Hydrangeas are some of my top fave flowers. Not only do they bloom in quite deep shade, as well as in the sun in this latitude, but they are super easy to propagate. When cutting back in the spring (they bloom on old wood, so don’t go too far), take some woody stems you’ve pruned and stick them into the ground pretty well, under the mother plant so they get shaded and do not dry out. Keep them watered and maybe in July, check on them and I bet that more than one will be sprouting new leaves, showing you it has rooted. Dig it up, pot it up, and voila, a new hydrangea plant!

One other thing about hydrangeas: as shown by their name, they need water! Do not let them dry out, and wilting is hard on a plant. But at least it will forgive you and recover, if not too very dry.

I am participating in Macro Monday, Outdoor Wednesday, Weekend Flowers, SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera), and Floral Friday. If you have arrived here via a link and there is only this one photo below, please click on Sara’s Fave Photos Blog above to see the complete production.

One of the members of our local Garden Club does teas so very well. Her deck is just heaven on earth on a lovely summer day. Yesterday she put on one of her famous teas for us, and dressed the tables up so prettily with mini-bouquets in tiny teapots. I love this idea and must get some small teapots to do it, too.

More cool photos at Pink Saturday, Mellow Yellow Monday, Macro Monday, Scenic Sunday, Color Carnival, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, Outdoor Wednesday, Weekend Flowers, Floral Friday, and Ruby Tuesday 2. Thanks for visiting here, and come back soon!

This is a new flower for me. I was admiring a huge shrub in a beautiful garden in Coupeville, WA, when the owner came out and chatted with us. To me, this lavatera looks like it is related to hollyhock. I wish I had the space to grow this, as it looked about 6 feet (2 meters) tall and wide, and she said it was four years old, and you cut it to the ground each winter. What a stunner!

See more neat photos at Pink Saturday, Macro Monday, Scenic Sunday, Color Carnival, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, Outdoor Wednesday, Weekend Flowers, Floral Friday, and SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera). Thanks so much for visiting here.

My friend with the pretty hostas can do flowers so well. Here’s a sunshiny shot of the flowers on her shaded deck. Yes, there were cookies and iced tea, too!

Interesting sites for you: Scenic Sunday, Outdoor Wednesday, Pink Saturday, Mellow Yellow Monday, Color Carnival and SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera).

Isn’t this an exquisite planting? Those new, dark petunias, some kind of yellow striped grass, a dark heuchera (pronounced HOOK-er-a) and the sedum with pink edges look so great together. It’s in front of the door at Seattle’s Volunteer Park Conservatory. Go see it.

Visit Scenic Sunday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, Outdoor Wednesday, Pink Saturday, and Weekend Flowers, Floral Friday, SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera) for more neat photos. Also, the dappled sunlight and subtle colors make me happy, so I’m calling it my Best Post of the Week.

I just love that late-afternoon light. After MUCH rain and clouds, the sun peeked out the other evening and of course I was out there with my camera. These are mostly ‘Double Delight’ roses, my long-time favorite rose. Very available in nurseries, fabulous fragrance, strong grower. And this image is purely SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera).

This year I am attempting to grow roses without the usual systemic plant food laced with pesticides, hoping that this year I won’t feel the guilt of watching a robin poking for bugs in the soil and hoping the robin is OK. I am using alfalfa meal as a fertilizer this year and so far am very happy with the results.

Other interesting photo sites: Scenic Sunday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, Outdoor Wednesday, Weekend Flowers, Floral Friday, Color Carnival, Ruby Tuesday 2, Pink Saturday,  Skywatch Friday, A Piece of Heaven, Mellow Yellow Monday and Macro Monday. And do browse around here first. Maybe click a category on the right like “My Garden”? Thanks for visiting!

This may be my new favorite rosebush in the garden. Growing roses in the Pacific Northwest is tough with our damp climate. I have 18 different rosebushes in front of my house and after three years, ‘Proud Land’ seems to be the star. It’s huge, disease resistant, and just covered with dark red, fragrant flowers. Very satisfying. I’m calling this my Best Post of the Week.

For more cool photos, you might pay a visit to Scenic Sunday, Shadow Shot Sunday 2, Outdoor Wednesday, Weekend Flowers, Floral Friday, Color Carnival, and Ruby Tuesday 2. If you’ve arrived via a link and there is only one photo  below, click on Sara’s Fave Photos Blog above to see the complete collection here. Thank you so much for stopping by!

It’s kind of peony week here. I’ve loved peonies for so many years, and this is the first year they’ve really been truly magnificent in my garden. I’ve been sprinkling dolomitic lime around them, spring and fall, for the past 2-3 years, and with our acidic soil in the Pacific Northwest that has made a huge difference, but they need a certain level of maturity to really take off. Finally! Now I want to have those dark red ones, and the dark, dark wine red ones, too. Maybe a visit to the nursery is in order. I have peony fever.

Visit Scenic Sunday, Today’s Flowers, Weekend Flowers, Pink Saturday, Floral Friday, Outdoor Wednesday, Color Carnival, and Mellow Yellow Monday. Glad you could visit here today.

Such great, round, pregnant shapes. It’s marvellous to think that these tight little spheres expand to the big, fluffy blooms like the one in the post below. By the way, I measured that one and it’s a full 7 inches across, and still going strong days later. I love peonies.

Visit Macro Monday, Today’s Flowers, Weekend Flowers, Pink Saturday, Floral Friday, Outdoor Wednesday, Skywatch Friday, A Piece of Heaven, and Shadow Shot Sunday 2.  Do browse here first, OK? And thanks so much for visiting!

A happy garden perennial that blooms so brightly, geum (GEE-um) is a nice tall flower (2-3 feet, or a meter) with sprays of brilliant red that dance above a rosette of very toothed leaves. No fragrance, but very long blooming, especially when deadheaded. Hope you have this crowd-pleaser in your garden. An easy one to grow!

Check out Today’s Flowers, Weekend Flowers, Floral Friday, Ruby Tuesday 2, Macro Monday, and Color Carnival and don’t forget to click on the Sara’s Fave Photos Blog banner above to see the whole blog here.