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lovemysheltie

Spring Prettiness :) And a Confession!

lovemysheltie
12 years ago

So... I don't have many rose pictures to share, it's way too early for that here in Chicago but I am so thrilled with my garden right now :) I have some Spring prettiness to share!

Redbud I had planted last Spring in front yard. It is only 5 feet tall.

My shade bed with arbor swing. I used to hate this shade area and crib about my inability to plant roses until I got it into my thick head that a shade bed can look super woodland-like and is a blessed relief on sultry, humid summer afternoons ;) Yet to bloom in this area:

Lots of columbines, 5 Lilium Superbum Alba, 1 Lily Conca d'Or, 2 Irises Ebb Tide.

Roses Lyda Rose, Reine de Violettes, Wind Chimes (all shade tolerant). Also, Cl Clotilde Soupert and Louise Odier on arbor (they get more sun) and HTs Oklahoma, Chrysler Imperial. These two are obviously not shade tolerant roses but they were experiments. I got them as grafted, potted at end of season sale for 5 bucks each so I thought why not??? They bloomed last summer btw. I do not expect them to perform as they would in full sun obviously.

Same area last Summer (July)

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(Oklahoma and columbine, bleeding heart last August in shade bed.)

Daffodils planted last Fall

Anemone planted last week

'Gold Heart' Bleeding Heart planted last Spring- OMG I love this! It's so jewel-toned and you can see it a mile away :D Best perennial purchase!

Don't you just love the wee little hearts?

Forget-me-nots bought last Spring for fifty cents at plant sale :) plus Lamb's Ears planted last summer.

Parallel full sun bed. Here comes the confession. When I first started with roses, I read a book in which some famous rosarian said that roses look best when they aren't the main thing... and I'd thought to myself, what utter rubbish! :D I can now see the difference between my coveted full sun bed with mostly roses, a row of (fading, so please excuse them) hyacinths and dianthus. It totally lacks the punch of my shade bed! Haha, so I admit I was wrong and I do think roses look nicer when they aren't the only show!

And lastly, the only blooming rose in my yard, a potted grafted Chicago Peace I bought for $15 that has been blooming constantly for 2 weeks, braving torrential Spring rains and 70 degree temperature without batting an eyelid :D Guess it's a true Chicagoan huh, a trooper that laughs at bad weather ;-)

That's it for now. I hope you liked my non-rose Spring garden :)

Comments (15)

  • kathy9norcal
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I absolutely love your garden. I agree--roses look much better when not alone. Besides, you have more of a progression of different things to enjoy and look forward to. I hope to see more of your garden as time goes on.

  • C Schaffner
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Your garden is so pretty and relaxing looking. I want to sit in that swing, play with your dog and enjoy the garden with maybe some iced tea.

  • iris_gal
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Nice to have trees beyond your fence! Helps the look of a city garden immensely. Isn't your redbud lovely!!!

  • bethnorcal9
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Nice photos! Those bleeding hearts are gorgeous!

  • bgrose
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Wow, so beautiful and romantic! The bleeding heart looks so beautiful, delicate, touching and sweet. I think i will grow it in my shade garden because it is so charming and draws me with its uniqueness. Forget me nots, I like as flowers but they disappear so quickly without a trace...I do not know if they are worth trying because it is so disappinting to see they bloom and disappear in no time in the hot weather.

  • serenasyh
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    What a charming garden and my border collie Eluane says hi to your sheltie too! Your new Chicago Peace is very charming and big, big blooms! coool!

  • jim1961 / Central Pennsylvania / Zone 6
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Very nice garden! :-) It's coming to life!

  • lovemysheltie
    Original Author
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Thank you Kathy, pelicanhead, irisgal, beth and jim :D

    bgrose, pls plant Gold Heart variety, I swear the light chartreuse-golden foliage just makes any shady corner gleam! Totally worth the extra price compared to regular bleeding hearts! I agree about the forget me nots but it is hard for me to find enough true blue flowers I love so I appreciate their brief blooming time before the blue irises kick in :D

    Serena: Thank you, Hunnybunny sends a big Woof to Miss Eluane. Maybe they should have a play date :D I always look forward to seeing Eluane in your garden pics! I was pleasantly surprised to notice Chicago Peace's fragrance. It's not super strong but it was nice and fruity.

  • bgrose
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    ok I am going to the shop to look for bleeding hearts. Thanks for the advice!

  • bgrose
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I could not find bleeding hearts in the shop...it is a pity. Yours look so good...

  • lovemysheltie
    Original Author
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago
  • zeffyrose
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Your garden is lovely-----I also like an assortment of plants----from the earliest to the latest---there is always something to enjoy while waiting for the roses to bloom----LOVE the picture of the Bleeding Heart---

    Thanks for the nice tour of your garden---

    Florence

  • serenasyh
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Lovemysheltie, I can tell that Eluane would love your Hunnybunny! You can actually tell a lot about a dog by their photos and videos, and Hunnybunny seems a TOTAL SWEETHEART! I have a baby band Climbing Oklahoma that was given to me as a gift! I hope it will end up looking as lovely as your Oklahoma bloom. I actually was going to write far sooner at our gallery but was delayed. I have a special friend who lives outside of Chicago named Tim Dyer. Yesterday he had emergency surgery (originally it was scheduled for this coming Monday) because his detached retina which he had undergone surgery for in August 2010 reflared up, but it struck far sooner and he lost TOTAL VISION in that eye. Tim Dyer is a wonderful friend and helped me train Eluane in agility through email, videos, online advice, telephone calls, texting. He is an AKC agility champion handler with brilliant dogs. It was devastating news, and I was busy for the last few days trying to post to all our friends in the U.K. (we both belong to the Agility Addicts forum in the England). Yesterday and today, Time emailed me. The retina has been reattached and he can see light and dark and that's pretty much it, so everyone has been praying real hard for him! but at least it's not that former total blindness and now he can see the outlines of his doctor's hand about 3" from his face. Jim1961 and his wife Sue have been total sweethearts, trying to help me pray! You being a dog lover like me and being from Chicago, always makes me think of us being "neighbors" because of Tim, lol!

    Again, so lovely with your garden, and wished my garden was as well-balanced as yours. I uprooted all my non-honeybee attracting perennials but at the price of weeds cropping everywhere and itsy bitsy baby "bee perennials" taking their sweet time not! filling out those bare spaces, haha!

  • bgrose
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    @lovemysheltie

    Thank you for the links, I will check the sites you referred me to.

    @ Serena
    I hope you friend is fine.

  • canadian_rose
    12 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Wow - your anenome is very striking. I would love to have that in my garden. I don't think I've ever seen it here - not even as an annual.

    Bleeding Hearts are so amazing. LIke a beautiful freak of nature to look like that. My grandmother had them so they bring back nice memories.

    Your Chicago Peace bloom is HUGE!!!! So pretty!!

    Thanks for showing us your garden!!

    carol