USUAL SUSPECTS IN THE GARDEN

It's been a warm sunny and downright glorious weekend! What with being away the last two weekends, I had much to do in the garden, especially deadheading various specimens to get even more blooms. The garden has had a wonderful spring, and things seem to grow leaps and bounds which seems to be overnight even. The wildflower garden in getting very tall and there are going to be oodles of a variety of blooms in it, along with the Cassia. Two days spent in the garden with one more day to relax. I told the showroom I would not be in Monday, put me in for a personal day. The beauty of my job is I could work four 10 hour days a week if I wanted and take off Mondays or Fridays, but a 10 hour day is long. Nonetheless... the garden of late.

This Centaurea Montana has been a great addition to the garden this year. And has already doubled in size. It gets full sun and is very good in heat and is very drought tolerant.

The columbines will be done soon till there next blooming.

A new suspect! A Greenback Woodpecker

Sea thrifts

The Clematis and Alliums are giving a spectacular showing this spring.

The spring dahlias

Campanula bellfower

Golden wagwort near the wildflowers

I'm not sure but this might be the start of chipmunk porn.

I put these steppingstones today in the wildflower garden so I can walk through to clip without crunching stems. To the left of the stone is where the cassia got moved this year, along with lavender, alliums, sages and dianthus . 

The delphiniums are starting to bloom in the salvia garden.

A friend of mine was here yesterday to clip my almost spent varieties of lavender and geraniums, in which she will make a lavender infused hand suave with it.

A grosbeak.

These Cleome on the side of the house finally bloomed this spring.

Happy to report that Sophie Lucille is off work release and confinement...no murders of late. And alas...the last of my peonies and others from the garden till next spring.

WEEKEND POSTCARDS

 

Yes, back to reality for a two-day work week, how bad can it be? The time away was rainy yes. But contrary to the rainy weekend, I know some might not like the beach in the rain, but not to worry...we pub hopped most days and had a picnic in the indoor patio at the AirBnB. Monday and Tuesday were glorious. The house was on the beach...at night I could smell the ocean and hear the surf from bed. That alone was worth the whole trip. 

The horseshoe crabs snap, seen after the storm and rains the night before, is for Tundra Bunny. I also heard in the early morning one day, a octopus was seen skimming across the sand heading back into the ocean. I wish I'd seen that. 

IRIS & PEONY

It has been quite a rewarding spring this far in the garden at the Casa du Borghese. This week's stars of the show, and I suspect next week's, will be the peony and irises! Blooming in all their glory. I have already cut three vases of peony for the indoors, with at least another 80 buds ready to open.

And here's a overview video of the back garden...as of this morning. Forgive my video skills, I never said I was a Chi Chi LaRue with the camera, or maybe it was because of what's at the end of the video.

SPRING IN THE AIR

 

What a weekend! A bit of gardening and relaxing, with some cult classic flicks yesterday. I had planned to work in the garden yesterday and did indeed have some time to plant the new salvia in between bouts of some downpours, but most of the time was spent today in the garden. Most definitely a cloudy, cooler and damp weekend. What with being away on a jaunt next weekend to NYC, I wanted to get my gardening in now. After work on Friday I made another trip to the Ashcombe greenhouses to get my Datura and Cassia, but they won't go in the ground for another week to make sure we pass the frost threats. But otherwise, spring is really in full swing now, with the flowering trees in bloom.... another week probably wrapping up. Our Dogwoods are in bloom currently. But now to worry, there are many stars of the show taking stage currently. 

The wild violets are coming up everywhere!!! I don't have the heart to pull them. They are one of those little simple flowers that just make you feel happy.

The bleeding hearts and columbines.

A new addition from last year, these Geum survived the winter and are blooming beautifully.

The rose garden is looking very robust and lush.

A new dahlia for this season!

In addition to some new stars like bee balms is this Centaurea montana. 

We will see how it does.

The lilacs are very intoxicating by my bedroom window. The house currently smells lovely with their scent.

The salvia and delphinium bed. More of each were added this year.

Some Sweet William. In the background are some sages and sea thrifts loaded with waiting blooms.

My peonies doubled this year!!! And if you see ants all over the buds...don't spray them! They are part of the plant's health. Peonies produce a sticky sweet nectar that ants can't resist. Once there, ants enjoy the nectar and provide natural pest control against thrips and apids.

 While prepping the salvia bed, I came across this Japanese Maple seedling, that must have blew over and grounded from our neighbor's house. A few weeks ago it was only one little leaf...now look at it. I dug up the little seedling in a ball and planted it in this pot to see if it continues. If it does, it will find a new home on the grounds to continue to grow. I think they are beautiful trees.

 

Waiting in the wings...the Datura and the Cassia. They look small now, but just you wait till they are planted and take off. By September the Cassia is tall, over 6ft!!!! Ain't spring grand? And the catbirds arrived back this weekend!