Bed of Roses....

One morning, a couple of weeks ago, I went out into my garden to cut some flowers to take to work with me.  As I was looking around, I saw a dark spot in one of my roses.

I thought maybe is was a dead leaf that had fallen on the bloom, or maybe some huge insect.

However, as I got closer, I realized that it was a little froggy!  It had certainly chosen a lovely place for a bed!

Have a beautiful day!

Ruth

So much blue...

I have a bunch of blue flowers blooming right now.  Here are most of them.  The first one is a bulb that I dug out of a vacant neighboring yard several years ago.  If you look closely, there is an aphid on one of the blooms.  (Already???)

"Forget-me-nots."  These have the tiniest flowers and  I think they are adorable.  You don't forget them for a couple of reasons:  they are so charming and they reseed themselves.

Veronica "Georgia Blue."

A whole clump of Veronica "Georgia Blue."

Rosemary "Tuscan Blue."  "Tuscan Blue" can get to be six feet tall!  This one is about two-and-a-half feet tall, so it has a ways to go.

Blue Phlox.  I'm sorry I can't remember its botanical name at the moment and I am too lazy to look it up.  Oh, and it's fragrant as well as beautiful.

Ajuga "Chocolate Chip."  Yum!!!

Have a beautiful day!

White Muscari

Well, hello!

I know it's been awhile since I've blogged, but I'm still here.

I have, in addition to hundreds of blue Muscaris, white Muscaris blooming!

There is a clump of white Muscaris that I've had for a couple of years in a raised bed.  These photos, however, are of a large flower pot filled with Johnnies and and Muscaris.

I actually bought these Muscari bulbs in a cheap box at Food Lion!   I didn't expect them to grow at all, but at the time, I was craving the hope of Muscaris, so I got them and planted them. 

And what beautiful results!

Have a beautiful day!

Caterpillar on Blueberry Bush...

I have blueberries ripening!  The bushes are small and there aren't very many berries yet, but it is still exciting!



This morning when I was looking at my blueberry bushes, I found something else enjoying them, too.   I don't know what kind of caterpillar it is, but I've submitted the picture to an organization that says it will help me identify it.  Kinda wild looking, huh?



I love the colors of the blueberries in the different stages of ripening.

 Have a beautiful day!

Julie's Water Garden...

So, this is Julie's water garden.  It is little, but very well done.

She asked me to for a water plant for her for height in her water garden.  I found this dwarf papyrus.



And, of course, there is water lettuce.  It is my favorite floater. 

Her water hyacinth is blooming.

I think it is so pretty.

Have a beautiful day!

Bloom Day June 2012...

Thank you for stopping by on Garden Bloggers Bloom Day, hosted by May Dreams Gardens.

This post is for the birds ~ hummingbirds, that is!  I love growing flowers for the hummingbirds.  I have one main hummingbird garden below my deck, but I've also planted hummingbird plants throughout my garden.

 One of my favorite hummingbird plants is Bog Sage. It is the tallest, pale blue in the picture above.

And then there's good 'ole  "Black and Blue"~ Salvia guaranitica.

"Grandpa Ott" morning glory reseeds itself and vines through the hummingbird plants.
 


Cleome also reseeds itself, as does Salvia coccinea (the red flowers).





This is a Penstemon.  I don't remember its name.  Since it likes well-drained soil, I planted it with lots of Perma-til so hopefully it will survive the South.

Another Salvia ~ this one is a greggii and part of the Heatwave series, but I don't remember which one.

 Salvia coccinea ~ it reseeds in red, white, pink, and variations of these three in my gardens.

In the hummingbird garden below my deck, I have a wire/metal globe on top of stone pedestal.  I put it there so hopefully one of the tiny birds would find it a pleasant place to rest.  And guess what!  One day, I saw a hummingbird sitting on it!

I have Salvia guaranitica "Argentina Skies" in my hummingbird garden, but this particular plant is in the front of my house. 

I have three different native honeysuckle vines growing up my deck.  This one is in the hummingbird garden.

We can see this one from the kitchen window.

And this vine is visible from the dining room sliding glass doors.

This Salvia greggii was sold as an annual, but it lived over the winter.  The stripped petunia is a "HeatWave" petunia.

An Agastache.  This one is in a pot on the deck so I can see it from the sliding glass doors.




Nasturtiums.



Torenia.



Also know as the wishbone flower.

I'm not really a "red" person, but I love this plant!

It's Bat-faced Cuphea.

These plants are across the path from the official hummingbird garden, but they include Salvia "Black and Blue" and a couple of Buddlieas that the hummers visit.

Buddliea "Miss Ruby" and Feverfew.

Have a beautiful day!

Potful of herbs...

At the bottom of the back door steps, I have a large grey pot that I fill with annuals.  Of course, it has Johnnies during the winter.  For the summer, I usually try to do a red, white, and blue combo in honor of the Fourth of July.  (The white blob on the deck is Princess.)

This year, I did something different.   I used herbs.  There are four kinds of basil:  pesto basil (the variegated basil), African Blue basil (my favorite basil plant), lemon basil, and Thai basil.

I also put in variegated thyme and variegated marjoram.

I like the way the variegated Lirope looks with the variegated plants in the pot.

In the front is a mini petunia.  I think it is so pretty! 



Have a beautiful day!