My 50th birthday week!
I have a strong affection for my Leo sun sign (my rising/ascendant sign is also Leo). I roar when necessary and purr when so compelled. I know without question that my personality plays out in what I grow.
Enjoy these newest blooms of my birth month!
The dahlias are in full swing and I have my first blooms of China asters and Rudbeckia "Sahara," two of my absolute favorite mid-summer flowers. The variation in shades of soft orange, apricot and yellow of the Sahara are phenomenal. I took a risk this first winter that I had eucalyptus, which I started from seed last year, and kept this outdoors in the landscape cloth, fingers crossed that it would make it through the winter. I ended up putting frost cloth on during the coldest days and am fortunate that thirty of thirty-eight plants made it through the winter and are now thriving. My hope is that with increased root mass they should get through this next winter no problem....
This last week has been a challenging one on our farm with fireworks going off for five days, July 2nd through July 6th. Our Great Pyrenees and ducks have been so stressed.
I much prefer the fireworks of flowers...
I love the basketflower so much with its 4" flower heads, blush stamens and woven basket base that I was compelled to include three photos. Now THAT'S a firework!
The dahlias started to bloom last week; I was even able to include a few in a couple of the special order bouquets which I delivered last Thursday. It was a first for me to overlap peonies and dahlias in a mixed bouquet. The last photo is of our antique mock orange which a master gardener/horticulturist friend identified as being at least 70 to 80 years old. While it needs a good professional pruning, it still puts out loads of heavily scented blooms which we eagerly await each summer. We have had an incredible, gentle and steady rain all day today which I’m grateful for. The farm is more lush at the start of July then I think I’ve ever seen it....
