Sunday, May 22, 2011

Gardening (/May) Long Weekend.

I had a very busy and fun May/Gardening long weekend. I had bought annuals earlier in the week so they could be hardened off for planting, got all the pots filled with soil on Friday and planted on Saturday. So rewarding!!

Here is a garden tour, in order of appearance.

Cool Flame Narcissus, my absolute favorite, gorgeous salmon coloured trumpets and a LARGE bloom.






I received 3 free Astillbes last year, they are coming up beautifully. I'm excited to see what colour they are.






Pink Landscape Tulips are coming up nicely, I interspersed them into a long perennial bed.





The Double Flowering Plum is quite sparse, but sill has some pretty pink blooms.







By contrast PJM Compact Rhodo has fully bloomed for the first time ever (and this is our 9th summer here).





The little blue blooms of Jack Frost Brunnera are a welcome addition.






'Bastogne' Red Tulips have not disappointed.






My raised veggie pots are planted exactly as they were last year, romaine lettuce, cherry tomatoes and strawberries. I somehow ended up with extra tomato plants, and had to head back to the store for more pots..




Not quite the same, but similar..






The first Bleeding Hearts have appeared, I love the way the branches arch.





Dutch Master Narcissus in the shade, and they still bloom quite well.



Another Narcissus, this time Pink Parasol. The ruffled trumpets are quite fancy.




Grape Muscari are a terrific colour.






This creeping Moss Phlox has taken quite well. Notice the healthy dandelion foliage in the mix...




I generally keep a large cedar in this Blue Pot, but they are always difficult to dispose of. This time I decided to use the pot for some Gladiolus bulbs that were gifted to me, and I over planted them with yellow snap dragons and a few Toto Gold Rudbeckia.





The shade bed where the yellow daffs reside has always been a bit of a problem, I've decided to plant some Heucheras this year. I picked up Sweet Tea, Caramel, Purple Palace and Dale's Strain today. I hope they thrive and brighten up the area.




I hope everyone had a great long weekend so far! There's still 1 day left. :)

12 comments:

  1. Hi there Rebecca your garden and plants are really catching up now girl !
    I have vine trouble .. they have leaped so much forward I can't get them under control .. bad babbies ! haha .. I have dales Strain and Caramel too ! also had Toto rudbeckie a few years back, they are so cute ! Now that you are "stuck" on heuchera you will be "driven" to collect them : )
    Have fun girl !
    Joy : )

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  2. So many beautiful blooms. I just love that Narcissus! I also love your great looking pots of veg and strawberries. Do you get a good harvest from these plants? They certainly look happy and healthy.

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  3. What a gorgeous looking rhodo - well worth the wait.

    A neighbourhood has a mass planting of rhodos that bloomed last year for the first time in the 3 springs I have been here.

    The nice thing about rhodos is that the foliage looks good so as long as you aren't counting on them for blooms they are worth keeping around until "just the right" year comes along. :)

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  4. Hey Joy, Thanks for all of the info you've provided! I really appreciate it! Good luck getting your vines under control.

    Hi Bernie, I grew 4 heads of romaine last year in the same pot, and they provided a suprising yield. Once they were a decent size we were able to continually harvest leaves and there was always new growth. The tomatoes also do quite well. I would probably need more pots of strawberries to have an appreciable amount, but the ones we get are a welcome treat. I like having the pots raised as they are, they remain virtually pest free all summer and are safer from kids, dogs, and other critters (like the bunny who moved in last summer). Thanks for stopping by!

    Hi Ms S, you're right, they are lovely even when not in bloom. I just wish mine would grow - it's like a little bonsai! Hope all is well with you! :)

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  5. Last time I tried to leave a lengthy comment, it wouldn't work.
    Your blooms are gorgeous! Spring has sprung for you, Rebecca!
    Thanx for your comment.

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  6. Hi Rebecca. You have been a busy girl. I think everyone was in the garden over the weekend.LOL! Your spring garden is looking so pretty and I am glad to see you are getting some blooms now.Growing your veggies in pots is a good idea. With all of the rain this spring I may end up planting my whole garden in containers just to get it out. LOL!

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  7. Hi Rosey, I've had posting problems too, so frustrating! Thanks for your post. :)

    Hi Lona, it has rained non stop here for a few days, and is in the forcast until next week. I'm glad I got out for a few days, since we're back in for now (although I did do a few little gift planters on the front porch this morning).

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  8. Hi Rebecca, You certainly seem to have been busy on the long weekend! All those tomato plants in a row look great. Nine years is a long time to wait for something to bloom. Your little pink rhodo looks to have been well worth such patience. I look forward to seeing the astilbe in bloom.

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  9. Hi Rebecca,
    Wow, I can understand why you are in 'heaven' right now, finally seeing all those blooms that I saw here in my garden literally MONTHS ago!!! The difference in our climates is so apparent! I love your pots for your veggies--the new ones look like they were made to go with your older ones;-) The heucheras are some of my favorite shade plants. They are going to look awesome in your garden. I can never get enough of them, and the various color combinations are so fun!

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  10. Things look really nice. I like those fancy pink daffs. Do they come back every year?

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  11. Sorry for the delay in replying! My poor computer was pretty sick for a few days! :(

    Jennifer, you're right, 9 years is a long time, and I am not a patient person. Although gardening is helping with that...

    Hi Jan, Thanks for stopping by! I find it so interesting that there are blogs (such as yours) that share so many plants and yet are on such a different schedule than mine. The colour combos really are fun! I can see why they're addictive.

    Hi Diane, I've only had them for 2 growing seasons, but yes, they are suppose to come back more or less indefinitely! :)

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  12. Hi Rebecca, thanks very much for answering on my blog as well as yours. I do that as well - you never know if someone asks a questions if they might be able to find your blog again to read the answer!

    I need to plant a lot of daffs in the fall, as the critters (I suspect chipmunks and squirrels althought I haven't caught them in the act) are making it difficult to have crocuses. Nothing seems to bother the daffs.

    And the reason I was asking about the 'fancier' type daffodils, is that I discovered this spring, that the 'fancier' tulips don't always come back. Glad to know it isn't the same for the daffodils.

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