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Welcome to my zone 9a habitat garden near Houston, Texas.

Monday, May 14, 2012

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day - May 2012

The early months of 2012 have brought plentiful rain to our area, a welcome change from our recent past. And those showers have brought us even more plentiful May flowers.

The first blooms of the tithonia, Mexican sunflowers, mean that summer has arrived even though the calendar may say otherwise.

 May is the month for buddleias. This one has almost fully bloomed.

 All of my buddleias are in various shades of purple.

This is an old heirloom variety of buddleia that sports long, skinny blossoms and lots of them.

May is when the mid-season blooming daylilies start strutting their stuff.

 I particularly like this one.

The white mistflower which is such an attractant for butterflies is in bloom.

 And so is the white echinacea.

The old-fashioned 4 o'clocks are full of blooms. Opening late in the day, they attract night-flying pollinators like moths.

The many varieties of Salvia greggii in the garden attract many butterflies, including this colorful Gulf Fritillary.

In the wildflower garden, the prairie coneflowers are still in full bloom. They attract a diversity of butterflies as well.

 As does its neighbor, the clasping-leaf coneflower.

Also in the wildflower garden, the Monarda citriodora, commonly known as horsemint, is another butterfly magnet. This is a Variegated Fritillary enjoying its blossoms.

Even blossoms that are past their prime can be an attractant to butterflies, as the 'Belinda's Dream' rose is to this Gray Hairstreak.

I'm still puzzled by the fact that these fall asters that normally bloom in late fall have been in bloom for almost a month now. I'll be curious to see if they blossom again in the fall.

Esperanza, or yellow bells, on the other hand, blooms pretty much continuously from late spring until first frost.

This is my first year to have 'Senorita Rosalita' cleome in my garden. So far, it seems to be a winner.

May is not just about the flowers. Many kinds of fruit are beginning to tempt the gardener and the birds. These LSU figs will soon be ready.

The blueberries are even closer to ready and the mockingbirds know! I think they must sit and watch for a berry to turn blue and then swoop in and snatch it.

 The strawberry plants that I planted this spring are producing a few sweet berries now.

Even my little pomegranate tree sports a few growing fruits.

And the Satsuma's fruits are walnut-sized already.

The shrimp plant which bloomed all winter is now putting on some more of its interestingly-shaped flowers.

The white beautyberry is full of blossoms, promising a heavy crop of the berries so much loved by the birds in autumn and winter.

I've been waiting for a while for this first bloom from 'Lady of Shallott,' one of my new David Austin roses. The wait was worth it.

Finally, my two Southern magnolias are still full of these wonderful blossoms this month and the blossoms are  full of bees, like the one you can see coming in for a landing on the top flower in the picture.

Well, I could go on, but you get the idea. The garden is full of flowers and fruit in May. It might actually be the high point of the gardening year. Our hostess Carol certainly thinks so. That's why she calls her blog May Dreams Gardens. Don't forget to visit her and other GBBD participants.

Happy May gardening!


22 comments:

  1. Cool flowers this month! I'm watching my figs, as well. Here's wishing you a great Bloomday and more great blooms and harvests ahead.

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    1. I have to watch those figs and the other fruits closely, too, James. My backyard birds are as great fruit lovers as I am.

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  2. I love all the flowers specially daylilies, the buddleja, tithonia they all grow well in my subtropical climate, although buddleja suffers in our summer heat. Happy GBBD.

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    1. Thanks, Muhammad. The buddleias do suffer a bit in the hottest days of summer here, too. I've lost some in the past, but the varieties that I have now seem able to take it. And the butterflies do love them so.

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  3. Love all the butterflies you have in your garden! My asters are just about to bloom too! Really strange! We have much of the same fruit...we have been enjoying strawberries & raspberries and the blueberries are getting close. Yum! I agree that May be the highlight of the spring...perfect temperatures and rainfall!

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    1. I envy you your raspberries, Karin. I've been trying to think where I might add some - as well as blackberries - to my garden. If I can figure that out, I'll certainly try to have some in the future.

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  4. Lovely Blooms! You and I have many of the same plants. I love the way you captured in photographs so many butterflies. Nicely Done! Happy GBBD!

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    1. I love photographing butterflies, Lucy, although it is a frustrating process and I probably take ten (maybe more) for every one that turns out to be usable. I often find that using a photograph is the only way I can be sure of the critter's identity. Thank goodness for digital!

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  5. Wow, your gardens are bursting with color and life. Don't you just love daylilies, yours are very beautiful. Love the white one.

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    1. The daylilies have been especially good this year, Dorothy. The extra rain we've gotten has helped them - and everything else, including the gardener!

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  6. Your four o'clocks are so pretty. On a garden tour this passed weekend, we saw them in a part-shade garden and I became smitten. I'm gonna have to find some for my side garden. The horse mint is another I came across that inspired me. May try to add that one too :) There is always room for one more plant, right?!

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    1. Absolutely, Cat! Both of those plants do reseed themselves pretty prolifically, so once you get them started, you'll have plenty to share as well. They are great plants and wonderful additions for a habitat garden.

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  7. Beautiful abundance of blooms again. And I see some familiar faces. My magnolia's behaving like yours, as if it were in Houston instead of drier Austin (which is a great thing!). Love that flame orange of the tithonia; I threw out seeds for 'Aztec Sun', a more golden variety, but now I'm wishing I had gone with the classic! Lady of Shallott is gorgeous.

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    1. Orange is the color that dominates my garden in summer, Amy, so orange tithonia and, now, the 'Lady of Shallott' fit right in.

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  8. Stunning....I absolutely loved your photos. When I saw the fall asters (very common wildflower here in upstate NY) I did a doubletake. Hasn't this been a totally strange spring? Your butterfly pictures complete the beauty. I am now following your blog. Happy GBBD!

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    1. Welcome, bookworm, and thank you for following. Yes, it has been an extremely weird year so far. So many things blooming early, birds returning early on their migration - all evidence of a climate that is changing rather rapidly, I would say. While there may be some benefits of this change, one fears what the overall result will be.

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  9. The photos of the butterflies are just lovely! And--I'm envious of your white beautyberry! I've been meaning to add one to the garden. A friend has one planted at his nursery, and it is spectacular. Thanks so much for sharing your gorgeous blooms!

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    1. The white beautyberry is a favorite of mine and the birds, Julie. I have several of the purple variety in the garden as well, but when the berries form, the birds always seem to go for the white ones first. It is stripped long before the purple ones.

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  10. Wow, your plants are way ahead of mine. I have a couple of little Tithonia plants still under lights, no telling when they will bloom, and it will be a month before the roses and daylilies start doing much. Lovely photos.

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    1. Spring (and summer) come early here near the Gulf Coast, Hannah, and they've been even earlier than usual this year. Consequently, May seems even more floriferous than usual.

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  11. Yet another southern garden feeding my climate envy. I especially like that you included edibles in your Bloom Day post.

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    1. Vegetables, herbs, and fruit are a big part of what I do as a gardener, Daniel. That and creating and maintaining a habitat friendly to birds, butterflies, bees and other small wildlife. May is a busy month for all of that.

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