Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day: June 2010

One more thing before I head out of town. It is, after all, Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, and so I can't leave town without showing you some of my bloomers.



It's June, time for the crape myrtles to show us their stuff. This is my oldie but goodie, planted by the birds, that towers over my backyard and gives us this bit of watermelon-colored eye candy for several weeks every summer.



Another oldie but goodie, my species cannas fill their bed along the fence. I got my start of them from my good neighbor Ms. Lui many years ago. She's no longer my neighbor, except in my heart.



I grow the 'Tropicanna' for its colorful leaves, but the blossoms aren't bad either.



Beautyberries, on the other hand, are grown for their beautiful berries that come along in the fall. But if you're going to have berries, you first have to have blossoms.



I grow the abelia mostly out of sentiment. I got my start of it from my Aunt Marcelle's yard. It is an attractive and tough shrub and somewhat underused, I think. I like the little blossoms that cover it in late spring, but I'm particularly fond of its attractive red stems and shiny leaves which are eye-catching throughout the year.

Several of the roses are beginning a new flush of blooms...



'Radazz' Knockout



'Graham Thomas', a David Austin rose



'Dortmund', another oldie but goodie



This cuphea 'cigar plant' has been in full bloom for weeks and weeks and shows no sign of stopping.



This little skipper butterfly stops to take a break on a daylily.



Nearby, another cute little daylily offers its enticements to passing pollinators.



The summer annuals like marigolds bloom all around the vegetable garden beds now.



My mystery hibiscus continues to give me several of these wonderful blooms every day.



This is the underside of that hibiscus bloom.





I had hoped to have some crinum and crocosmia blooms to show you this month, but they both missed the cut. Lazy buggers!



Nothing lazy about the Phlox paniculata, though. It is hard at work.



This burgundy "kangaroo paws" blooms in front of the variegated leaves of a canna.



I have three 'Turk's caps' at different spots around the garden and all are in bloom now.



The coral honeysuckle has bloomed its heart out all spring long. Its blossoms are supposed to be attractive to hummingbirds. I can't recall actually having seen one visit this plant, but if I were a hummer, I certainly would!



Many of my sunflowers are in bloom now, pulling in the pollinators and the birds - as well as the gardener who enjoys standing and admiring them.



This one gives me a crick in the neck because it towers a couple of feet above my head. The bees and I like it a lot. This appears to be one of the native bees, although I'm not sure which one.

Okay, that's going to have to hold you for about a week. Meet be back here at the blog in the middle of next week. Meantime, happy gardening and I do hope we get some rain in my absence!