Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Wildflower Wednesday

When I got on Facebook today, I saw that Gail was posting about Wildflower Wednesday.  It seems like we just had one, so the month has gone by quickly for me.  Friday will be my last day of work at my job as a special education paraeducator, because I am retiring.  I have already completed my application for subbing.  I hope to substitute a couple days a week during garden season, and four or so when it's not.  I am excited, but sad, because I really will miss the people, especially the students.

So, after I saw that it is Wildflower Wednesday, I went out and took photos under the cloudy skies.

I am pleased the rabbits have not eaten the Phlox divaricata that I brought over from the house we used to live in.  The Pussytoes that I have at various edges are blooming. The pink on the right, and back a bit is Phlox pilosa 'Echo Happy Traveler'.  After planting a few of these, I finally found some native ones.  Now, I'm not sure which is which.  I hope when both are in bloom, I'll be able to tell the difference, and maybe get rid of the cultivar.


The Zizia aurea plants are larger than last year, and full of blooms.


I am in the process of planting things on the right side of the sidewalk that are also on the other side, so it can look more like one large bed, with the sidewalk as a path.  When the Zizea aureas were small, I took some small clumps out to plant on the other side.  As you can see, the moved plants are much smaller, but are still blooming.  It just occurred to me that maybe it's because they have been focusing on growing new roots.  I hope they are more equal in size next year.


I like how the Heuchera richardsonii greet, and invite me to walk the path to the area where the tree used to be.


I've shown the Praire smoke geum several times, but am pleased that it is still looking good.


I don't remember what kind of Penstemon this is.  I wonder if it's a cultivar.  It's also shown above, and the two clumps of it are loaded with buds.


I didn't notice the Orange hawkweed blooms until I went out today to take photos.


I've shown what I think is Rose mock vervain already this season.  It will bloom most of the summer.


The Amsonias are starting to bloom.  This one is hubrichtii.  The native columbine from the front yard did not seed itself in the front, but there are a number growing here on the east side of the house now.



When I last showed the Virginia waterleaf, it had flower buds that hadn't opened yet.



I like how this plant is growing between the boards of the little fence.  I don't remember planting it.  I can't tell if it's Dame's rocket. When I looked it up, I saw that it is native to our area.  It is a noxious weed in some areas, which I think I knew.  I guess that's why I had been thinking it is not a native plant.  I had some a number of years ago, so maybe some seeds had been dormant awhile.  Do you know what this is?


This is the first Amsonia I planted.  I think it's tabernaemontana.


The Gas plant buds are cool looking to me, even when they are not yet open.


I'm thinking this is False Solomon's seal.  It is finished blooming.  I planted a few starts in a tub that a friend gave me last year, and it is competing with the weeds to fill up the space.  I need to get those pulled.


I'm trying to remember if I learned what the ID of this weed is.  Do you know?


I'm thinking this Baptisia, or False indigo may have come up from seeds from another plant I have.  There is another small one in front of it.


After such a cold spring, we had a week or so in the upper 80s, and even hit 100 one day.  Now, for the last few days, the highs have been in the 50s and 60s.  I better not complain, though, after all of the bad storms and tornadoes that have devastated Oklahoma and, I'm thinking, Kansas.  I have been praying for those affected by them.  We are supposed to have a bit of a warm up, so by Friday afternoon, when I get off of work, I should be able to get right into the garden.  I hope you are able to be out in yours.

22 comments:

  1. What a lot of blooms! Your corner garden is really looking good!

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  2. The flowers look great. I have Amsonia, Columbine and Baptisia and none of them ever looked as good as yours. In fact, I am not sure my Amsonia came back this year.

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  3. Hi Sue, I've been gone far too long! I so enjoyed wandering through your gorgeous gardens, and learning all the names of your plants. I'm happy for you about the retirement and the schedule of working when you'd like to and having more time for the garden is great. I think this will be a perfect blend for you. So good to visit with you again.

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  4. First, congratulations on your retirement! How wonderful that you can sub now and then.

    I always amazed at how many plants you have and how clean the beds are. That may be dame's rocket but I won't know until some daylight hits. I have both white and lavender right outside the back porch door.

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  5. Wonderful, beautiful blooms!
    Congratulations on your retirement!
    Lea
    Lea's Menagerie

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  6. Thank you for the wildflower tour, Sue. Your gardens look great for so early in the season.

    Stone the Gardener at Gardens in the Sand blog might help you with your penstemon questions.

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  7. Gorgeous blooms, Sue, your garden is proof at the value of natives! I'm such a huge fan of Amsonia...and it's nice to see it finally getting the attention it deserves...as well as Baptisia...such a gorgeous (and tough) plant!

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  8. Wow, Sue, that is a great wildflower display. I love them all. Is amsonia still your signature plant or am I misremembering that! Why are you getting rid of the cultivar of Phlox pilosa? It's a pretty little thing. gail

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    1. Thanks for your comment on my wildflowers. The reason I have considered taking out the Phlox pilosa cultivar is because I am wondering if they will cross pollinate, and if the native ones die out, then there could be mixed up ones. Thanks for the encouragement not to worry about it. I keep needing to remind myself that I will never be a "purist" nor have a prairie. Even the native plants I grow are not necessarily native to our specific area. Still, I have a number of cultivars of different plants that I bought before finding the native plants. Part of me wants to take out the other cultivars, too, but I do like the plants. Plus, I have a number of plants of other origins that I enjoy growing, and do not plan on giving up. Oh, and yes, I remember Amsonia being my signature plant, and I think it still is. I have one or more in all but one flower bed, and planted 3 hubrichtiis in the curb area this spring.

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    2. We garden because we love it. YOU love it!! Garden on, Sue! :-)

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  9. Hi Sue, Congratulations on your retirement! Enjoy! The orange hawkweed is beautiful. You have such a fantastic collection of natives. Love your gardens!

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  10. Looks great! We have a lot of the same flowers, though I do not have Virginia Waterleaf, which looks nice. Also I don't have Orange Hawkweed, which is gorgeous! I think that is False Solomon Seal or Starry False Solomon Seal that you have there. False Solomon Seal is larger and has red berries by late summer, Starry False Solomon Seal is about one foot tall and has green and black striped berries.

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  11. Congratulations on your retirement, and move to a more casual work schedule. The ability to have more time off in gardening season is very appealing.

    Your Phlox divaricate looks fabulous, such pretty lavender blue flowers. I like your idea of repeating groups of flowers on both sides of the path to tie them in together.

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  12. Congratulations on your retirement Sue. I'm envious!! Your garden is looking lovely, with such a variety of blooms. I, too, like the idea of planting things on both sides of the path for a sense of continuity.

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  13. Yes, congratulations! As always, you have some stunning wildflowers to show us! I'm praying that we'll all just have summer thunderstorms this time around. Enough tornadoes. But I realize it's tornado season. Unfortunately, Wisconsin gets most of its tornadoes in June. Stay safe!

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  14. Hi Sue! My plants that have been divided and moved are always a bit smaller the first year. I think you are right about putting the energy into growing roots. I am terrible at plant identification so I can't help you out there. Sorry. One of my columbine has become quite the weed as well, maybe I should start asking my neighbors if anyone would like some for their garden. I hate to throw such pretty plants in the compost pile if someone else would like them.

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  15. I have not visited you in a while your garden looks great.

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  16. My goodness, how quickly things grow and bloom in your garden. You have lovely blossoms everywhere!

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  17. Hi, Sue! I did try leaving a post via the feature provided by Gail on Facebook. Guess it didn't work! One of these days, I'm headed for Nebraska by myself and am going to find you!!! :-)

    I have so enjoyed watching the progression of your gardens and how they've expanded and the fun you've had working in them and adding to them! Happy Spring (we ARE in Spring, right?)! lol

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  18. Your garden looks great! I so love your beautiful blooms! Well, congratulations on your retirement and enjoy!

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  19. Congratulations on your retirement, Sue! I also started substituting after retirement, and it's wonderful to be able to say "no, I can't come in today--I'm going to work in the garden":)

    Every time I come here, I see something new: I've heard of gas plant before, but don't think I've ever seen it in bloom like yours--so pretty! And I'm glad to see the Zizia doing so well for you. I tried to order some plants, but was only able to get seeds, so I'll have to wait awhile to see any of these blooming in my garden.

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  20. "What a lot of blooms! Your corner garden is really looking good!"

    I could not agree more..

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