Spring Garden 2018 – A Perennial Haven

Every year I share pictures of my Spring and Summer gardens with you all. This year I’ve caught the gardening bug really bad so do expect more posts about my garden, especially the new back yard bed. This season the mainstay of the garden are the perennial flowers, which I feel give you the most bang for your buck. Perennials are almost always low maintenance and bloom profusely. You can also plant perennials that bloom across seasons giving you much needed color in your flower beds. Without much ado here’s my main star this Spring, the giant alliums. 

A friend got the bulbs from a local grower in the area last Fall. They took a while to open up so much that I was worried that these were the same as my regular ones. The first two weeks they looked like this, the left most one is the giant one.

But then they opened up fully and what a show they put on! Way more long lasting than the regular ones. I’m so glad I decided to add more alliums to the bed last Fall. The below pic has got to be my most favorite one in recent years. Can you spot the bumble bee?

Vying for the second spot in my General McMahon peony, one of the easiest perennials to grow,

and the Lilac bush, Lilac Monge.

The lilac blooms are really that deep purple and smelled heavenly. What’s more important is that it lasted at least 3 weeks longer than the regular lilac blooms.

I think purely based on their delightful fragrance they edge out the McMahon peony. What do you think?

As soon as May rolled in the evening primroses started their show.

Don’t let those pretty dainty flowers fool you, they are an invasive perennial spreading via underground roots. I didn’t realize that when I planted them but now I’m paying for it, pulling them out of everywhere.

A surprise out front was this and a couple of other Dutch Irises that I planted 2 years ago that decided to finally show up. 

My trusty twosome, the burgundy tulips, the only 2 left from 60 bulbs planted a few years ago were prompt with their blooms.

Same with the salvia.

In the planters the pansies are adding a profusion of color. I think this is the only annual in my list of pictures today.

Over along the side of the house our knockout rose hedge is in full form as usual.

The yellow ones are literally throwing up every shade in the yellow spectrum.

Out back the old timer perennials like the Scotch broom

and  the Queen Elizabeth rose, the blooms of which I got see for the first time in years thanks to no deer (woo hoo hail the fence!) are in full form.

Sharing the space along with the oldies are the new additions like this Scarlet O’ Hara peony

and the Duchess de Nemours Peony, to die for fragrance.

The new comers also include the golden delicious apple tree (already a sad story as it ended up getting cedar rust 🙁 ).

Pink speedwell

Perennial Phlox

Deplhinium

and my first Clematis, the reblooming Rebecca clematis. Clematis is again another easy perennial to grow as long as you pay attention to which group it belongs. The group dictates the pruning needed for the plant. The Rebecca is a Group 2 Clematis,

What is blooming in your garden?