This is called quieen of the prairie and it's the first time it blooms for me. Its isn't in full bloom yet but I wanted to show how the buds look like little pearls. I'm 5' 4" and the plant is about 4 inches taller than me. It's in the very center of my garden and just screams......look at me. The flowers are so wispy and airy and feel like silk in your hand.
OK, here come some of the night shots. Night shots have to be my favorites as the colors just jump out. Of all the night shots I did last night, this was my favorite one.
Japanese iris
The other Japanese Iris
Lilies
Peach colored lily
Balloon Plant
Speaking of which, Lin (and anyone else that wants them) I will have LOTS of seeds to share from these, however, the seeds are not usually ready to harvest until the end of October beginning of November. I would recommend sowing (surface sowing, need light to germinate) as soon as the soil stays a consistent 70 degrees (which in florida is probably the dead of winter *lol*) but everywhere else it is late spring/early summer. Store the seed in the fridge in a baggie until then as they need 6 weeks of cold to germinate. The first year they may only send up foliage but they are worth the wait as the second year they will be beautiful and will bloom for years and years and years. I have had the same plant out there for 12 years!
I have dwarf blue, dwarf white, tall blue, double blue, shell pink, splahsed white/blue, I think I have tall white but will have to wait to see for sure. This dwarf blue is the only one blooming right now and I can't get over the size of the flowers. Huge flowers for a balloon plant.
Seven Sisters Rose
This was hard to photograph as the pink is such a shocking pink......even at night *lol*
Bee Balm at night
I thought this looked really neat at night. This is the Queen of the Prairie
A little further back and you can see how the buds turn from a cream pearl to a pink pearl :) What a great photo subject this plant is. But you must get up close to really appreciate it. From a distance it doesn't look like much.
One more night shot and then I'm off (yep, in my nightgown at 6:08) to see what might be blooming out there this morning :)
I just loved the way this Red Hot Poker looked at night. The black of night with the peach/yellow just really "spoke" to me. I LOVE to play with my plants whether inside plants or outside plants. I am grateful for each and every bloom that I am fortunate to awake to every morning and I thank Jesus on a daily basis for the many blessings in my life. This includes my friends here at Dave's along with my family and of course.......my flowers. I asked hubby to be sure that I am buried in my flower bed out back as that is where I am "one".
Hope you enjoyed and I'll be back with more :)
XO
Kim
Not too much new out there this morning........well, except for the last picture I will be posting *lol*
Here is a shot of blue flax soaking up the cool morning dew. Flax is supposed to be an annual here so I gathered seed last year as I really liked it and don't you know that it came back?
I planted these this spring. Very hard to photograph because of the coloring. I planted them right near the blue flax. They are not as tall and I sure hope that they are going to be perennials from now on :)
Scarlet Flax
OK, best shot of the day and I was SO hoping this would be open this morning as I have never seen the daylilies in this bed bloom. Needless to say, after 3 or 4 years they are all still single fans :( That is because I had them in the wrong spot. I didn't understand daylilies very well when I initially planted them so when I made the new bed last year (the one with the horse manure that gets more sun) I moved all the struggling daylilies to it as a last ditch effort. They either were going to bloom or die. Needless to say, I think all of them have scapes this year so they are all new to me. It's like finding a long lost friend. It's like getting a nursery order I never placed.......it's like a gift.
I have no idea what this ones name is but luckily the first year that I planted these daylilies I took pictures of all the ones that bloomed and named the pictures (at the time I still had them all named) and also created a spreadsheet with all the ones I planted. So by process of elimination I should be able to come up with it's name.
I just LOVE daylilies that have the big fat round faces. I have a couple of round face daylilies and love this new one. I think she has beautiful eyes too :) Going to "self" her this morning before I leave for work so that I get a seedpod with seeds that may look like her someday :) Oh yeah, I give away 100's of dayllily seeds to newbies or anyone who wants them in the fall :)
I'll work on that today at work *lol*
I hope you all enjoyed and I hope you all have a wonderful day. Now it's someone else's turn to share their garden :)
XO
Kim
OMG Kim those are so pretty I have a few plants that are just starting to bloom
Tis is called a Mexica Shell orTigridia
Dimmer
This is my Allum
This is a cacuta that Susan sent And its growing
I start a black and whit containe but the white came first the blck not yet
This is a day Lilly
Very pretty Kim, I really like that Tigridia :)
Stunning! Isn't is amazing what mother nature brings?
Kim
This is a native flower from Ohio
Kim, that Asiatic Lily is just amazing! I love the red with black markings! OOOOH
Yes I just love them all well I am waitting for a call to see if I work today its been rainning so I am on Stand buy worked till 7 last night so I could use a day off
Last picture my deck outside
Thanks Kim I just got a bulb book so I will have to start looking for next year,
I rent the house so I really don't want to put in ground just a few
Everything looks happy, even the flamingos *lol*
Still can't get over that Asiatic Lily. I have just pink and peach but I do have a pretty "temple" lily that hasn't opened yet. I will have to search for it's name before it opens *lol*
Beautiful pictures Kim, thank you so much for sharing your Outside Beauties :)
Hope you get the day off.........long weekend.........woo hoo
Kim
Does it leave seeds or Bulb do you no? and That Allium that I have washed up from the dirt and there are small like cloves I can replant them yes they also have seeds that when it past away I had a net bag over it
Well I don't no we could work Saturday and Sunday so we will see Trying to get all Credit cards payed only 2 and its small than I am saving so I can take a driving vacation after Christmas. I want to go see Susan and than go and drive to warmmer state, But in Feb when I went last year it was 70 so that was nice
Hello Kim, both the Asiatic Lily and the Allium are bulbs. You can get seeds from both but seeds will take a long time to grow into bulbs and bloom. Usually after a couple years in the ground, your mother bulb with have baby "bulblets". When you dig the mother out, attached will be all kinds of babies :) Sometimes bulblets will even form on the stalks of asiatic lilies. These can be removed and planted. Even bulblets take 2-3 years before reaching blooming size though unless they are "forced" in greenhouses. OK.......I know........too technical *lol*
That will be so much fun for you to go visit Susan again :) Great incentive to save :) Good luck!
Kim
What a Wonderful Way to start the day..all I can say is WOW Kim...I would absolutely be in heaven to have all the wide open space and awesome plants you do..an acre of blueberries..I would think I died and went to heaven..lol..Those Japanese Iris are just the coolest..and I can just picture that daylily bed around the pine tree all in bloom..what a fantastic sight that has to be..Yes my dear you live in a paradise..Taking notes here so I can hit you up for seeds from some of your beauties come fall..lol
Dimmer..Fantastic plants..That tigridia is so neat..I really love them all but that maroon and black daylily is a real stunner.I think allium is so neat looking..and whatever that native plant from Ohio is its so pretty! Hope you get the day off to play..That will be so nice if you can vacation to see Susan this winter again..sure wish I could join you..I am stuck in Nebraska 24/7/365....I do love it here but would sure be nice to be able to travel and visit my dg friends..afraid my traveling days are thru tho..lol..
Nancy Never say never Wait 10 mintues and things change Like today first we were working than on stand by and now no work have to wait for a call to see if we are working Saturday
Thanks I love to get different things bulbs I just looked though a catalog and I fornd this really neat plant I hqave to get it it is called a Dragon Arum (dracunculus vulgaris)
It looks like a feather dark red with a black pistil get to be 36 inches tall that will go into a container. In the book it said it looks like a dragon claw
Well hope you are doing good will talk with you later Lets see if this work
http://www.dutchbulbs.com/store/specialtybulbs/10807
Hugs
Dimmer(AKA) Kim
This message was edited Jul 11, 2008 9:05 AM
What a wonderful way to start the day looking at everyone's outside pictures!
If I had a short term memory would go back and comment on each picture. Suffice to say they are lovely..........all of them from Kim and Dimmer.
Lin, you just let me know when you decide you want more Esperanzas.........they are everywhere here.............
Will try and get down to take some pics today of the large ones.........
Wooo Hooo, I think I have both my daylilies ID'd so far.
The first one I believe to be Festive art and the second one I believe to be Etched Eyes :) Woo Hoo! I'm thrilled.
Dimmer that is a really cool bulb. It says hardiness 6 though and I notice you are a 5. Bulbs can be tricky. I have never had good luck lifting and storing bulbs over the winter but it can be done. I just prefer not to plant bulbs that need to be dug every year (call it laziness *lol*)
Nancy, don't forget as you go out to work in the garden today to bring your camera :)
Hope everyone has a great day!
Kim
Thats a neat looking plant Dimmer..don't think it would grow in my zone too well but maybe if I stuck it really close to the foundation?..I love dreaming..lol..
Kim..I will have my camera along while I am weeding..never know what might be hidden in my forrest of weeds..lol..I do have coneflowers starting to bloom now..another of my favorite outside plants ;) hope I can get some descent pics!
can't wait to see your pics gail.
Kim you yard has to be beyond beautiful with all those blooms, talk about envious, I'm dying here!! LOL I spent years raising kids and being happy to have a "natural" yard but now I am starting in a bit with outside gardening. The season is so short here but this is my third year and I'm happy with what I do have coming back and can enjoy. It is a mere pittance compared to your beds. LOL Someday .......
Dimmer all your blooms are pretty but that Mexican Shell is to die for! Love it.....
Kim I have the Rose Campion and it is one of my very favorites (easy!) and if you collect seeds from that white one think about me please. ^_^ And yes, I do want to try the balloon flowers too!
One of my favorites is Columbine and I have several colors, some new this year. I like the two tone ones such as this pink shaded one...
~Brenda
This one is peach colors blending together ...
~Brenda
I have solid colored columbine in dark purple, light purple and maroon also but for a solid color this one wins for me ....
~Brenda
And ending with a two toned lighter pink ....
~Brenda
A lavender colored iris that I have that smells just like grape kool aid .... or as a nephew says, Dimetapp! LOL It's awesome to weed around it or just to go sniff it for fun! ^_^
~Brenda
OK I'm blushing a bit because everything always looks so good in pictures but in real life it looks alot different *lol*
Individual pictures of flowers is great, but the whole flower or bed.....well........let's stick with individual pictures of flowers *lol*
I will have all kinds of seeds to share with anyone who wants them. I love to harvest seeds but most of all, love to share them.
Brenda, I have some columbines that are different from yours so I will send you seeds from my columbines too and the white rose campion, LOTS of seeds from those too! I'm going to send you enough (at the end of October beginning of November) so that you can scatter 1/2 of them before your first snow, then put the other 1/2 in a baggie in the fridge and scatter them once your soil reaches 70% (mid spring early summer). By trying both ways you are guaranteed success. I don't like starting things inside so everything I start, I do it outside. You can also fill pots with potting soil, scatter the seeds in the pots and just "winter sow" them letting mother nature do her thing. That's my favorite way to do things :)
Your columbine are beautiful! I love your yellow and peach ones.....never seen peach before.....very pretty!
*hugs*
Kim
Brenda
Maybe if you have room during the winter you can grow them in the house I started a EE
( Elephant Ear) in march of this year in a container and this is it now Most of my plants that I brought I put in containers. So thios is just a thought( Oh no I am thinking again)
The front one I started in March the other in June the Flowers Are to be Black and white the white are bloom the black has big bud but ready to open yet soon
Kim
You notice I most always do close ups, for the exact same reasons as you Kim. LOL
Dimmer you sent me an elephant ear bulb in the plant swap and I just recently got it planted! I put it in a pot on my back deck that I will then be able to bring in the house come fall. I can't wait for it to grow and see those big old leaves!! And blooms to boot?? Cool!
I want to try winter sowing this year but need to do a bit of research. The containers will freeze solid even after Feb and into March whish is when I read you need to start .... so we'll see.
Foxgloves are my absolute favorites and my original ones that had gotten so big and beautiful didn't come back this year, I was so sad over that, but I have some new ones coming on ....
~Brenda
