Photo of the Day - Hydrangea Bloom

Garden Club - August

Tonight we toured a nearby commercial water garden landscape place. I am only able to recognize a few of the water plants, like the lettuce, the hyacinth, and the canna and know none of the cultivar names, but it was sure fun seeing some of the gorgeous lilies and also, the many colorful koi--including one large pregnant fish that looked like she was ready to launch at least a thousand eggs. The koi will eat the tasty little eggs, but the tiny eggs are captured on the roots of water plants and then moved to another tank to hatch. I could not get a good photo of the wide-bellied momma koi swimming at the bottom of a dark tank, but I have a few selected photos from our tour.

A night  blooming lily--the others close up for the night

A Walk in the Park

Yesterday I was in the vicinity of Millenium Park, a recent reclamation project that has been developed into the largest park of its kind in West Michigan, so I thought I'd check it out. It had rained earlier, but was brightening and warm. I was surprised to find only a few souls out enjoying the park. There were two hikers on the trails but I did not cross paths with them. I felt like I had the whole beautiful space to myself! How fortunate we are here in Michigan to have such a nice plot of reclaimed wetlands available, abundant with native plants and birds. I was reminded of my lack of knowledge about wildflowers. I did recognize some of the plantings in the area of the shelters and playground, like this perovskia, or Russian sage, which was attracting bees:

With the many grasses pluming and the vegetation summer-rain lush, it was a good time to visit, although I can imagine that it will be transformed in a few months as we fall into autumn.

Click on these photos to enlarge--and enjoy some of nature's finest:

Leaves trending fall--viburnum?

Glistening berries

Young dawn redwood

One more--I was impressed with the mowed  grass--look how thick and green it is--easily able to stand up to foot traffic:

Today in the Church Garden

The two large pots are lush

Over-wintered mandevilla are thriving

The heart-shaped garden is filling in.

Two cultivars of zinnias, marigolds, lantana, salvia

Casablanca Lily - Opening Day

Lilium 'casablanca'

Yesterday I noticed that my last oriental lily finally opened with one bloom. It has been over a month since the first asiatic lilies started the whole lilium show. The trumpets and longiflorums have ended their runs as well. This afternoon I took some photos. The Casablanca is a popular and fragrant lily that I'm sure will always be available. With all the hybridizing going on, some cultivars could eventually be supplanted by the new and improved, but it seems unlikely that Casablanca's desirablity on the horticultural stage will ever fade.

 I counted 12 buds (Frank claimed nearly two dozen blooms on one of his tall stalks a few years back) on my modest but expanding patch. Here is a bud caught in the opening act:

Photo of the Day - Hibiscus 'Summer Storm'

Hibiscus 'Summer Storm'

Garden Club - July - A Visit to a Community Garden

Blueberries developing

Several members of my garden club have mentioned the community garden that they are involved in. Last year I inquired and found out there is a lengthy waiting list for this local plot and that is as much as I knew about the garden. Last night, under threat of rain and thunder, our garden club scouted out the 100 or so 25' x 50' plots which are available for $52 per year, with free use of easily accessed city water. Nobody was out weeding or watering on this stormy evening as we carefully explored the gardens--we treated the gardens as we would want our own to be treated, walking on mulched pathways while still feeling a little like we were violating these private paradises--and not even thinking about picking a raspberry or a cherry tomato! I was very impressed with the gardens, which are only 2.6 miles from my house.

A scarecrow?

A few plots looked neglected and weedy, and others were being developed with raised beds and nice mulches in the walkways. Here is a photo of a neat garden:

I have not had a good yard for a vegetable garden since the early 80's. I was especially pleased with the variety of produce that was being grown here, including okra, brussel sprouts and a beautiful variegated zucchini:

Okra

Brussel Sprouts

Zucchini with variegated foliage

Many gardeners include some marigolds, or other flowers for cutting such as gladiola or cosmos. There were also massive sunflowers, large rambling plots of raspberries and a few plots for just perennials--including a daylily garden in full bloom.

Sunflower

Emerging daylily

The night ended with refreshments nearby at what I call my secret garden. We hurried, because the drizzly weather threatened a downpour. The snacks are always the same and always good--cheese and crackers, cut-up fruit, home baked goodies, nuts and drinks. This time the nuts and cheese were combined in a tasty cheese log. I could have indulged more but we dashed to our cars as the drizzle became droplets. The next day my rain gauge registered 2 1/2 inches. It seems it's often all or nothing, but being a plant-lover and the self-proclaimed Watering Queen of the World, I almost always welcome the rain.

Photo of the Day - Beauty and the Beach

Blooming for my Birthday

Today was in the 90's and humid--a Midwest heat wave--good weather for corn or a tomato plant but not for me. How did I ever survive my youth? Today was also my birthday, so I stayed mostly indoors and took the day off. I did a bloom check this morning in my yard while the temperature was still in the 70's.

The surprise was that my oriental lilies have finally opened up. In the plant world we distinguish Asian, Oriental, Trumpet and Longiflorum (Easter) types of lilies--maybe not PC--but that is how they are named. They are being constantly hybridized (LA, LO and OT, or Orienpet), especially by the Dutch scientists in Holland, who are working hard to develop lilies that feature the best from all in the Lilium genus. Thus, they are working on LAOT's. It can be very confusing. How about an AOL? In the end, we must buy what we love. But don't get the oriental type (including that popular Star Gazer) if you can't stand the intense fragrance, which will nearly knock you over.

Tonight I put out the trash--from the outdoor can to the street. It had been "cooking" in the high temps and the smell of decomposition was spreading through the yard. A vole found dead in the yard was in the mix and who knows what else! But the lily nearby was adding a scent of its own, and as I watered a few things after dark and after my birthday dinner event, I was caught between the two powerful odors. Below is a closeup of my lily that is oh-so-fragrant and doesn't look like what I remember planting--perhaps it hybridized in my yard! Maybe an LO lily is now LOL at me!

My fragrant oriental lily--is it Muscadet?

Also still blooming, an "Easter lily." I have heard of Christmas in July, but how about Easter in July? If you save your Easter lily and plant it outside after the last frost, the next summer--if you are lucky--it will bloom in July.

Lilium longiflorum

Of course, the daylilies (hemerocallis), which are not at all in the same genus as lilium, are still blooming--this yellow one just beginning its show right beside the oriental lily:

and "Peacock Maiden's" two plants produced 5 blooms for the day which was the most ever, just for me, on my birthday!

A Day for Daylilies

With over 60,000 registered cultivars of Hemerocallis, I don't know where to begin or when to end, but I will dedicate this one day to the daylily. Each new daylily bloom lasts just one day and then turns into a slimy mush-mummy which eventually dries and drops to the ground. A fanatic gardener will remove the spent blooms daily.

 Mid-July is prime time for the daylily in West Michigan, although the season is long, with early and late varieties planted abundantly in this zone. Daylilies remain very popular because they are hardy, beautiful and easy for any moron to grow! With new hybridizations appearing by the thousands, they appeal to the collector, as well. There is not yet a white, but shades of all colors are now available, including nearly black. And the names are delightful.

As promised, today I captured my to-be-shared-exclusively-daylily  in bloom. It is a brighter color than I had imagined--not really a maroon--but it does have a lovely gold throat. I will not reveal its name because I want to protect the exclusivity and not compromise my anonymity.

My daylily day started out by first capturing the best bloom of the day on my most dramatic "spider" daylily, featured on the blog previously. The petals and sepals do not overlap on the spider as they do on most daylilies. I actually just learned to note these difference myself.

Peacock Maiden

I then visited a garden of an acquaintance near my aunt's house that has over 600 cultivars, most of them labeled. No one was home, but I browsed quickly through the gardens and selected a few blooms with interesting names to feature here.

Fooled Me

Flutterbye

Pince Nez

Finally, I took photos at my aunt's house. Most of her best daylilies were featured last year. I found this one on the berm, which is an overgrown area of the property where only a few brave souls dare to venture:

An unlabeled beauty, stunning in the filtered sunlight

One more on the berm, paired with sumac:

Finally, a view of her border of hostas, hydrangeas, daylilies and more--way too many plants to deadhead, although the hosta stalks do eventually get a trim.