Bloom Day - Garden, Gardener, and Blogger are Still Here

     I've been a bad blogger. I missed May's Bloom Day, it's been more than a month since my last post, and there are over 500 new posts from other bloggers waiting for me to read at Feedly. The problem is that my actual life is interfering with my virtual life. It's still spring, and I come home from work drained (in a good way), both mentally and physically and want nothing more than to sit and sip. On the weekends I am either pedaling, or paddling, or in the garden. Perhaps with the arrival of the more lethargic days of summer, my status might return to blogger-in-good-standing. Until then let's see what's blooming.

     The front garden is quite colorful now, with daylilies coming into season, Salvia and Dahlia blooming, and my questionable lily mugging for the camera in the background. What I paid for was Lilium 'African Queen', a tall trumpet type with a subtle orange coloring. What I got was a much shorter lily with an in-your-face color with no hint of subtlety, but at this point I am not ready to yank them. Fortunately my Verbasucm 'Banana Custard' is still holding court, and drawing an army of native bees and friendly little flies.

     In the side garden Hydrangea, Coreopsis, Echinacea are in bloom, as is a new-to-my-garden plant, Digitialis ferruginea 'Gigantea', which has been a real pain in the butt to keep hydrated.

     Closer to the house, Hydrangea 'Frau Kinue' is looking good, and hopefully distracts your eye from peeling paint.

     I've spent a good part of yesterday potting up many of the plants that line the front steps. As usual I'm using many coleus, but this year I have also added Begonia 'Bonfire', which after seeing it perform so well at work, I had to have one of my own. At the bottom of the steps I have paired a pale yellow and orange Sunpatiens with Crossandra 'Orange Marmalade', and behind that, plume poppy (Macleaya cordata) is helping hid the winter-stressed foliage of my windmill palm (Trachycarpus fortunei).

     Up on the porch I still have 2 plants yet to find their final home, an Aralia 'Sun King', and a lizard's tail (Saururus cernuus) destined for the fish pond. I have three rectangular concrete planters on the edge of the porch that all get different levels of sun. Trying to find the same light-flexible annuals to grow in all three was a challenge, but I settled on common wax leaf begonias and a variegated vinca. The combo may not be too exciting, but it works, and they were cheap.

     In the back garden other hydrangeas are blooming, as is my Gardenia. I was afraid the winter damaged it, but it is blooming in spades and helping to mask the smell of dog.

     If you want to see what other bloggers might have blooming in their gardens, be they good, bad, or something in between, visit Carol at May Dreams Gardens where she hosts Garden Bloggers Bloom Day on the 15th of each month.