Just this afternoon we went to our neighbors’ house to deliver a book they’d ordered and see their lovely garden and of course I couldn’t help taking a few photos. That’s what happens when you use a camera truly pocket sized; you HAVE it with you. Here are some really fascinating pineapple lilies in their backyard and below that, their incredible deck with the Picasso petunias and the tall yellow brugmansia, or Angels Trumpet. We are enjoying the fabulous weather while the east coast suffers with Hurricane Irene. At least someone’s having it good.

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Highline Botanical Garden is so worth a visit. Just north of SeaTac Airport, south of Seattle, this small but lovely garden only becomes more beautiful with time. Those gardeners and volunteers must work very hard!

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An old-fashioned flower, for sure. My mom used to grow this one. It’s very, very tough, can bloom in sun or shade, reseeds very vigorously. Also it’s on the tall side, which I like. But the color of its small flowers (one inch or 3 cm) is extraordinary: an electric magenta that seems to move to red—just the most shimmering, intense color, and combined with its silvery stems and leaves, a real showy plant.

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I am pleased to announce that so far, the squirrels seem completely uninterested in the raspberries which are bearing this year for the first time. As opposed to, let’s say, strawberries, of which I have picked NOT ONE. Nuts. I guess I can’t complain, having so few garden pests or predators, but still. You grow them and you want to eat them, or at least taste them! I’ve also learned that raspberries, even unwashed and in an open container, get moldy after three days or so in the fridge. I won’t let that happen again.

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Garden flowers that come back by themselves, like bulbs are perennials, make gardening so much easier. But annuals that reseed themselves are perhaps even more welcome, as they have a long flowering period and can be moved around, when they are small, for a good effect. And I love the abundance of them, having planted dozens and dozens around the garden for a very good show. For free!

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And please come to the Open House at the Conservatory Aug 4, 6-8pm, to launch my new book!

I love tall flowers because you don’t have to bend down to see them closely and they look good from a distance, and ones that bloom in the shade, reseed themselves, and even appeal to hummingbirds are especially wonderful. These foxgloves are taller than I am, which is not too hard, and their graceful, tall spikes are the true high point of my garden right now.

Visit Pink Saturday, Today’s Flowers, Macro Flowers Saturday, Macro Monday,  Macro Friday, Color Carnival, and SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera) to view photos from around the planet. Please do click on the banner above, Sara’s Fave Photos, to see the latest photos here. And thanks for visiting!

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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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.

Visit Pink Saturday, Today’s Flowers, Macro Friday, Macro Monday, SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera), and Macro Flowers Saturday. Browse around here first, why don’t you? Clicking on the Sara’s Fave Photos banner will always bring you to the latest post here.

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!

Visit Ruby Tuesday, Color Carnival, Macro Friday, Macro Monday, Macro Flowers Saturday, Outdoor Wednesday, Pink Saturday, SOOC Sunday (straight out of the camera), and Today’s Flowers. Remember, if there is only one photo below, click on the Sara’s Fave Photos banner above to see the rest of the collection.