What's In Bloom?

There are flowers everywhere all throughout my garden, some finishing up and others just getting started, and each day seems to bring a new surprise. Many of the Peonies, planted in Fall 2009 mostly, are blooming for the first time, and the Mountain Laurel shrub has never looked better. It is all quite a sight to behold, the garden in its full gorgeous glory.

Peony 'Louise Marx'

Peony 'Pink Hawaiian Coral'

Peony 'Karl Rosenfield'

Peony 'Charlie's White'

Peony 'Monsieur Jules Elie'

Peony 'Scarlet O'hara'

Peony 'Do Tell'

Dutch Iris

Digitalis 'Camelot Cream'

Geranium Biokovo

Dianthus 'Bath's Pink'

David Austin Rose 'Harlow Carr'

Viburnum 'Dentatum

Mountain Laurel

Kousa Dogwood

Wordless Wednesday: Psychedelic Mushrooms

-- Meadowlark Gardens, 5/7/11

The Flowers of May

My garden is full of so much bounty at the moment, as the first Peonies begin to bloom, and the Azalea 'Rosebud' hits peak performance, but the truly eye-catching starlets are the royal purple Alliums. The best way for me to admire my best flowers up close and personal, is to bring them inside. It puts a quick smile on my face every time I catch of glimpse of these lovelies.

Meadowlark Botanical Gardens

The Washington D.C. metro area has many beautiful public display gardens, and I am making it my goal this year to visit as many of them as I can. Over the Mother's Day weekend, I had the pleasure of touring Meadowlark Botanical Gardens in the Northern Virginia suburbs. Oddly enough, I found myself caught in the lull between Spring show stoppers such as Flowering Dogwoods, Tulips and Daffodils, and the start of late-Spring/Summer blooming Peonies, Daylilies and Roses. And so I lucked out this time and missed the flowers, but the landscaped grounds were entirely beautiful nonetheless and the shade gardens infinitely inspiring. To see the true greatness of a garden, it is essential to visit multiple times during different months and seasons, and I am really looking forward to my next visit at Meadowlark.

Perennial Sun Borders







Shade Gardens







Children's Garden

The Hosta Border

The view from my main deck is especially lovely this time of year, as the Azalea 'Rosebud' shrubs come into bloom and the Hosta leaves unfurl themselves. I like to sit and watch the various birds who come to visit the bird bath, and to listen to the sweet sounds of nature. Shade Gardening can be so pleasurable when you work with it to optimize the conditions you've been given, and along this border I also grow Hellebores/Ferns/Lamium/Tiarella, as well as the shrubs Leucothoe 'Scarletta' and Deutzia 'Chardonnay Pearls'. I do not feel at all limited by the shade, and this is one of the most serene spots in the whole landscape.