This rose is called ‘Blue Girl’ and is sort of lavender but looks pinkish in this light, don’t you think? My roses are finally blooming, after such a long wait. I thought I lost several in the hard winter we had, but now it seems all but one survived, which out of 19 isn’t too bad. I added lots of compost in the fall and spring, and they LOVE it, with blooms much larger than last year.

I love the lighting on this shot and am calling it my Best Post of the Week.

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Lupines don’t last all that long, although if you deadhead them (remove the spent flowers) they can rebloom a bit. This amazing patch of them is in a neighbor’s yard. The other afternoon when it was sunny late in the day, I knew the light would be perfect for taking photos of them, so I hustled up the hill and there they were, in their glory. That was just a week or so ago, and this perfect peak has passed now. But the photo lives on!

As you’ve probably noticed, this photo is similar to the lupine header photo. It’s hard finding header photos that work in a very skinny slice! I thought you wouldn’t mind seeing a more rectangular composition of the same scene.

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My peonies are beginning to bloom. Here are the first two I picked from my yard. This year there are dozens of those wonderful spherical buds out there, all plump with possibilities. I love peonies!

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The huge poppies are blooming. These unusual ones, the size of my hand, were discovered in a neighbor’s garden on a recent walk. Aren’t they something? The photo doesn’t really do justice to the red color, either. That tomato red, and the dark, dark center just do it for me. Flower thrills.

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Who doesn’t love peonies? Their wildly ruffled but so tender petals, the color of a baby’s cheek, that soft fragrance, and even their handsome foliage. Yum. These are in a neighbor’s garden as mine are still round buds.

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I do love daisies, especially these simple ones that grow in gravelly roadside strips. What a difficult environment for such a lovely, perfect flower. I’d grow them in my garden if they sold seeds for them, although they probably LIKE the harsh roadside environment. I tell my plants to “Bloom where you’re planted,” but sometimes they don’t listen.

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Took a walk this afternoon and was lucky enough to happen past this pretty scene in the brief bit of sunshine, before the cloud cover took over. Isn’t backlighting the greatest? I just love the way it looks in a garden. I like it so much I’m calling this my Best Post of the Week.

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You can’t beat the Pacific Northwest when it comes to rhododendrons. Some tower over the landscape, some are solidly covered with blooms, some are just thrilling in their abundance. I only wish for fragrance, but I’m like that. An iffy bloom with fragrance trumps stupendous with none, or I’d like to think so. Color combos like this one, however, make me set that prejudice aside!

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From my backyard, the other day. I already pulled up the forget-me-nots since then. They fill in so well, looking great when not much else is blooming, but then a certain point is passed, and out they go. No problem with new plants volunteering for next year, of course, perhaps even too vigorously reseeding, but when you have a big place to fill up, these do a fine job. And the dutch irises seem to be quite easy, as well, returning now for the third time and more than I planted. Gardening is so fun when it works out well.

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Sunshine today, sunshine this weekend, yay and yay! Went out and snapped a million (well, a few) photos in the late afternoon light, of course my fave, considering I am not a morning person by any means. The lupines did remarkably well this winter. I think it was so cold this spring that the slugs stayed sleeping and let them get going unmolested. I planted these from seed maybe three years ago and look at them!

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