I love this combination.  Double Knockout roses with Maynight salvia.

 My new favorite rose.  Abraham Darby!  The fragrance is delicious.  Plus it's strong enough to smell by just walking by.  The blooms are packed with petals once fully open (only partially open in this picture). 

LOVE THIS! I HIGHLY recommend these to clean your hummingbird feeder ports.  I purchased 25 "Economy Disposable Black Mascara Wand Brushes".  I have used pipe cleaners in the past, but wow....  I used these for the first time this morning and I'M IN LOVE!  The feeders look like new.  I found them on eBay for only $3.50 which included shipping!

 Pretty combination.  Double Knockout rose, Maynight Salvia, daylily, and heuchera.

 A surprise volunteer.  I haven't grown coreopsis in two years.  I used to grow Tequila Sunrise.  A lovely dwarf variety with variegated foliage.  It only survived about 3 years.  Two years later...surprise.  What a fun plant to pop up in the crack between the house and sidewalk.

 My dwarf Alberta spruce has had issues since I planted it last summer.  Lots of browning along the bottom and huge sections died off.  Since we had such a severe drought last season, I figured that I must not have been supplementing it enough with moisture.  Turns out, mites are most likely the continuing problem.  Check out all the webbing.  Ugh.

 Guacamole hosta shaded with pink and white azaleas.

 My Golden Delicious apple tree had some funky leaves.  I peeked inside to find lots of ants and aphids.  Yum.

 After unrolling the leaf, here's what was inside.  Where are the ladybugs when you need them?

 Felix Crousse peony with my new birdhouse in the far back (left side).  We just put the birdhouse up today.  I can't wait to see if we get some curious renters.

 Fat N Sassy peppers are loving the heat today.  The Kennebec potatoes are doing well in their containers.  I will have to fill them up the rest of the way with soil now that they are tall enough.

 Reliance grapes are starting to form.

 The entire vine.  Now I only hope I can keep the birds away from them this season.  They ate EVERY grape OVERNIGHT last season.  EVERY GRAPE!

 Ville de Lyon clematis gracing the porch.

 Navaho blackberries are blooming their hearts out.

 Raspberries are already in bloom!

Double Knockout Rose.

Right now it is pouring AGAIN. While there was a bit of a break this morning, I ran out to see what was in bloom. This is what I saw. Alexander Fleming peony. It is supposed to be fragrant, but I guess the wet weather is interfering with that.
Felix Crousse
Felix Crousse up close
William Baffin climbing roses starting to open up.
Golden Zest rose. Lemon-scented! Although not with all the rain.
Jacob Kline monarda. Just added last fall. Initially there were 3 plants but one died. The two remaining are really taking off. I can see how these would get a bit pushy in the garden.
"Climbing" the wall on a trellis is Brite Eyes rose. To the left of it is a Double Knockout rose.
Brite Eyes up close.
Maynight Salvia with a Navaho blackberry flower that just opened.
The rain isn't all bad. Everything is getting pretty lush.

Spring Has Sprung!

Things are starting to show signs of life again. Here is a Heritage raspberry plant that was added last season. Off to the right is a Caroline raspberry added last fall that I ordered from Stark Bros. So far those are still dormant...I hope.I planted peas back on the 6th of March. They are finally starting to come up. I was really worried about these. Especially after seeing my resident mockingbird eating away at the peas on one very cold, frosty morning.
Below is my Frances Williams hosta. The first hosta to emerge this season.
Chives that I left out in this pot, unprotected, all winter. They didn't miss a beat.
My biggest disappointment. I really wanted this one to work out. :( I ordered this Black and Blue salvia last season. It got off to a slow start and then took off. It was absolutely gorgeous. The hummingbirds and bumble bees loved it too. I have a bad feeling about its survival. We're right on the border of hardiness. Although it was well mulched......
Hyacinths are in full bloom right now.
A Golden Acre cabbage that I planted last fall. I planted it too late and it didn't have time to produce a head. It survived unprotected in one of my raised beds...along with two others. I have doubts that it will produce a head of cabbage, but I wouldn't mind some free seed for next season from it.
German Extra Hardy and Musik garlic that was planted in mid-October. It is off to a great start. Very strong and healthy.
I just planted my onion plants from Dixondale Farms. Red Zeppelin and Copra again this season. They stored well into January...when I ran out. This time I ordered a full bunch of each. The only downside about growing onions is that the squirrels like to pull them out, so I have to replant quite a few of them each season. They tug them out. I put them back in.
Karl Rosenfeld peony coming up.
My Alberta Spruce appears happy. It is just starting to put on some new growth. That's a good sign.
One of my absolute favorite spring bulbs. My Tete-a-Tete daffodils. The cutest miniature flowers I have ever seen.

Bees, Peas, and Hummingbirds

Last night I was weeding when I saw this bumblebee hard at work. Look at all that pollen he had collected.
Desperate to see my first hummingbird of the season, first thing this morning I took the tablecloth off my kitchen table and hung it on the clothesline. If this doesn't get their attention I don't know what will.

In approximately four square feet of soil I manage to have handfuls of shelling peas a day. I went out early this morning and picked these tasty treats.

A great way to start the morning.

A great way to finish the morning.

Signs of Progress

What a wonderful way to wake up in the morning. I venture out into the garden to find that over half of my tomato plants have started producing blossoms. I turn around and find that my Salad Bush hybrid cucumber has also opened up its first flower.

As for my flowers, my William Baffin climbing roses are in full bloom. The Blue Hill salvia is also attracting many bumblebees. The Husker's Red penstemon which was planted last Spring is producing its first blooms. The dark foliage with the white flowers makes a striking combination. It was the only one, out of the three planted, that survived the hungry rabbits last season. To the far left in the picture is the foliage to my verbena bonariensis that just started blooming earlier this week. The light, airiness of the foliage allows the plants behind them to still be viewed.

What's Blooming in the Garden?

POST NUMBER 2 FOR THE DAY
Graham Thomas rose (tea scent...only medium-strength fragrance in my garden) hiding amongst May Night salvia.

Felix Crousse peony. Just added a few weeks ago from Jake's Greenhouse. Lightly scented. Blooms can fill up your hand. Stems need support to hold large blossoms upright.
Magnifica coral honeysuckle purchased from Michigan Bulb. Unscented. Planted to lure in some hummingbirds! I'm waiting patiently.

Rosy Returns daylilies (two plants) in front, May Night salvia (three plants) in bloom, and one Little Joe Joe Pye Weed in back.

Asiatic Lily (cultivar unknown)

Late Summer Garden

Summer is coming to an end, but there is still a lot of pep left in these plants. There are scarlet runner beans and Scarlet O' Hara morning glories climbing up the trellises. The back includes red, Will Rogers zinnia. The front is a mix of Butterfly pentas, Red Rubin basil, petunias, Lady in Red and Coral Nymph salvia, a Jalapeno M pepper plant, and anaheim chili pepper plants. Moss Curled parsley is hiding behind the peppers on the right. Closer to the birdbath are volunteer marigolds from last years plants.

Butterfly Garden

Scarlet Runner Beans- On two trellises along with Scarlet O'Hara morning glories that haven't started to bloom yet.

Torch Mexican Sunflower- In the back corner. Unfortunately a drenching storm caused the gutters to overflow and it crushed the main stem. A cleome growing next to it was destroyed as well. Currently Torch is propped up with a cage and is horribly wilted every evening from the sun. I don't think it will recover. It's a shame too. I hear they are butterfly magnets. Plus they had opened up their first bloom the day before the storm. It looks like the Torch has been put out. :(

Will Rogers Zinnia- in front of Torch

Coral Nymph and Lady In Red salvia- front, left near cracked birdbath that I use for a puddling site for butterflies.

Lady In Red and one Yvonne's salvia- mid-right

Assorted petunias, Red Rubin basil, Butterfly mix pentas, Orange lantana mixed throughout the front of the bed.

Red, white, and purple Quartz mix verbenas in the middle of the bed.

4 Anaheim chili peppers and one Jalapeno M plant are in front of 16 moss curled parsley plants to the back, right of the bed.