Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, July 2009

I've been so busy with summer fun (went to Ontario Place yesterday!) that I almost forgot today was Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, hosted by Carol at May Dreams Gardens.

First, my beloved natives:

[Photo: Monarda didyma.]
Monarda didyma (bee balm, monarde) is one of my favourites. Such a pretty shade of red! [Photo: Asclepias tuberosa.]
The Asclepias tuberosa (butterfly weed, asclépiade tubéreuse) is getting huge! Hard to believe that a couple of years ago it was a single stem, about 20 cm tall, with no blooms.

[Photo: Liatris spicata starting to bloom.]
Liatris spicata (blazing star, liatride à épis) is just starting to bloom.

p[Photo: Rudbeckia hirta.]
The Rudbeckia hirta (black-eyed Susan, Rudbeckie dréssé) has opened a few tentative blooms. It will be smothered for next GBBD, I'm sure!

Next: the new and exciting!

[Photo: Dionaea muscipula in bloom.]
I wasn't expecting the Dionaea muscipula (Venus fly-trap, dionée attrape-mouche) to bloom! (I've already killed two of these.) I think it's very happy to be out in the sunshine with lots of bugs. According to carnivorous plant expert Barry Rice, you shouldn't let your Venus fly-trap flower. Unfortunately, I didn't realize it was sending up a flowering stalk until it was too late (okay, I admit, I also wanted to see the flowers). Recently it tried making a second flower stalk but I nipped it in the bud like a good gardener.

[Photo: Echinacea purpurea.]
The Echinacea purpurea (purple coneflower, echinacée pourpre) is just starting to turn pink.

p[Photo: Athyrium niponicum var pictum 'Applecourt'
Not exactly new, or even a bloom, but too pretty to leave out: Athyrium niponicum var. pictum 'Applecourt' (Japanese painted fern, fougère peinte). Earlier this summer it was struggling, I guess due to transplant stress, but it seems to be on the mend.


The hostas (cultivar unknown) are in full bloom now! Of course the flowers cannot compete with the gorgeous foliage.

[Photo: Campanula rapunculoides in bloom.]
I believe this is Campanula rapunculoides (creeping bellflower, campanule fausse raiponce), which is unfortunately rather invasive in southern Ontario. I'll be deadheading this religiously; I can't remove it completely because my landlords' son is attached to it.

[Photo: Hemerocalis fulva and Erigeron annuus.]
Hemerocalis fulva (orange daylily, lis d'un jour fauve) is another invasive my landlords' son won't part with. Here it's growing with native Erigeron annuus (daisy fleabane, érigéron annuelle).

[Photo: Helianthus annuus.]
This Helianthus annuus (sunflower, tournesol) was a volunteer. The parents were probably 'Velvet Queen' and 'Autumn Beauty'.

[Photo: Dianthus chinensis 'Double Gaiety Mixed'].
The Dianthus chinensis 'Double Gaiety Mix' (China pinks, œillets de Chine) which I started from seed in March is in full bloom now.

[Photo: Mentha sp. flower spike.]This Mentha (mint, menthe, don't know the species) grows like a weed in our garden— indeed, when we moved in, we practically had a mint lawn! I never noticed before how fluffy their flower spikes are.

Lastly, the old standbys: [Photo: Viola x wittrockiana Delta Pure Rose.]
The Viola x wittrockiana 'Delta Pure Rose' (pansy, pensée) is still soldiering on despite the hotter weather.

p[Photo: planter with Petunia and Fuchsia.]
The planter my landlords' son put together is filling out nicely. It's dominated by Petunia 'Sanguna Lavender Vein', the dark purple, pink, and 'Famous White' petunias are apparently not nearly as vigorous. The fuchsia also seems to be flourishing.

[Photo: Calibrachoa.]
The calibrachoas are still going strong. The basket with bright pink petunias and verbenas, on the other hand, is petering out, so I didn't even bother photographing it this month.

[Photo: Tagetes tenuifolia 'Lulu'.]
Tagetes tenuifolia 'Lulu' (signet marigold, tagète tachée) just keeps getting better. This is the most successful plant I've grown from seed this year.

[Photo: Nicotiana 'Perfume Mix'.]
Only one of the seeds of Nicotiana hybrid 'Perfume Mix' (flowering tobacco, tabac d'ornement) grew and survived to bloom. The flowers are okay but not terrific, and are not especially fragrant. I don't think I'll bother with these in the future.

[Photo: Sedum in bloom.]
Lastly, the mystery Sedum that the landlords' kids and I rescued from a garden down the street (the new owner replaced it with a lawn) is growing like a weed and blooming for the first time!

2 comments:

  1. Wow that was really cool to see a Venus Fly Trap flower!

    ReplyDelete
  2. The variety of sedum that you possess is called "Sedum Spectabile". It's common name is "Ice Plant". Here in Toronto, the plant shoots out a spectacular crown of pink star shaped flowers at the end of July/beginning of August. It is a very hardy plant that can be grown in a pot or garden.

    ReplyDelete

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