Tuesday, July 19, 2016

July Bloom Day Late Edition

I'm several days late for this month's celebration of Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, but I couldn't miss this month--it's the height of the garden season, the time of year when everything seems to be blooming in my garden.  Garden work has been put on hold the past two weeks, but the blooms keep a-coming without any help from me.


Daughter and her family, including youngest grandson, were here the week of July 4, so naturally I was focusing on lots of hugging and play time, not gardening.  As soon as they left, Younger Daughter and I took off for nearly a week in Washington, D.C.  It was my first trip ever to D.C., and I hope it won't be my last--there is so much to see and do in this city, I  didn't get to see everything I had wanted to see, though we certainly tried.


While we were gone, Mr. Procrastinator, also known as Mr. I-Don't-Garden, volunteered to keep all my containers watered.  He did a great job, although a downpour one day helped:)  The little red wagon I planted just before the Fourth of July is looking much better than before I left.

This is the time of year when I would welcome visitors to my garden.  Coneflowers are everywhere and attracting bees and butterflies galore.  If you want to see all my coneflowers, check out my last post.  But they're not alone:  my addiction to daylilies the last few years has resulted in an explosion of color that has lasted several weeks and is still going strong.  I have so many different daylilies that rather than show individual photos, I decided to make a collage of some with i.d.'s below.
 Top Row:  Nettie's Rubies*, NOID passalong from friend Barb, NOID yellow.  Middle Row: 'Little Grapette, mystery NOID, newer unnamed hybrid. Bottom Row:  'Tangerine Orange Ruffle', Andrea's Dragonfly*, Prairie Sunrise*.

*Those marked with an asterisk are not registered lilies, so please don't report me to the daylily police:)  They are either passalongs from friends or relatives or one-of-a-kind hybrids that I purchased from our local 5 Acre Daylily Farm and decided to name myself.

Clockwise from top left: Passalong from friend Beckie, Nettie's Coral*, 'Susan Webber,' Spider lily, and 'Tangerine Orange Ruffle'...again.


I'm doing my best to remember all the names of these lilies, but with misplaced tags and my unreliable memory, it gets harder every year, especially when I seem to have so many peach and orange-colored lilies.  Then there are the mystery lilies, like this one that I forgot to include in a collage--I have absolutely no memory of planting this one!

The names I definitely remember are my small collection of "literary lilies" below.  Even though I don't know where I'll put them, I hope to add even more in the next few years as I find them.

Clockwise from top left: 'Divine Comedy,'  'Tennyson,' 'Romeo Is Bleeding,' no idea, 'Canterbury Tales,' and Juliet.*

These are doing well, especially Juliet, one of my self-named lilies.  
She produced so many blooms that poor 'Romeo' looked pretty puny next to her this year.


My favorite deserves a photo all by herself--'Mistress Prynne.' 
 No scarlet letter here--I love her pale ruffled petals.


Besides the daylilies, the Oriental lilies have begun to bloom in the last week.  I'm not sure there is anything that can rival 'Stargazer' for sheer beauty.


Unless you prefer the pristine white and intoxicating fragrance of 'Casablanca.'  A swallowtail butterfly apparently prefers it, flitting among the many blossoms as I was taking photos yesterday.


My love for lilies has branched out to other types as well.  Last year I planted some Orienpets 'Black Beauty.'  I'm glad to see how tall they have gotten this year, tall enough that I don't have to bend down to see their blooms.


A new lily this year growing next to 'Black Beauty' is this one which has me scratching my head.  I remember planting something called Turkish lilies, I believe.  There is a native lily called Turk's cap, but I thought it was only orange.  Hmmm, will have to check back through my records to see if I can find the real name of this one.


Although coneflowers and lilies draw most of the attention in my garden, they are not the only flowers blooming right now. Gray-headed coneflowers Ratibida pinnata rise above the mass confusion in my butterfly garden.


A new bloom that greeted me when I returned from D.C. was the Nicotania.  For the past several years it has re-seeded all over my arbor bed, threatening to take over at times.  I pulled most of the seedlings this year, but I always miss a few.  A few are fine with me, especially as a backdrop for 'Wendy's Wish' Salvia.


Another volunteer/gift from the birds, the pink phlox in the shade garden is beginning to bloom.


Meanwhile, back in the Arbor Bed the 'David' phlox is thriving this year.  I love these pure white blooms!


The annual hibiscus planted in a container is finally producing more than one bloom at a time--unfortunately, they are quickly devoured by Japanese beetles.


The shade garden is lush--and crowded--as it is every summer.  I wish I knew the name of this hosta in the forefront of the garden.  It's one of my favorites, and it is getting huge!


Not everyone likes the blooms on hostas, but I enjoy them, and so do the bumblebees.  This fellow was crawling into every bloom, coming out covered in pollen.


Sophie likes this garden, too--no wonder I can't keep the bird bath filled!


One of my favorites in late summer/early fall, the 'Limelight' is already starting to bloom.  I pruned it quite a bit this spring, but obviously not as much as I thought--it's already reached the roof of our one-story house.


I just can't leave here without one more photo of one of my many coneflowers.  I was thrilled to have another visit from a Monarch on Sunday--this one is a female.  I hope she finds some milkweed in my garden to lay some eggs!

July is such a beautiful, colorful time in the garden; I wish I could stop time for awhile.  It's been very hot so not much garden work has been done, but that's okay--I am content to just sit back and enjoy all the blooms in my garden.

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day is brought to you the 15th of each month by Carol of May Dreams Gardens.  Thanks, Carol, for hosting this showcase of blooms around the world once again.

33 comments:

  1. Your gardenflowers are so beautiful Rose. I am getting jealouse about your Lily's. I can't grow them because they are eaten by a kind of insect and in one or two days the Lily is lost. Also beautiful to see the butterfly's that are visiting your garden. Overhere I saw a few today but it's not a good year for them overhere I think.
    Have a wonderful day and enjoy your vieuws.

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    1. Marijke, if it makes you feel any better about not being able to grow lilies, I can't grow beautiful roses like you. I guess we have to accept what works best in our own gardens. I've seen more butterflies in the past week, so I'm hoping there will be even more.

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  2. WOW, do you ever have the daylilies. They are gorgeous. I love all the tall lilies too. Oh heck, I love anything blooming lets face it. :) Happy belated GBBD.

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    1. Lisa, I have turned into a daylily addict--I just can't get enough of them:) You really should come up for a visit some time in early to mid-July. It really is when my garden is at its best.

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  3. Better late than not at all. I do love your little red wagon and all those daylilies are just wonderful.

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    1. Thank you, Dorothy. It's been so hot here that I have to keep the wagon full of flowers watered nearly every day. Daylilies are one of my favorites.

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  4. Happy GBBD! It sounds like a marvelous summer with family and in your garden. I'm so happy to see a Monarch in your garden since none have visited us this year. Sophie looks happy too. You are reminding me that I should revisit DC.

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    1. I'm on my second bird bath in this location, Sarah--I thought the deer had knocked over and broken the other one, but now I wonder if Sophie may have helped:) This was my first trip to D.C., and I hope it won't be my last--so much to see! And they keep adding more.

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  5. Rose girl you have AMAZING flowers to show off here ! they are gorgeous !
    I think .. and I emphasize "think" one of your unnamed day lilies looks like Frans Hall first set of photos middle one with striping. But all of them are remarkable you have such a variety !
    I love the picture of Sophie sneaking her drink from the bird bath .. too funny.
    That little red wagon is such a cute mixture of annuals .. nice job girl !
    Take care ... and ? we still have had no rain ... it is scary here ... but I am so lucky to have the sprinkler system .. and Garden PA helping out as well .. phew !!
    Joy : )

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    1. Thanks, Joy. I bought the red wagon at a garage sale last year and never got around to doing anything with it till this June. I seem to do a lot of that--buy things for the garden, and then they sit in my garage for a year or two:) We've had enough rain, so I can't complain about that, but I am sure tired of this awful heat!

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  6. Rose girl you have AMAZING flowers to show off here ! they are gorgeous !
    I think .. and I emphasize "think" one of your unnamed day lilies looks like Frans Hall first set of photos middle one with striping. But all of them are remarkable you have such a variety !
    I love the picture of Sophie sneaking her drink from the bird bath .. too funny.
    That little red wagon is such a cute mixture of annuals .. nice job girl !
    Take care ... and ? we still have had no rain ... it is scary here ... but I am so lucky to have the sprinkler system .. and Garden PA helping out as well .. phew !!
    Joy : )

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  7. I love all your lilies! And I think you just gave me the name of one of my daylilies: Canterbury Tales. I need more of the Asian and Oriental lilies --many of the ones I planted years ago have faded out. I only got one bloom from my tall white oriental lily this year. Beautiful flowers and photos!

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    1. Cassi, you may have a 'Canterbury Tales,' but there are so many different daylily cultivars and some look alike that I would never be able to identify the names without the original tags. I've just gotten into other types of lilies the last couple of years and really enjoy them, too. Be patient--the orientals take a couple of years to get tall and produce a lot of blooms. One of my Stargazers was covered in blooms this year, the first time I've seen more than a couple on one plant.

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  8. I agree: It would be wonderful to slow down time during the summer. The Midwest is the best place to be this time of year. Your Daylily and Oriental Lily collections are impressive! I'm glad you had a nice time in DC with your daughter, and that your garden was in great shape when you got back!

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    1. Beth, I agree--this is the perfect time to visit Midwest gardens. Looks like you had a great time in Minneapolis; can't wait to read some of the posts about the gardens you visited.

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  9. Hi, Rose. I think your travel to Washington DC was interesting, did you visit Botanic gardens there?
    I loved your garden, 'Little Grapette' and Casablinca are my favorite, :D
    Have a nice week!

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    1. Nadezda, I didn't visit any botanic gardens while in D.C.; I was too busy seeing all the historical sights, of which there are so many! It's hard for me to pick favorites among my lilies, but 'Casablanca' is a beauty.

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  10. The flowers are absolutely spectacular....thanks. :)

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    1. Thanks for stopping by, Troutbirder. This really is the best time to visit Midwest gardens--it's the height of bloom season.

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  11. What an utter joy to look at your post.
    Fabulous blooms
    Fabulous photo's.

    ... and I so agree 'hugging and play time' with the grand-children is such a joy

    All the best Jan

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    1. Thanks, Jan. This is such a beautiful time in the garden; I just can't get enough of daylilies!

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  12. Great shot of the Monarch. We've had only one sighting here and no pics. Love the little red wagon. We have one just like it I used to pull our boys around in. Judy says I can't turn it into a planter because we have to save it for grandchildren. Our Ratibida is also blooming as is the 'Casa Blanca', which we love. You have an amazing Daylily selection!

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    1. I've seen two Monarchs now, Jason--one a male and the other female, so I'm hoping for more:) All but one of my grandkids is too big for pulling in a wagon, so I didn't feel too bad about turning this into a planter. The wagon I had for my own kids was thrown out some years ago, which I later regretted, so I was so excited to find this one at a neighbor's garage sale.

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  13. What a beautiful selection of lilies and that little wagon made an excellent container. Really loved your photos.
    Butterfly was great, too.
    Maggie x

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    1. Thanks, Maggie--can you tell I love daylilies?:) And I do love seeing all the butterflies this time of year.

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  14. It must be nice to have a garden filled with butterflies. Your daylilies are all glorious, but my favourite is your favourite. Mistress Prynne is so pretty! I love the ruffled edge. The lilies and the white foxgloves are beautiful too.

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    1. We haven't had as many butterflies as some years, Jennifer, but I have noticed more and more the past two weeks. The coneflowers really seem to draw them. Isn't Mistress Prynne a beauty? I often buy lilies because of their names, especially when they have a literary connection, and I was thrilled when she turned out to be so lovely. Seems appropriate--Hester deserves being remembered this way.

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  15. Such beauty! It is all looking so great! What a delight to come back to!

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    1. Thanks, Tina! I was happy to find everything looking good when I got back home.

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  16. So many beautiful daylilies and lilies, Rose, my favorites. I have quite a few too and this year has been a struggle with so little rain. I have Nicotania, coneflowers and phlox in bloom too. Being away, my garden might be really dry, but there is always next year right?

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    1. I have become addicted to daylilies and now other types of lilies, Donna:) If I wasn't running out of room, I'd probably spend way too much on many more. We have been lucky to have enough rain this summer to keep the garden going without much extra watering. That may change in August, according to the weatherman.

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  17. I think we have that hosta too although ours is a little eaten.

    You have so many lilies! Absolutely gorgeous.

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    1. Thanks, Liz! I'm assuming you don't mean George has eaten your hosta:) I noticed one or two further out have been nibbled by something--usually Sophie and her crew manage to keep the rabbits and deer at bay close to the house.

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