Happy May Day

While I was taking photos for my front yard tour post, I noticed how much needed to be done on my Front Porch Rose Garden. So yesterday I finished weeding it, moved a daylily from under a rose out to the front and mulched. I also cut an edge between garden and grass with my little hand hoe thingie (that's the technical term).

While I was weeding in front of group of 'Happy Returns' daylilies, I noticed some tiny daylilies in front of them. After going back through my hand-written garden notebooks, I discovered I planted 'Little Grapette' daylilies there. That made me all excited. I can't wait to see how that all looks this year. It's really good to have those notebooks to go back to for reference. I need to make sure I keep up with writing stuff like that down this year.

The lovely edge.

Iris 'It's Magic'.

I was feeling all ambitious, so I dug an edge around my St. Francis garden too. I thought I'd been outside a couple hours. I looked at time, and I had been working over four hours. I was so tired and sore last night I could barely move. I am not back into that kind of gardening shape yet.

Another thing that bothered me was the front of my St. Francis Garden being so bare. I swear every year there is a blank area at the front of this bed, because I can't figure out what to plant. I couldn't take it another gardening season! So I went to Lowes this morning and bought ten Angelonia plants (Angelonia angustifolia 'Serena Series'). I actually planted them right away when I got home. Yay me. Angelonia is my signature annual (That was supposed to sound all Southern Uppity. Ha.).

It looks so much better.

I'm trying to take time out of gardening to actually enjoy how beautiful everything is looking. It's just overwhelming to me. I have trouble with the fleeting beauty of flowers. I get sad about how temporary it all is. I really should have been setting up my easel and painting it all. At least I'm taking photos though, right?

In the Garden of Good and Evil.

'Cl. Margot Koster' rose on pillar.

Roses blooming:

'Mme. Laurette Messimy' (Front Porch Rose Garden)

'Pat Austin' (Garden of Good and Evil) This was my first rose many years ago. I still love the colors of it.

'Lilian Austin' (Secret Garden)

The many faces of 'William R. Smith' (Flower Girl Hill)

'Leonie Lamesch' (St. Francis Garden)

'Mme. Charles' (behind pond)

'Mons. Tillier' (Pond Hill)

'Clementina Carbonieri' (Pond Hill)

I have a few clematises. There not at their growing best though, because I've never pruned them. I need to remember and not be afraid to do that when it's time.

'Multi Blue' (Lady Banks arbor)

'Dr. Ruppel' (St. Francis Garden)

'Nelly Moser' (Secret Garden, on pillar with rose 'Phyllis Bide')

'Belle of Woking' (Garden of Good and Evil)

'Will Goodwin' (Secret Garden, with rose 'Teasing Georgia')
This is my favorite clematis.

Here's my faux Blue Heron. It looks real from a distance. I don't like it, but it'll be worth it if it saves my koi. This area behind my pond is a giant mess. I'm embarrassed to even be posting this photo. We're supposed to be getting a load of rock tomorrow for the waterfall and to replace the gravel around the pond. Lots of work!

My current flower obsession is daylilies. I really do have the daylily lust. I've been going through my old notebooks, making a list of the daylilies I have. I've looked at zillions of pictures online, making my daylily wishlist. It's way too long. I am going to order a few though. Now the impossible task of narrowing it down...

Front Yard Tour

Part One of my yard tour.

Here is my St. Francis Garden, at the top of my driveway, by the road.
I like the bigger St. Francis statue from my mother's garden. I had smaller one here before that you could barely see after everything grew. I have two roses in this garden: Comtesse du Cayla, a china (back left) and Leonie Lamesch, a polyantha (back right). They're nice sizes for this little garden. I'm not sure about my feelings for the evergreen in the back. I think it's a Globe Arborvitae. I like having something evergreen there, but I would prefer something cone-shaped. I really love dwarf Alberta Spruce, but I'm afraid it would be too hot for it there. We're really not the right zone for it. Maybe I can find something else that size and shape.
Also in this garden are daylilies, irises, hardy geraniums, a salvia, a clematis, an echinacea and a few other things. I still have some blank space at the front. I really need to put something there, but I can't figure out what. I don't know why fronts of borders are so hard for me.

A 'Comtesse du Cayla' bud.

'Leonie Lamesch' and irises 'Good and True' and 'Grapesicle'.

Growing on front of house are Boston Ivy on left and Climbing Hydrangea on right.

On front porch.

I'm going to plant a row of 'Sunny Knockout' roses on the right side of porch, in front of row of boxwoods ( I got the last five at Lowes yesterday!). I want to plant purple daylilies in front of the roses, but I haven't decided on them yet. I've been looking at 'Strutter's Ball', but I'm afraid it's too maroon instead of purple/violet.

'Sunny Knockout'.

Zooming in on the Good and Evil Garden on right of house, in front of garage.

This is my main cottage garden area. I really want it to have that look. I haven't ever had it full enough, but I'm trying to accomplish that this year. Roses here include 'Cl. Margot Koster' on pillar; three of 'Pat Austin' that have never really grown much (I can't seem to get rid of them though, because I love the color so much. This was my first rose and still one of my favorites.); 'Molinuex' that hasn't done much either (I think there's a David-Austin-roses-don't-do-well-in-this-garden theme going here.); 'Sunshine'; 'Crown Princess Margareta' that is doing better than the other Austins here; 'Mme. Charles' that I planted last year. I ordered 'Reine des Violettes' for here just yesterday. I think there's one more in here, but I can't remember it right now. I'll have to look it up in old notes.
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil is one of my favorite books and movies, obviously.

Moving to left side of front porch.

Roses planted here are (clockwise from front left) 'Mme. Laurette Messimy', a china; 'Second St. Tea', tea; 'Marie d'Orleans', tea; 'Souvenir de Germain de St. Pierre (What a name!), tea. Also, peony 'Gay Paree' and several daylilies, including my favorite, 'Matisse'. I'm considering taking out 'Second St. Tea' and 'Marie d'Orleans', and replacing with 'Mrs. B.R. Cant', which I have ordered. There are three irises planted here, including one of my favorites, 'Batik'.

'Souvenir de Germain de St. Pierre' close, closer, closest.

Even farther left is the gate to my Secret Garden. In front of row of arborvitaes are 'Happy Returns' daylilies and 'Double Knockout' roses that I planted a few days ago. They're so small now you can barely see their red color. In between the daylilies and roses, I want to plant a row of some kind of tall, purple iris that would bloom same time as daylilies.

On this arch is rose 'E. Veyrat Hermanos'. It's full of buds now, and I can't wait until it blooms.

That's it for my front yard!