Bloomday Deadbeat

  I seemed to have been unable to collect myself enough to do a May BD post, even though the blooms are vast , the days are long , the camera is operational. Business has interfered;some days even taking photos is not mindless enough after a day at the office. I can always manage a stroll with a glass of wine though. One must have priorities. Here then  are a few selections I managed to snap for this faux Bloomday.

Salpiglossis over-wintered here for me  ..even though we dipped into the 20's .



This is Silene asterias from Annies, planted last summer. The plants are tidy and have plenty of flowers , but the jury is still out...do I like it ? 


Sidalcea...back story . In 1986 when I moved to NorCal from San Diego, a new neighbor loaned me a copy of Taylors Guide to Perennials. This book, along with White Flower Farms catalog was a revelation to me --and I was in a swoon over the Sidalcea malviflora image in Taylors.   I had worked in a garden center in Socal for 10 years and herbaceous perennials were nowhere to be found. Our customers assumed a perennial was plant that bloomed all year, and could not be convinced otherwise. We lived in a sea of Pansies, Ivy Geraniums  and Euryops. Here in the north, there was a modest selection of perennials , and among my first purchases was G. Johnsons Blue (which I still have for sentimental reasons) Aster frikartii and a very poor cultivar of Sidalcea which was discarded after a couple of seasons.  Last fall I bought a few Sidalceas from Annies, and they have jsut started to bloom, with many buds still to come.


 Achellia 'Moonshine' .



Penstemon Mystica...claims that it would bloom till fall did not prove accurate last summer in my garden, still I planted 2 more in the hopes that maturity would assist in a longer flowering . Either way a very nice trouble free plant and a vast improvement over 'Huskers Red' .



Always reliable Verbena bonariensis.


The fabulous Artichoke.


Penstemon Raven, one of my favorite non-floppers.


I grow Symphytum 'Axminister Gold' for the foliage but it's nice to have the little pinkish flowers in spring. I will cut it back moderately hard when the flowers wane, and a new batch of fresh foliage will be the result.


This is Clematis 'Arabella' which is a non-stop bloomer in my garden til the frost lays her low. Last fall I threw some sweetpea seeds around her base, and now they jockey for position on her arbor. I will have to rescue her before long-sweetpeas are not suitable summer plants here in any case.



I love this green Santolina and have them repeated a few times in my front garden.


...but one of them did this ! I hate it when that happens .Ruins the whole damn scheme.

Comments

  1. That's exactly why I've never planted Santolina...for every one I see that looks amazing, there are 3 more that are split open in the middle...so sad :-(

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    1. It kills me Scott. There has to be a perfect pruning regimen for these dudes..I have yet to figure it out !

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  2. At the moment the sweet pea and clematis combo looks good. Nice blooms!

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    Replies
    1. A few days of over 80 temps and it will be time for the sweetpeas to visit the compost bin. I have enjoyed this though !

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  3. I laughed at your comment about the SoCal perception of a "perennial" plant - so true! In areas without frost (like mine), there develops a belief that all plants should hang on year-round in some form - even the "annuals" that die off can create a sense of outrage if they don't last close to a year in the ground. And let's not discuss the shabby performance of bulbs! Maybe that's why I see so many plastic and silk flowers stuck in gardens here...

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    1. To this day I can't stand the sight of Vinca rosea Kris ! Thank god it's not as ubiquitous here as it was in SoCal.

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  4. Your Axminster Gold looks very happy. The two divisions I planted last spring are huge too but haven't started blooming yet. Happy Belated Bloom Day! Better late than never.

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    1. This is their 2nd year Sue , so I will be interested to see what kind of size they achieve.

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  5. Wow, LOVE Arabella with the Sweet Peas! How wonderful a combination is that? You really have a lot of beauties blooming now. Axminster Gold is among my favorites in the garden. Just can't be beat for bold form and that marvelous color

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    1. I was actually expecting the sweetpeas to be over with when Arabella started blooming Deanne. I always forget how early she is, 2nd only to Niobe in my garden.

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  6. Friends of mine grow 'Axminster Gold' in their garden, and judging from how well it does for them, I would recommend not turning your back on it. BTW, beautiful images!

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