Sunday, May 25, 2008

IRIS TIME IS FINALLY HERE!

This is my most favorite time of the year! Every year I look forward with great anticipation to seeing the new iris I planted the summer before bloom for the first time. Then all winter I scrapbook pictures I took the spring before. I'm obsessed, I know! The following 12 pictures were all taken this spring. Even though everything is late because of the weather, they are definitely worth the wait. Iris love ash! These were planted around our burn pile.
New Leaf
Wild Thing
Honky Tonk Hussy (Don't you just love these names?)
Toucan Tango

TOMORROW IS MEMORIAL DAY!

And we are for the 2nd year in a row opening our iris gardens to the public. As Memorial Day is early and the weather has been cool, this is not the peak of the season as it is usually for us. But there is still plenty to see! Below are just a few of those in bloom now. Nigerian Raspberry
Sheer Ecstasy
Unknown as it was just given to me last year. It kind of looks like "Jesse's Song". It was supposed to be a "Tennessee Vol" which is orange, but this was a nice surprise.
Rancho Rose

AMONG THE FIRST TO BLOOM

Of course you can probably guess by now which iris was the first to bloom in our yard if you've checked our blog before. You guessed it! Cantina again!! Check the May, August, October, and November archives for pictures. The iris that's like the Energizer Bunny, it just keeps on blooming! Buckwheat, a rebloomer.
Trillion, a new one this year and now another one of my favorites. I love horned beards.
Elainelope, another rebloomer.
Lorilee

Wednesday, May 07, 2008

BLOSSOMS, BIRD, AND BENCH

Can you tell I like alliteration?Finally! Real apple blossoms, not snow!!!
I need help identifying this bird! It's not in my Birds of the Willamette Valley book. Maybe it's not from around here and got lost while migrating! It's about the size of a small robin, so it can't be a gold finch, and look at that beak! It is beautiful though isn't it? A whole flock of them came and were eating the black oiled sunflower seeds I put out on the ground every morning. Of course by the time I got the camera, they'd been scared up into the trees. Good thing I have a 10x zoom!
The Valentines bench is looking better and better all the time. Wait till the iris behind it bloom!



BETTER LATE THAN NEVER

...Especially when it comes to Spring!
Every year this is one of my favorite combinations: Purple tulips with a backdrop of yellow Basket of Gold Alysum.This is the first Spring for our new raised beds. I had fun filling in gaps around the iris with spikes of blue delphinium, some Goldmound Spirea and Crimson Pygmy Barberry to go with the red Japanese maple that is just leafing out.
See how the creeping thyme between the pavers has grown since we planted it last fall. Let me tell you, Daryl's Nursery has quality plants!

I can't say that this Appledorn Elite is my favorite tulip, but with the Crimson Barberry as a backdrop it is redeemed. Which reminds me of something else crimson that redeems: the blood of Jesus Christ! Thank you, Jesus, for dieing in my place!