Sunlit Sunday

This Sunday is the last Sunlit Sunday party for this year hosted by Karen @

 My Little Home and Garden

 I normally join the party through my garden blog Sit With Me In My Garden 

but this year I found myself joining under this blog so I stuck with it.

I invite anyone who follows me to also join me at my garden blog which I am more active with during the seasons of Spring, Summer and Fall

A few days back I did a tablescape with this arrangement as my centerpiece.  The lilies have since opened up and it looks even better than before.

I'm all about flowers

My garden blog reflects that- it's not about vegetables!

 I moved the arrangement around to show more of the flowers.

Seeing the sun beem in on the flowers makes me happy :-)

Love the lemon yellow colored lilies and the miniature roses!

 Thank you Karen for hosting this blog party each year from January through March.  It's a nice happy place to visit and helps remind us to look for a sunny disposition in our lives even when the sun isn't shining!

 Sunlit Sundays

 

Iris to Peonies Walkabout

  

My Bearded Iris by the driveway are still blooming, but approaching the end quickly.

We've had so much rain that many of the taller plants have 

taken a sideways lean! 

(The quack grass is to be ignored! I've been remiss in my weeding duties!)

I did a walkabout last night and snapped a bunch of pictures.  

It was just before sunset but the lighting was still fair.

This one came out rather nicely! 

Nature's beauty is unrivaled!

Moving out back near the fountain area my Siberian Iris have begun blooming.  I couldn't see their flowers from the house! I split them up last year, so I was pleased to see these flowering.  They weren't performing very well prior to my splitting them up, so I guess they needed it!

Delicate but beautiful!

The sun made for some good shots!

It would be nice if these flowers bloomed for the whole summer! This area is in the shade most of the day so I feel lucky to see these blooming!  They only get some late evening sun and a small dappling of sun in the early morning.

I'm pleased as could be that the peonies are starting to bloom!  

I do think it's one of the best fragrances mother nature has provided! The flowers are beautiful too!

Such artistry!

WARNING

The following are not for the arachnid squeamish types!

If you look closely at the top right flower you can see my little friend down in there...

It came out quickly! It seemed to literally glow...very fluorescent in coloring!

This was my best shot. He didn't stand still long enough for a 2nd try!  Believe me I am not fond of spiders, but in this case I'm more impressed with the uniqueness of it than I am being uncomfortable about it!

CLEAN UP YOUR ACT!!

Okay I'll clean it up with a some more other shots and my favorite shot of the evening so you can clear your mind of creepy crawly things!

Out by the tulips, I planted some alliums.  They look like science fiction creatures right now! 

They are about 40" tall and still forming their blooms.  I didn't realize they wouldn't bloom with the tulips!

These lilies will be blooming soon!

They have really multiplied! 

My favorite shot! 

The rain we've had recently really perked things up! 

Everything is full of color!

The woods in the background are mostly made up of 

Oak, Beech, Maple and Ash.

They are on the south side of us and provide all the shade from the hot sun for most of the day.  It's a good thing!!

OFF SUBJECT

 My Dianthus or Garden Pinks as some call them are in full bloom too!

I don't know why but the lens doesn't see to focus well on these! I think the "hot" color throws off the sensors!

So that's my walkabout garden tour of my gardens... how are yours doing?

Join me at Fishtail Cottage for
 the Garden Party

Favorite Tiara!

Amber Tiara Hosta....one of my favorites!  

This is a favorite hosta partly because of it's unusual leaf color  but also because I do enjoy the flower it produces!

I really love the variegated tone of the 

flower and the lavender purple color 

of them! It's a relatively fast grower 

and I've split it off and doubled what 

I originally had in a short period.  

Overall it's about a 12" tall plant.

 Forgive my indulgence on this hosta, 

but I do enjoy it!  My hostas don't get 

chewed on too badly, but I am told by 

a reputable source that SLUGGO

by Monterey Lawn & Garden 

works the best!

 Now on with more lilies!

 This is a new one I picked up last year 

 called "Sunday Gloves"

This one is called 

Siloam Sue Mills

It's a large flower and shows

off nicely at a distance.

This little cutie is called

Razzamatazz

This one was new last year

too and it's called 

Crimson Pirate 

I'm going to be removing all my daylilies 

from this location and trying a little 

something different.  They are struggling 

along because they don't get enough sun

here. I end up with more green

plant than flowers because of it.

As soon as these are done flowering

I will be moving them.

I'm going to stick with hostas on the hill

and I'm going to be calling it

"Hosta Hill" from now on!

I picked up 6 new Hostas today

called Fujibotan.  They have a nice

deep green leaf color which should

make a nice backdrop to the

Japanese Forest Grass, Hakone

that lies in front along the edge of

the stone wall.

I hope your flowers are all coming along 

nicely and that this awful heat spell

that has his most of us hasn't ruined

your gardens!

Gladiolus at my Mom's house! 
I'm linking up with

 Rose Vignettes- Fresh Cut Friday

I'm linking up with

 Fishtail Cottage- Flora Thursdays

Leader of the pack!

These lilies are making a nice impact this year and in fact all the lilies are starting to bloom around here, so for now they are the leader of the pack!  This variety is called Orange Buttons.  They are the first in this row of lilies I have planted that will all be in bloom soon!

My Endless Summer Hydrangeas are starting to flower and I always enjoy watching the various stages of each flower as they develop.  

 Soft lavender tones, pinks and blues will all be represented!

I always give them a shot of a slow releasing organic fertilizer in the spring and they seem to be healthy and full of blooms. (Espoma, Organic Traditions, Soil Acidifier)

  Back by my fountain area I planted these Mosaic Lilac Impatiens...I love their old fashioned coloring and the movement of color in them.  I use impatiens to outline the border of this garden area each year.  With all the shade we have these work out wonderfully and since I plant 4 flats I like something that's reasonably priced!

I have been enjoying my "tapestry" of plants that I combined in this corner of the garden where the path meets the patio.

The Jack Frost Brunnera put on quite a show this spring and as you can see they provide a nice plant to enjoy afterwards!

 I'm enjoying this little corner I created and I am so glad to see them all filling in and realizing the vision I had! Coral Bells and Hostas- so easy to plant and reliable!

 Last year the voles had eaten my lilies at the beginning of the pathway. I planted new yellow lilies to replace them.  To my surprise some of the white ones made it back this year and are now blooming too!

And finally

Alyssum

The "Easter Basket" mix Alyssum I planted suddenly spread out and are starting to fill in next to the new Boxwoods I planted earlier this spring.

I hope your gardens are growing well too!