Memorial Day feast

I just found artichokes growing on the artichoke bush!  They were not there a few days ago.  So we are sharing the first little artichoke for our dinner tonight!  : )

Sunday afternoon drive

Jerry took me and my cough out for a drive with Taco Bell lunch.  The mountains and sky were almost the same color and the raggedy sheets of snow seemed to hover in the sky.  Amazingly beautiful!  Although there is little to harvest in my garden right now I have this week consumed apricots, nectarines, cherries, bueberries and strawberries, as well as pecans, honey, lettuce, peas, cucumbers, asparagus and more all grown and harvested here locally.  I am reminded all our good things to eat here in the valley are due to that snow in the mountains.  Thank God, who is able to provide for our needs, for all the good water to grow good things. 

Sunday morning sunshine

Sat outside with our tea and coffee this morning, enjoying the first warm day of the year.  Looks like we are going to skip the 80s altogether this year and move right into the 90s.  We are both sick and sunshine is supposed to be healing; whether it is or not, it felt good.  : )

The Designer

Look at the amazing detail in these flowers, clematis and oakleaf hydrangea.

Biennials

Biennials are plants that take two years from seed to flower.  I currently have biennial hollyhocks in bud, for example.  They grew all last summer as a basal rosette and this spring shot up a tall stock. 
This spring I seeded out campanula 'Cup and Saucer', from a packet of seeds Rob picked up.  The germination was fantastic and yesterday I separated the little seedlings into cells in flats.  Two full flats of potentially gorgeous flowers!  So now begins the work of keeping them alive all summer.  Come fall they can be set out to flower next spring.  I think the secret to biennials is to get them selfsowing in the garden, otherwise they are just too much fuss and bother. 

Bread seed poppies

These tall poppies' seed pods make lovely decorations.  In years like this, with a long cool spring they are stunning!

Pomegranate

Dwarf pomegranate 'nana' makes a great pot plant.  It has these orange flowers most of warm weather, followed by one inch inedible pomegranates and nice yellow fall color.  I keep trying to get the fruit at the right stage for drying to use for decorations, but the first year I let them go too long and they rotted on the tree and the second year they molded later, indoors.  I need to find out the secret.

Iris

I really like the foliage of bearded iris, especially the glaucous blue green color.  However, I do not really like the iris flower.  Some of that attitude may be changing thanks to Jen Brisco's gift of this one, blooming in its first year.

Clematis

Pronounced clem-a-tis, these flowering vines have just recently made an appearance in the valley.  Common thought was they would not grow here.  However, there are many species and both the texensis and the viticella seem to be happiest in the heat.  In full sun even these will crisp up when it gets really hot.  I am so pleased this year with the blooms, probably fourth year.

New plants

I have two new plants from Mother's Day, thanks to Robby and Candace!  
I just repotted a dwarf Meyer Lemon. The lemon already has a dozen little lemons on it. This tree can live in a pot and blooms and fruits all year. The Meyer lemons are thin skinned and sweeter than most lemons.
So exciting!  I told Robs I wanted this one specific white hydrangea macrophylla and he found the exact thing, without me even telling him the name!  It is 'Madame Emile Mouillère’ a French heirloom, which has been in cultivation for 100 years.  White mopheads are hard to find.  This one blooms on both old and new wood which means it should bloom for months.  I love the green to white to green flowers.  I also read it should have good fall color.  All around a choice plant if I can make it grow. 

Mother's Day

Chilly in the garden today!  I planted seeds for green beans, cantaloupe, pumpkins and lettuce.  Yesterday we put in a nice little drip line for the asparagus and I put the bush beans in right along that.  The lettuce went in pots in the shady garden.  Hopefully it is not too late for that. 

bouquets

One of my primary reasons for gardening is to have flowers in the house.  My bouquets of preference are bunches of all one flower.  However, at the B&B where we stayed on vacation they had bunches of various fowers combined with assorted foliage put together nosegay style.  Denise and I really liked those and today I tried my hand, using all the tiny flowers I found. 

lovely

Early May is that perfect time in the garden when both blooms and weather are the best they get.  Breakfast outside makes the day shine. 

May 1 flowers

Continuing from February 1:
alyssum (as always)
Virginian stock, Malcomia maritima
penstemon
hellebore
pansies
wax begonias
carnations
cyclamen
Continuing from March 1:
Johnny jump ups
snapdragons
California poppies
Roses
forget-me-nots
corydalis 'Blackberry Wine'
geranium 'Biokovo'
alstromeria
Continuing from April 1:
Calla lilies
Corydalis ochroleuca
Columbines
Thyme
Geum Mrs. Bradshaw
"little tree" Solanum atropurpureum
Sweet peas
Gaillardia
Heuchera
Strawberries
Ranunculas
Impatiens
Shirley poppies
orange blossoms
foxglove
ixia
peonies
astilbe
New for May 1:
Star jasmine just starting
clematis
Sweet woodruff
Chives
Cilantro
Baptisia
Nasturtiums
Watsonia
Iris
Clarkia
Nigella
Stokesia
Verbena bonariensis
Amaryllis
Penstemon 'Husker Red'
Ammual phlox
Pomegranate tree
Broom 'Lena'
Lobelia
Euonymus (insignificant)
Dogwood
Gerber daisy
Oakleaf hydrangea
Million bells
Lambs ears