Beautiful,especially love that rose,the colors in it look so delicate.TFS
Kathi

I envy your veggie harvest. All of my tomatoes are still green and peppers are only little things. How long have you been growing asparagus? I thought about dedicating an area, but my garden is fairly small.

abutilon:
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Indian Pinks & star jasmine:
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coneflowers & larkspur in kitchen garden:
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Prairie Sun rudbeckia in kitchen garden:
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Mexican bush sage:
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sweet peas:
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butterfly bush:
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Brazillian plume:
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Do the petals of Prairie Sun rudbeckia turn downward like that all the time? I love that Brazilan plume. Never heard of that plant but it sure is pretty. Looks like it might be a tropical plant? Those Indian pinks are interesting..did you wintersow all of your plants or buy as starter plants from a nursery/garden center? Thanks for sharing such beautiful pics with us.

How pretty! I had indian pinks at my former home.
This is the first year to pick the asparagus. I have gotten maybe 20 spears. I snap the very small ones and eat them raw. Maeve now knows that something to eat comes from there and watches to see if I eat any. I gave her a bite just for grins, and she loves it. I planted it the spring of 08. I have maybe 8 eyes, not big at all. It is planted against concrete block. My plan is to remove the block in a year or so and expand the area as needed.
My veg. garden is very small. Maybe 6 x18
We seem to be able to grow the same plants. I guess I am about a month ahead of you.

Lovely! It is so interesting to see what comes to fruition at in other climates. For example, who could imagine fresh bell peppers with asparagus here? Or Brazillian Plume blooming with Sweet peas?!

Plantmaven, that is some sort of campanula you have there. It looks to me to be a Russian or now Georgian sort.

I took a few photos today and will post later. Chester is sleeping on the bag with the camera and film. He's dreaming he is eating the pizza we had tonight, while staring at it with one eye open. Yet he is sound asleep. Weird cat.

Absolutely beautiful, nothing much doing in my garden yet. We have had such a long winter things are pretty slow.
Kathy what's the name of your pink pastel rose, love it.

Natal your Brazilian Plume is that a variety of Justica carnea, we can only grow that indoors, preferably a sunroom.

Annette

I second girlgroupgirl - its amazing to me that you have what I think of as spring flowers - Iris, blooming with summer flowers and fruiting peppers that I cant get until almost fall. Its still crocus, daffodil, hellebore season here. I shouldn't even put out my tomatoes and peppers for another month!

Lovely - thank you for sharing, even if it does make me depressed.

WOW! Love the daylilies, iris, rudebeckia, and that brazillian plume reminds me that I want a coneflower called pink poodle!heh heh!

Annette ~ the rose is Heritage. It smells wonderful, not overpowering like some roses.

Oops, I better explain about the peppers. I had that plant in a large pot. When Diane moved plants to the "green room", she moved it also. The crazy thing bloomed and produced a couple peppers over the winter The red pepper was pea sized when we moved the plant outside. Normally I would not have peppers this early.

The tiny blue flower comes back each year. I have no idea where it came from. Maybe the seeds were with the bags of leaves we got several years back.

Pippi, that's the only Prairie Sun that's blooming right now. I planted two last fall and can't remember what the blooms looked like. I also grew a few from seed this spring, so I'll have to wait and see if they bloom the same. I do propagate some plants, but the only ones in the above pics would be the tomatoes, larkspur and abutilon.

Plantmaven, you must have incredible patience! I didn't realize it took 3 years for the first harvest.

Annette, yes it's Justica carnea. It dies back to the roots some winters.

Probably not patience. "They" say not to harvest in order to give the plants time to mature. They did produce before, I just left those to go to seed. They look very feathery when left unpicked. Now I know why asparagus fern is called that.
I dearly love asparagus, so I was willing to push the envelope.

Lovely garden pictures. Those sweet peas are so pretty. And there is nothing like fresh veggies straight from your own garden :-))

So pretty, can't believe how much more is blooming in just one week. Maybe that new lantana will be in next weeks photos. I've planted some asparagus here including a purple variety. Not too much blooming here of course, but I'm working on it.:-)

natal - your garden is beautiful too.

natal, what's your secret for growing sweet peas?
I've planted different fragrant kinds at different times of the year and only got flowers one year.

PM, I love it too, but don't have the patience to wait 3 years.

Ruth, my secret is transplants. ;) I bought a single sweet pea last fall and that's what I got. I've heard so many have trouble growing them from seed, so I don't think I'll ever attempt that.

Beautiful photos ladies!

Kathy, does your Heritage rose get a lot of black spot and loose it's petals before they start turning? I've read about that one before and 'they' say it smells a bit like citrus. Is that true?

MeMo

Lovely Plantmaven, as a fellow Texas for years I continually relied on you for inspiration. Love the blooms.
Does that yellowish passion vine 'spread' via runners throughout your bed? My purple one spreads and I have a problem getting it to come back where I want it.

Yes!!!!!!!!!! that white passion vine does spread. I am letting one grow on the back fence, but rip out or weed kill all the others. This one, Constance Eliot, comes back at the original spot.

I am thrilled that I have inspired you. I have gardened for about 48 years.

Kathy