Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Flowers!

I spend so much of my time in my vegetable garden that I often neglect the flower garden in the front yard.  However, with the arrival of spring it is impossible not to notice the vibrant blooms and wonderful fragrances.  I wish I could make the photos scratch and sniff so that you could enjoy the scents too!

Overview of left side of front bed:


And now for the details:

 

Clematis growing on the arbor which is on the far left of the photo above


Clematis closeup 

 
 Climbing roses


Dianthus


Dianthus are popular with the ants


Another dianthus with more ants. 

 These are the red imported fire ants, which are an unpleasant invasive species.  I've been researching organic ways to control them because there's nothing worse than weeding the flower bed and stepping into a fire ant nest and getting covered with stings.  If anyone has fire ant suggestions I would love to know what works.


Blue salvia


And now for the right side of the front bed


Carnation


This is a crazy columbine.  I tend to buy flowers at the end of the season when they are past flowering and nurseries put them on sale.  This was one of those sale plants and when it started flowering I wondered what it was.  It has definite columbine leaves, but the flowers were not like any columbine I had ever seen.  Turns out it is a double columbine.


Another rose bush


Weigelia


Bumblebee visiting the weigelia


Take a lesson from Domino- stop and sniff the flowers! 
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6 comments:

  1. SunnyBeachJewelryGardenApril 10, 2012 at 1:51 PM

    Oh, your flowers are awesome!
    I only have daffodils at this time.

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  2. Liz - Suburban TomatoApril 10, 2012 at 6:12 PM

    Very pretty, a lovely bed. When I first looked at the last photo I was convinced that Domino was a cow about to eat them all - in retrospect not sure why.....

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    Replies
    1. JulieApril 11, 2012 at 7:56 PM

      haha.. that's not going to make Domino feel good about his weight.. maybe he should start eating plants and lay off the treats!

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  3. ignorant gardenerApril 10, 2012 at 9:36 PM

    Nice flower beds. It all looks so planned and perfect. I like the front deck, it adds to the old english feel which complements the climbing vines. (no I'm not too envious, just the right amount) ;)

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    Replies
    1. JulieApril 11, 2012 at 8:15 PM

      Thanks! My "planning" consisted of getting clearance plants that were any color except yellow and orange... I'm going for a cool colors garden. I also look for things that butterflies like because I like them fluttering all over the place. I'm flattered that you think it has an old English feel.. I love English cottage gardens!

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  4. AndreaApril 11, 2012 at 6:32 AM

    Your garden is looking so pretty and must smell lovely with the dianthus. Yes we all need to remember to stop and smell the roses...

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