Mornin'

Amaranth standing guard by the door.  I didn't plant it there.  Most likely some seed dropped when I was carrying a bouquet in last year.  I like when plants make their own decisions.

Bloomin'

First Zinnia!

Always a favorite (even when chawed on by Japanese beetles)

Morning Walk

 I planted some of these this spring.  They're annuals.

 The seeds are really tiny.  One must have fallen into Amaranth Alley.  

I forgot about that till I saw this splash of red in with all the green.

 Closer...

Oooh!  I can't wait till the others open! 

Sunflower-to-be

This is what happens when the mister gets hold of the camera.

Mornin'!

Amaranthus caudatus

Totally not photoshopped.  Can't be because I don't know how.  I was stunned when I loaded this picture onto the computer.  We've been growing amaranth for years and I never realized that the edges of the leaves are red!  I was just trying to get a shot of the bud starting.  That little thing will grow into a dreadlock about two feet long by August.  Groovy.

PS:  I loaded the biggest size so you can click on it and feel the powah.

Woods Walk

We have a small forest behind the house. Here is the entrance to the S path.

Here is the graveyard. It's only been there for a month or so. I can't explain it.
I think my mister can.

Bloodroot and mayapple. Both are spring ephemerals. Magical sounding, innit?

This patch of greenery is all jewelweed. It's an important plant to know. It grows in the exact same conditions as poison ivy. If you see jewelweed, you've been warned- poison ivy is near. Another cool factoid: Jewelweed is an antidote to poison ivy (among other things). Click the neato- keen link for more info.

Christmas tree graveyard.

Exit through the gift shop. Er, the S trail.

Now back to the garden where these poor pot- bound
marigolds are waiting to be planted. Wow. I think I made it through a whole post without cussing. The woods are soothing.

What I Did Instead of Internetting

Since the net was out yesterday morning, I gardened instead. For once I got out there before the heat really kicked in. I always want to but then I get sucked in here.

This bed is all weeded now. That's a lot of shit to pull out of one little bed but I don't mulch here. Plants like acanthus, achillea, scabiosa, butterfly weed and feverfew do better without the extra moisture. So do weeds, apparently, eh?

After all that crud was out I was left with lots of new garden space. I filled it with these babies that I grew from seed.

And this is what they'll grow up to be.

Mustard!

We had an awesome summer dinner last night. Hotdogs served with a fine collection of mustards plus two salads that a lovely friend (the one I went camping with who needs a pseudonym here) brought over to share with us. She is a hella cook. One was cole slaw, but not just any cole slaw. She added pineapple juice and raisins- different and tasty! The other was a shrimp and pasta salad. Mmmmm! Then after dinner, something very exciting happened! You will have to wait to find out because I have to get ready to go out to breakfast with my dad. He always shows up early and I'm never ready. Then he says, "Take your time! There's no rush!" But of course I feel rushed since there's someone waiting on me.

PS: I'm having those salads again for lunch today. Other random morning thoughts: I really need to get those zinnia seedlings into the ground. They love hot weather and we're gunnin' for 90 today. Also, we got almost 800 hits yesterday- thank youse!

Castor

From this

to this (I know, it's blurry)

I just like the way they power through the soil.

Forget-Me-Not

Forget-me-nots are a self- seeding annual that bloom most of May creating blue drifts in unexpected spots in the yard and garden. My mother started with one little 4" pot of them and ended up with a huge patch. Another older lady, Molly, told me that if you want more of them, just yank the entire plant out after it's gone to seed and shake it like a salt shaker wherever you hope for them to grow. I did, and look at them all now!

They're easily weeded out if they turn up in places where you don't want them. They are not, in my opinion, "the herpes of the garden"- I really did hear them referred to that way by some killjoy. As for the mug, I use it when they're in bloom. I like my dishes to match what's happening out there.

Zinnia 'Green Envy'

Broom Corn Blooming

It's well over 8 feet tall. The package said it'd get to 6 feet, max. Makes ya wonder what's in the dirt here.

Texas Bluebonnet

These are related to lupine but not perennial this far north. We have three. Blooming pix to come in a five weeks or so.

Okay, enough food-

Here's another zinnia. Are you tired of them yet? Good, me neither!

Bachelor Buttons with Coreopsis

I can do color combos. I just couldn't get both types of flowers in focus.

Zinnia

In yer face!

PS: The have almost no scent and feel like crispy paper.

Sad Sunflower is Sad.

They didn't seem to appreciate the record rainfall this year. Hot and dry is better for them.

Monarchs Feeding

On Zinnia

On Buddleia

I wish I had gotten a better picture of the whole scene. The garden was big and winding and there were just clouds of butterflies hovering above it all. It was kinda magical.

Color Combos

Red cockscomb near chartreuse leaves (dunno the name of that one). It was really striking though my pic doesn't do it justice.

White hydrangeas with coreopsis (I think).

Zinnias and salvia.