On the other hand,

every garden should have some pink petunias. I think it's a law written somewhere. Mark built this planter for me, and I love it. He did a great job with it. It has a pink/purple mix of petunias, a couple of those purple-leaved foliage plants that I can never remember the name of, and some morning glories--either pink or blue, can't remember that either.

Pots Along the Driveway

I changed these up this year. Usually they have japanese blood grass with golden creeping jenny. This year they are planted with grass from Lori and with silver tidal wave petunias. These petunias may not be the most colorful, but they grow the biggest, tallest, and widest. I think they go well with the gray of the house. Mark painted them with black fusion paint, which makes them look a lot better. Thanks to my mama for turning us on to fusion spray paint, which perks up any plastic pot. Lori, I'm loving the Karl Foerster!

Floral Arrangement on the Garden Tour

Garden Tour Wisdom

Garden Tour

Lots of hydrangeas on this year's tour.

Fairy House

This is a shot from PJ's garden. V is going with me on the garden tour this afternoon. I've been weeding this morning, so looking at other people's gardens sounds good.

Can't Get Much Better

Auto Fix

Mark downloaded Photoshop Elements for me and this is what it did to the canna picture I took the other day. The flower really is that color (pretty amazing), but the program added the blue background. Looks pretty cool. Actually I thought this canna was pink. I planted it in a container with purple and white flowers--angelina, verbena, cleome. And now it's blooming yellow and red. It's so pretty it gets to stay, even if it doesn't match. Which just goes to show--if you're really good at being what you are, you don't have to be like all the rest.

Change of Heart

I went out this morning and was convinced there is something seriously wrong with the garden. One of my favorite yarrows didn't come back, there's something going on with one of the daylilies--all the buds are deformed, and of course the iris borers are doing their thing all over the place. I was even kicking myself (a little bit) for the smart-a** remark I made yesterday about the rain. Remember how Maude used to say, "God will get you for that"? But then I found this new daylily in bloom--huge blooms and so many buds. And the first sweet peas, so sweet, somehow magically blending with the pink larkspur. And so I changed my mind. The garden is perfect. Just the way it is. Weeds, diseases, japanese beetles, rabbits and all. But that doesn't mean the japanese beetles can rest easy. Mark is on the way with the spray. Happy Thursday.

Hot and Humid

There's been a 30% chance of rain every day this week. When they say there's a 30% chance, what they really mean is that somebody north of you will get rain, and somebody south of you will get so much rain they'll be dealing with flash floods. But your garden? Nope, sorry, not today. This is coleus Alabama, canna Tropicanna, and asiaic lily Brushstrokes. All lovingly watered with a watering can.

Emma's Prom 2006

She looks like a princess.

Larkspur Vase

Lots of the larkspur stems were leaning over today because we had some rains. I cut a huge armful and put them in grandma's blue vase.

She's Popular!

We went to see Wicked this weekend and it was wonderful, wonderful, wonderful. Rebecca looks really cute in her "popular"

t-shirt. I'm so glad she went with us! Glinda has been singing "Popular--you're going to be popular. . ." in my head all day long. Made me smile! Can't wait to see it again.

Happy 21st Birthday!

Flower Show

There was a flower show at the Old State Capitol Building this weekend. This arrangement was my favorite. Roses, dahlias, carnations, larkspur, and glads, all in shades of pink, with some kind of droopy lime green bloom--is that love-lies-bleeding?--I've seen that in red, but never in green. And the vase was full of sliced limes. Very pretty. So would the water full of lime juice affect the flowers? Didn't seem to here.

New Zealand Delphiniums

They need good staking, otherwise they fall over from the weight of the flowers. But that just gave me a good excuse to cut this stem.

More Lilies

These came from John Scheeper's. Don't remember the name, but it should be something like Firecracker.

Saturday Morning

Oakleaf Hydrangea

This thing started out as a little stick a couple of years ago. It's in dry shade and seems to be happy.

Near-Lollypop

The one on the right is lollypop, but the ones on the left are different. Don't know the name, of course, but I love them together.

Tuesday Vase

Countess and Lollipop

Peggy's Garden

Here's a great picture of mama's garden. Here's what she said: "You can see my ladder with birdhouse and my fishes umbrella, they need some sunglasses now. Also you can see my frog Gail got for me in the petunias and I think those are Beverly Sills iris maybe?" Looks like them to me. Love that blue paint too!

Asiatic Lilies

I was thinking these were Avon Lea from the Lily Garden, but last year I said they were Kiss Me Kate from John Scheepers. That's probably more like it. That's what I get for not labeling things when they go into the garden. Anyway, they're wonderful lilies--very thick waxy petals, huge numbers of blooms, and great foliage.