New to site.... not new to gardening!

23 Jan '06 7:32 am

Ha! A Gardening Genie, lurking in the undergrowth... Go on, go on - just a few! Choose a theme, or a colour - seriously we'd love to see some!

23 Jan '06 7:49 am

Hmmm, tough question, each is untill the next one opens! Cool

At the moment I love the sunflowers. They are so incredibly huge and so perfect! Even the ones which have been beaten around by the wind (cos they have grown so high)

Can't forget the roses. My fav atm is Just Joey, I think... Very Happy

lol CottageGarden, you are going to have to open your albums now, inquiring minds want to see stuff lots of stuff! Very Happy

Like those cone flowers. They are fabulous!

What is the magenta coloured flower below them in the pic?

23 Jan '06 2:29 pm

I bought a fuschia the same as this.White with a smidgin of delicate pink(gorgeous) It was called 'white king'or 'snow king'
Love your photos!
Dixie

24 Jan '06 1:26 am

Pumpkin,
Coneflowers? Okay, you talked me into it. Wink

I also have white cones, but unfortunately they were seedlings last year, so they were not mature enough to bloom. In our climate, it can take up to 3 years for them to mature to flowering age.

Coneflowers are native to this area, which is why my cones are so big. In a couple of pictures there is lattice behind the plants. The lattice is 4 ft. (a little over a meter) tall and the cones are taller. I've had people from different regions that are amazed by the height and have told me that thiers never reach morethan 3 ft. (under a meter) tall.

28 Jan '06 6:36 am

Gorgeous!

They are certainly are fabulous plants and yours look so healthy. I love the way their petals are flung back! It's like they are ready to take off Very Happy

Bonus with the butterfly Cool

Feel free to move on to pics from the next area of your garden too Wink

28 Jan '06 2:24 pm

Okay, okay.... Do you like lilies? Roses? Or maybe Blackeyed Susans? Sedums? Very Happy

29 Jan '06 8:41 am

And that scarlet Lily, isn't she an exceptional creature? And those adorable pale pink ones, aren't they evoking the most tenderest feelings , like the human and animal babies do ??

Dear Cottage Garden ! Asking me, which flower I like most, is like asking me which one of my children I admire and love most! But each one - creature that is - is adorable in its own uniquness! I just don't know for sure, can't tell...I feel so humble judging the marvels of Nature...

30 Jan '06 6:13 am

I try not to play favorites in my garden.... I love them all. Wink

But I do have several that I'm just partial to. My Autum Joy Sedums rank very high on my list. They provide good structure and interest in the garden all year. Even in winter they stand tall.

Another top ranking plant are my Purple Coneflowers. Even before they start blooming they have dark leaves and stems, they look tall and strong and work very well as backdrops for other, smaller plants. I especially like to combine them with Daylilies, Salvia and Sedums.

Hostas, eventhough I have very little shade in my garden, are probably close to the top of my list. There's just something regal, and calming about them.

Cleome are my favorite annuals (they are annuals here). I use them in combination with Spring bulbs. I have a bed of purple Iris on the West side of the house. Once they are done blooming they aren't all that interesting to look at. I plant Cleome among they so that by the time the Iris are done blooming, the Cleome are coming in right behind them. The Cleome grow quite tall with and open structure which means the Iris can still get partial sun without burning in the extreme heat of mid-summer. Cleome produce alot of seed. You can either let it self seed (in warmer climates) or do like I do and collect the seed for the following year. I had 4 plants last year and collected well over a pound of seed.

Another of my favorite annuals is Purple Gomphrena. There are three sizes: dwarf (6-8" tall), standard (14-20" tall) and Tall (24-36" tall). I grow all three sizes in various parts of the garden and love them. Again, they are easy to grow, and will self seed if left to do so. I also collect seed from each of the different sizes and save it for the next year.

30 Jan '06 11:44 am

I just saw only a pink beauty in one of your previous posts...Pink Perfection! Is it a polyantha or a Floribunda?

30 Jan '06 12:31 pm

That would be a florabunda... and I'm not sure thats the real name of the rose. Its just what we like to call her! Very Happy

New to site.... not new to gardening!

Favourite flower...

fuschia

They are all marvels!

And Roses?