A walk around the yard....

Well finally... my Rose of Sharon 

(Althea, Hibiscus Syriacus) is blooming!  

It's certainly taken it's time this year to bloom!  Actually I am glad to know it's alive and seeing it bloom was a nod to the fact that I didn't kill it last year when I gave it quite a cutting back! There are a lot of buds yet to open but they are all facing the neighbors house!  I figured I better take a picture before I forget to!

You'll notice the bumble bee was visiting too!  The flowers are a purplish blue double bloom.

Such a pretty flower...

Now on to some random shots

 These Black Eyed Susan's haven't amounted to much this year.  They seem shorter than normal too...

The Stella D'Oro lilies are blooming again, but of course not as prolifically as the first time.

 Some more Delphinium

The Yarrow and Coreposis are still blooming

The Russian Sage has a very wild look to it this year.  I think they prefer to be planted in a spot where they can be on their own.  At least is smells good!

 The Sweet Alyssum that returned from last year has filled in nicely

Smells good too!  We have leaves dropping here and there....the fall season won't be long!

On the deck...I am awarding myself the "ugliest potted plant" award...this Sweet Potato Vine has been polite enough to produce flowers but I can't say that I 

enjoyed the plant.  

Very mixed about my plants I chose this year.  I need a better plan next year!

Let's wander to the back...

The arbor has Sweet Autumn Clematis...no blooms yet...and Morning Glories growing with no flowers too!  What gives??

Along the path some hostas with unusual flowers!  

 The shade in the back yard provides a great environment for these plants

 I only fertilized once this late spring with the Flower Tone and Plant Tone and the annuals
got a sprinkling of Osmocote as they were planted.

The always reliable Impatiens make a great display...the Golden Japanese Forest Grass, Hakonechloa "Aureola" gracefully lay along the stone wall...

Lastly, my planters in front of the garage took off rather wildly! The Sweet PotatoVine really got a run on and has just about taken over!  I do like the red Supertunias...they made a good show. 

One of the bloggers I follow Cabin & Cottage left this sentiment on a beautiful post she did- it grabbed my heart strings and expressed my sentiment!  
With her permission I'm sharing it...
(please click the link to see her beautiful post!)

When the season finally changes, it will be sweet and a bit sad.  I will want to hold summer tightly for a moment as you do with a loved one when you wish you could stay forever.  Already waiting, though not idly, until the next time you meet. . . .

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Thanks for visiting!

Liz

I'm joining 
Fishtail Cottage for
Garden Party #17
and
Today's Flowers

Back in the swing of things...

I've been busy for a bit getting ready for company.

Last time I posted it was before the 4th of July.

 Independence Day was kind of quiet around here but I did manage to decorate my pots with the flag.  

I found a new web site called BeFunky.com that you can play around with your pictures to enhance them, put words on them, crop them etc.  I used it to create a soft frame around my pot and added the words.

Last week before we took off for our first days adventure with our guests I took a few quick shots of the garden near the fountain.

The impatiens have finally filled in and created the border I wanted to see!

The moss is also filling in quite a bit. It's been 3 years since we added this section to the patio and the moss just takes off on it's own.  

I'm grateful for the shade we have in this yard.  The temps are in the 90's right now and it's a spot you can go for some relief.

We took a trip to Mackinac Island and

This place caught my eye! Isn't it cute and what a 

great garden!

Don't you love it!

The Lilac Tree Hotel boasts purple everywhere!
Even the hanging flower baskets are purple!

Mackinac Island has no cars- only bikes and horses for transportation.  It's a step back in time.

One of the sight-seeing rides.  
It was fun to visit again and a beautiful day!

Back home...

This is my Annabelle Hydrangea.  I planted it last year so I was glad to see it come back so nicely!  They say it's one of the easiest and reliable ones to grow.  The big white mop heads tend to droop a lot and tend to lay on the ground.  

The Coleus has filled in too.  I've been pinching it back a lot to encourage it to spread wider.  Seems to be working!

The Astilbe is blooming 

Out front on the island my Shrub Rose is blooming and growing a lot- It's the best it's ever been!  I've fertilized, and sprayed for bugs and kept things well watered.  

These are a new Aster plant I put in recently.  Love the color!

Some Yarrow and Coreopsis are new too.

The Cone Flowers/Echinacea and Shasta Daisies are blooming nicely!

The Delphiniums are shooting up some more stems so I'll  be getting more flowers from them soon!

It's been pretty hot and keeping up with the watering is a must!  My Pinky Winky Hydrangea was looking pretty sad- I hope the extra watering will bring it around again!

How are your gardens faring?