05/3/08 PHOTOS OF APRIL 2008

EARL'S BED

This is 'Earl's Bed.' I have selected areas of the garden to honor those people in my life who have passed on. Earl was my sister's father-in-law. The rose growing in the bed is a hand-me-down. You can see this rose growing all over the neighborhood. The cherry red blooms are breathtaking and stay on the plant for weeks. The petunias and marigolds were a gift from me to a friend. She decided she would rather see them growing in my garden than in a pot at her door. I planted them with the 'Intensia' phlox that seems to never be out of bloom.

ROSE 'MARIE DALY' etc.

The Rose in this photo is named 'Marie Daly.' She is a grandiflora that blooms from spring to fall, almost non-stop. Her musk scent is very strong and fills the garden. She has received 'Earth Kind' status here in Texas. 'Earth Kind' roses are disease resistant and need very little maintenance and thrive through our Texas heat. She is one of my favorites! The blue flowers are Scabiosa columbaria 'Butterfly Blue.' It was the Perennial Plant Association's perennial of the year in 2000. To see other winners go to: http://www.perennialplant.org/ppy/ppyindexs.htm

ROSE 'SUNBRIGHT' etc.

Sometimes happy combinations happen that delight! This time a crop of Dill (Anethum graveolens) seeded itself near my Rose 'Sunbright.' The yellow blooms of the dill are a nice echo to the roses on 'Sunbright!'

DILL (Anethum graveolens)

This another photo of Dill that has reseeded with larkspur, roses, and salvia.

MOTHER'S BED

My mother passed away in 2002. I had been gardening about a year prior to her death. I dedicated this part of my garden to her. It is a mix of 9 roses, lots of perennials and a few annuals. It is the prominent part of my backyard garden.

FRONT YARD GARDEN

The garden in the backyard started the beginning of my gardening obsession. When I ran out of room, I decided to carry it to the front yard. The best part about having a front yard garden is that everyone gets to see it. I've also enjoyed chatting with people in my neighborhood as they pass. I've noticed, on my street, the front yard garden trend is catching!

FRONT DOOR PATH

This is the path to my front door. The groundcovers I've used are Thyme and Frog-Fruit (Phyla incisa). Frog-Fruit is native to Texas, and stays bright green, in full sun, all through the summer. The rose in the distance is 'Knock-Out.' I wanted another 'Earth Kind' rose with bright color. You can't go wrong with 'Knock-Out!' Since this photo was taken, I've removed the green leaf Cannas in the left of the photo and replaced them with darker foliaged cannas - 'Dark Knight,' Red King Humbert, Tropicanna, Wyoming and Australia. I already had each of these growing, so I didn't have to purchase new plants. The nice thing about Cannas is they multiply quickly!!

ROSE 'SCHULENBURG APRICOT'

I bought this rose a few years ago. It is a found rose that was discovered by the 'Rose Rustlers' in the small Texas town of Schulenburg. It never grows above two feet but spreads out about three and half feet. If anyone sees this and would like to ID it, I would love to know its origin. For now, the name Schulenburg Apricot will suffice.

ROSE 'QUIETNESS'

'Quietness' is a beautiful rose that I got about two years ago. The pink coloring is heaven! She has a wonderful sweet aroma as well. This is one of Dr. Griffith Buck's hybrid roses. His roses were bred to be hardy, disease resistant, nearly thornless, and fragrant. The word elegant seems to come to mind when describing her! The bottom picture shows her growing with Rose 'Marie Daly,' Scabiosa 'Butterfly Blue,' and Daylily 'Bitsy.'

ROSE 'SWEET CHARIOT'

'Sweet Chariot' is a miniature rose that is truly purple. Unlike many miniature roses she also has a very strong old rose scent. The Yarrow in the photo is an unnamed hand-me-down.

OPIUM POPPY

Opium Poppy (Papaver somniferum) reseeds itself every year in my spring garden. This one is pale purple. The rose in the distance is 'Perle d' Or.'

CORN POPPY

Papaver rhoeas is another re-seeding poppy. They show up in many different shades of red. This one is one of my favorites this year.