2 weeks.
Thank you for the compliments on my "ornamental"...he is very cute...but can become invasive. :)
Hikaro, would love to see some pix too!
pam
Phuggins - adorable!
Here is what I thought to be a weed a few years back, then it bloomed.
Tiny half inch flowers that only open when the sun hits them.
Blue Eyed Grass 'Sisyrinchium'
Andy P
I have columbine blooming. Behind the dark one in the front are Nora Barlow - I bought 2 last year and now I have dozens!
some things that grow in my garden
more
Very nice Maria!
