My most favorite summertime chore is deadheading flowers in the cool of the evening.
After dinner, a garden stroll, wielding my trusty scissors... I lop the heads off all the spent blossoms, encouraging them to smile at me all over again.
Around this joint, Columbines rule the roost.
I just love how they cross-pollinate to deliver fun, new colors each summer.
Do you deadhead your Columbines? I've found the blue ones, in particular, will flower all summer long, if I keep torturing them with the scissors.
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Bumble on the Catmint May Night Salvia (Good catch, Kim! :-)
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We're receiving more rain this year than ever before. Flowers are jumping for joy. The garden is abuzz with hummingbirds, bees and butterflies.
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| Wild Roses |
Mom's wild roses pouted for several years after transplanting. With these ideal gardening conditions, they finally agreed to put down roots and embrace their new surroundings.
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| Mom's Legendary Day Lilies |
Truth be told I'm not a fan of Day Lilies. (Lazy one day bloomers... :) But, I guess there's a legacy aspect to gardening. The Lilies, along with the wild roses and peonies, are transplants from my Mother's garden. Her Peonies are older than me.
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| Salvia and Yarrow |
I prefer a wilder look ~ so it feels as if you're strolling through a meadow untouched by gardener's hands. (And, we all know that meadows are filled with weeds so I can pretend like I planned it that way!)
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| Maltese Cross |
I'm doubly nuts for hot, hot colors like this Maltese Cross.
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| Wine Cups |
But, I guess that's the beauty of gardening, isn't it?
How every yard is a reflection of who we are and ~ through our choices ~ a lovely story to tell.
Pay a visit to
Carol of May Dreams Gardens ~ creator of Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day. From her website, you can stroll through an astonishing number of brightly blooming blogs.
34 comments:
I love the way you characterize deadheading. The mosquitoes scare me inside most evenings, but your lyrical description encourages me to lather up with the OFF and head out into the twilight :)
aloha,
what a beautiful garden, love the sign in the front...the wine cup flowers are dazzling :)
Hi, Patricia;
We're struggling a bit with mosquitoes this year - due to the plentiful rains. And, we're whining because of it since most of us don't have screens on our windows. Under normal conditions, there's no need for such things in a high plains desert.
Aloha, Noel!
I keep the temperature for Hawaii on my Google landing page. (That's way more meaningful during the winter months. :) Anyhoo... Park City, UT and Kihei are the exact same temp today. And, what a perfect 78 degrees it is! I hope this finds you enjoying a lovely sea breeze.
I love the Columbines but despite cutting them back they do not rebloom for me. It is great that they do for you all summer. Beautiful blooms for GBBD. V
Your Columbines are very pretty. A few of mine are still blooming, but I am waiting for them to make seedpods, so I can harvest the seeds. Maybe next year I'll try deadheading them religiously, and see if they rebloom.
I also love the deadheading ritual!
Your garden looks fantastic! The Daylilies are stunning.
Hi, V;
Columbines grow wild out here so maybe they're a little more hearty than the hybridized varieties?
Hi, Alison!
I like to plant big clumps of them so the seeds can inter-mingle. I ended up with a gorgeous yellow/purple combo this summer - from a pure yellow and purple variegated variety.
Thx, Christine!
If you'd like some day lilies, just say the word. I thin them every year. :)
Your soggy spring has resulted in lush beauty! Really, lovely flowers!
Happy bloom day! Oh, everything looks great. Congratulations on the columbine reblooms, mine might do it if it rained, but alas, I'll have to wait for spring...
Just lovely...I'm especially fond of the columbines...I will begin deadheading pronto!
Yeah... we can't do columbines year-round here, either. They seem to almost melt away after they're done blooming in the spring! (That is, if powdery mildew doesn't take them out first. *sigh*) So it's especially nice to see yours.
By the way, are you sure that's catmint that so entices the bumble? I could swear it looks more like a salvia to me... but it's 2am, so I may just be flat out wrong. lol.
Gorgeous!
Spectacular photos. I only have a few roses in my garden so you are putting everyone to shame :).
Thx Jan;
I can't get over how lush and green everything is around here. The wildflowers along the hiking trails are just amazing.
Hi, Town Mouse;
Spring columbines are the best anyway. They never re-bloom with as much vigor as that first flowering!
Thx, Leslie;
I have messy gardens so I just let the seeds fall where they may. And, then invite gardening friends over every summer to dig up the 'seedling volunteers' for their own gardens. It's a fun way to share the love...
I stand corrected Kim! :))
I have soooo much catmint on the property (keeps the deer and elk at bay) that if I see a blue flower I automatically assume it's catmint. You're right. That bumble bee is digging the May Night Salvia.
Really enjoy your post today... wonderful organization and color! Larry
Glad I noticed this on google .
I think your daylilies are beautiful, and how fortunate you are to have such a legacy from your mother. I agree that gardening is a reflection of who we are--one look at my garden, and you'd know I'm not a perfectionist:) Thanks for the tip on the columbines; this is the first year mine have bloomed, and I'd love to have them bloom again.
I do love all your different colors of columbine.
It's been a great Utah garden year with all the rain.
Absolutely lovely post. I love the sign you have in it!
Beautiful Kate. The sign is lovely.
Thx, for paying me a visit Larry! Cute little boy you have in that profile pic. :))
Happy bloom day!
Hi, Rose;
If you're interested in more day lilies I'd be happy to send you a care package. And, yes, it is really cool to see parts of my garden flourishing that have little to do with me. Always brings a smile to my face when I see her more formal flowers peeking up out of my messy garden design. Even if they do look a little out of place... ;>)
Hi, Janie!
And, great wildflower year, too. I'm seeing entire drifts of Sego Lilies on my horseback rides in the foothills. After our long cold spring this weather is truly a blessing. :)
Love your description of dead heading... one of my favorites too!
It's funny but I've never deadheaded a columbine in my life. It never even occurred to me that you could cut them and they would come back. Now I think I'll have to try it.
I'm always inspired to work on my garden after reading your blog. Happy summer!
Lovely!
Lovely flowers! I love the sign in your garden.
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