Got To Get Back To The Garden

We often vacation in early May, which is a bit of a dangerous proposition for a gardener. There is so much to see and do at that point, and I hate to miss it. You would think that being on vacation in Florida would distract me from thinking about my garden back home. But it sure doesn't! I keep wondering what I'm missing. This year, for instance, I knew that there were buds on my peonies. Since I've never even seen them in bloom I didn't even know what color they are, and I was afraid to miss them. I didn't! Turns out my peonies are white. It was a little dark when I got home, so bear with me on the photos being a little fuzzy.

I kept wondering about my roses too, and yes, some of them did bloom for me while I was away. Funny Face is always the first and most prolific of my roses.

Second most floriferous would be the Knockout Rosa Sunny. Gorgeous, blooms non-stop and very, very fragrant. What's not to love!

My Fourth of July climber isn't fragrant, but it's just plain pretty.

The May Knight salvia had started to bloom before I left, so I knew they'd be in their glory. That's them, hiding behind the columbine and the last allium. I had no idea the columbines would get that tall. 

 Moonshine yarrow had buds when I left, so I knew I'd find blooms. This was one of those 75 cent bargains at the end of the summer last year. 

Last year's tall snapdragons were expected to be blooming and they didn't let me down. I love the color mix.

I knew the clematis by the lamp post would have lots of flowers in bloom, and it did.
And yes, it was about to storm.

But there were a lot of flowers that I had forgotten all about, like Evening primrose,

perennial geraniums,

the rhododendron Catawbiense red,

 and Brilliant Star dianthus. 

 I had one little surprise bloom out front, when one of my white Siberian iris returned. I dug them all out last year because I didn't like where they were, but the bulbs have languished in the garage. So it was nice to see one of them that escaped. 

But the biggest surprise was a few more of my iris in bloom. I know I'm not the only gardener who forgets what they planted. I think this one is Rock Star,

 and I know this one is Batik. I had one of these back in Michigan, and I forgot all about planting it here. It really tickled me to see it in bloom for the first time.

Sure feels good to get back to the garden, even if it isn't Woodstock!