Anyway, as I was out taking a few photos in the garden this morning, I noticed that the same plants that were struggling at this time last year, don't even have any blooms on them yet. Summer is definitely later this year. We had a couple of days in the 50's and 60's this week, and I don't know for sure, but I believe we had already reached the 90 degree mark by this time last year.

Not sure what the point of this thread is, other than to say that I can't believe how much I've learned in the past two years about gardening, and how much I appreciate all the advice I've received from you guys.

Here are a few pics of the garden:

This is the Coreopsis grandiflora 'Sunburst' that I had so much trouble with last year

... and the same Gaillardia 'Goblin' that had wilted blooms this time last year

Gaillardia 'Oranges & Lemons' first bloom of the season

Sedum kamtschaticum 'Variegatum' in bloom

Heuchera 'Marmalade' starting to bloom

Peony 'Francis Ortegot' with Calamagrostis acutiflora 'Overdam' (Skybird this picture is for you)

Should the peony bloom this year? It was put in Sept. '06

Oh, and today we ate our first salad from the garden. It was delicious! Now if those peas would just hurry up and start blooming : )

Bonnie

However, I am horribly disappointed not see any blood curdling pictures of 'before'. My 'before' photos always look like a hillbilly bumpkin backyard, only missing the old cars from generations past (we did have - errrr - more than one towed out of the yard when we moved in. :-))))

Cheers,
Michelle

I think if your peony was going to bloom this year, you’d be seeing buds by now, so maybe not. Is it buried so the "eyes" are just an inch or two below the surface? If the root is buried too deeply you might have trouble getting it to bloom. If you got it in a pot and you buried it the same depth it was in the pot, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s right since the people who plant those things don’t really care if they’re planted "right" or not. So check the depth, and if it seems to be ok, just give it time to settle in and look for flowers next spring—and remember, it’s going to take a couple years before it’s a big, beautiful plant like you see in pictures.

I’m sorry to say I don’t think the ‘Overdam’ is going to make it! But thank you for trying! I thought it would be ok, but I guess there just weren’t enough roots on it. As you found out, the ornamental grasses are really hard to get a little viable piece off of. I still have it in the pot, but it’s pretty much completely brown, and I’ll be very, very surprised if it starts growing.

I had my first couple baby spinach and lettuce leaf salads last week. Yum! Having a friend over for dinner on Wednesday, and I’ll be able to add some baby beet greens to the salad this time. Yum, yum! I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. It is SO cool to eat things you’ve grown yourself!

Thanks for the pics. Have a GREAT summer, HiAlt!

Skybird

I find mine so frustrating . . . I'd like to go after them with the tiller! They are so short-lived in my garden and then they re-seed with a vengeance. I never know where they'll be or not be. An old one will up and die over the Winter then I'll discover that the weed seedlings in the path I've been walking on, or just hit with the Round-up, are gaillardia.

I like to see the wild ones blooming along the river. It's like finding one of my lost gaillardia thriving off on its own. They don't seem to have a very long season out in the wilds but if the blooms are removed in the garden, they'll go on, and on, and on . . . They put the flash-in-the-pan painted daisies and similar to shame.

digitS'

(The date stamp on these is really Sept. 2, not Feb. 9. I had the month and day switched accidentally)

... and I haven't taken any photos this year that show the entire beds (been too busy taking close-ups), but here is one from last summer:

Bonnie

Your house has lots of cool architectural features, too.

Thanks for posting those. Before and after photos are my favs!

Cheers,
Michelle