More from the Garden

Very pretty Peony

With all the rain, followed by warm and sunny days, the garden has ben moving along rapidly.  Flowers are coming and going at a rapid rate, but thank god for digital cameras, so I can capture the garden at its best.  Case in point, is the lovely picture above.  CC bought this last year, and although I must confess I'm not a big fan of peonies, this one is a keeper.  It isn't one of the "doubles", so it doesn't get water-logged and collapse after a good rainfall and end up looking like a bunch of soggy toilet paper lying on the lawn.

Phlox-like wildflower with a green bee.

Tiny bee coming in for a landing on the Nectaroscordum.

If you love flowers, then you better love bees, because without them, there's no pollination!  I have long been fascinated by insects of all kind and appreciate the diversity and beauty of them, even if some of them have something of an "ick" factor. We have something in bloom most of the growing season and have an abundance of bees, wasps, spiders, midges (ick), mosquitoes (double ick), etc. The other week, I saw a very unusual insect, but didn't get a chance to get a picture of it.  It resembled a mosquito hawk, but had black and white striped legs!  Very unusual, but very cool.

Stu

This past winter, we had a pair of rabbits in the back garden, and even though I was born in the year of the rabbit and find them quite cute, I know how destructive they can be.  Well, as it happens, they must have bred (go figure!) and we now have a little guy hopping through the garden, munching away on whatever suits his fancy.  I have decided to call him Stu as a warning.

Portulaca and Marigolds

Of the many pots we planted earlier on this season, our favourite is one on the deck, off the kitchen.  It has Marigolds and Portulaca, both sun-loving plants.  They're colourful and pump out the blooms and they are visible from the kitchen window and never fail to cheer us up.

Amaryllis and Hosta leaves.

We have many pots of Amaryllis bulbs in the laundry room, and have successfully grown plants from seed.  When they are not in flower, they are quite dull, but the flowers are spectacular.  CC likes to use them as cut flowers in arrangements, instead of bringing the whole plant upstairs - isn't he clever?  The above is mixed with giant Hosta leaves, courtesy of the neighbours gardener, and they're displayed in my Manhattan glass vase, which complements the lines in the leaves beautifully.