I bought the specimen above primarily because I liked its name. I was visiting a daylily farm with garden club a few years back. The farm had hundreds of choices (there are over 50,000 cultivars!), but this one was labeled 'Peacock Maiden' and it caught my attention. This year it has more blooms--again, the early warmth and abundant rain--and this was the first of about 30 buds on this relatively recent addition to my plant family. I have no full sun in my yard, but this one apparently has enough. The remaining photos were taken at my aunt's property.
The third week of June, the daisies are definitely out there. This one was rescued last week from being taken over by the 'Black Lace' elderberry. A Shasta daisy cultivar named 'Becky' was a PPA (Perennial Plant Assoc.) pick of the year back in 2003. I bought one, along with the Phlox 'David' (PPA pick 2002), two family names. Poor 'Becky' bit the dust years ago. My shady/sandy yard did not accommodate this sun-loving plant whose name derives from "day's eye," a sun reference from long ago. Plant names help you decide--if it has a nice name you are more likely to buy. Plants for the plant lover are a little like pets or children--things to be nurtured, fed, watered, tucked in with mulch for protection and disciplined by a little head-wacking when necessary. If they have a memorable name, it makes it easier to bond. I know a guy who only buys hostas for his collection that have a girl's name, like 'June.' I once made a claim that I think like a plant, referencing that I can tell when a plant is feeling a little bit dehydrated and needs some water. If you have too many dependents or are too busy, they may eventually die from neglect. Thankfully, I did better with my daughter Rebecca than I did with her plant namesake, 'Becky.'Hollyhocks & purple coneflower
It's amazing how 5 or 6 little petunia plants can fill a basket in a month's time with a little help from Miracle-Gro. This one--raspberry blast supertunia. Or was it parfait... sorbet?
Fallopia japonica 'Variegata' 
A red variety (?) of cordyline, overwintered twice, barely, but still alive and making a statement.
This berm is new as of late last summer. It was my attempt at a teardrop shape but ended up looking more like a large uterus! It was created out of the remains of a huge black walnut tree stump grinding, a tree that was becoming toxic to many things in the yard, especially the tomato plants over 50 feet away. Also, last year it produced about a thousand walnut fruits which we had to pick up--so it was finally cut down. The soil was amended around these mostly annual plantings (I don't know the specific names--there is a coleus, but is it 'fish net stocking'?) and we hope the juglone which is present in all parts of the black walnut tree will not make any of these new plantings sick. The toxicity will dissipate over time--but how much time??
Plant names are important to the serious gardener. I also happen to like themes--in the garden, in life and in blog posts. Did you notice that in this post noting the importance of names, I mentioned fallopia, uterus, maiden, fishnet stocking and black lace?
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