Mid-June ~ Garden Peeking

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Time for a walk! Mo and I have been walking a lot, carefully monitoring not only our own deck garden but cautiously sneaking peeks at what the neighbors are up to too.

Ever have those early summer days when you have lots of chores and projects to tend to indoors but you just want to be outside in the sunshine? We've had low humidity, windy days, perfect deck days.

And of course we stroll around the neighborhood three or four times a day. Pretty colors and bright green leaves and grass have reached their early summer peak. Door step crocks are popular:

Are these tiny pinwheel petunias? I love them. Also papyrus for the feather tall accents plant.

Roses! Besides the usual seaside rosa rugosa, I see a lot of this rose that has small deep pink multi petal flowers that tend to retain a rosebud shape. Very hardy in salt air, they flourish here.

A few peonies, so delicate, so special. The market had them yesterday, $3.oo a stem, for a tight bud.

Lawn decor. Lighthouses are possibly slightly tacky but I love them. This one must be four or five feet tall.

Shell wreaths are popular.

I have one too. We prob all got them at Home Goods last summer.

The beach path margins are growing, each planted along the whims of the owners, each different:

Iconic grey fences:

We catch brief glimpses sometimes through the old weathered slats.

This afternoon we stopped by my friends' house to see how their garden is doing. This is the couple who last year switched from a tropical garden to a seaside roses and hydrangeas look. Nantucket instead of Maui.

My friend's pride and joy, his Japanese maple, grown from a little twig, is looking oddly Big Foot-y this year! It has become so dense and it has a face and paws. 

Home again, home again. Have a great weekend.

love

lizzy

gone to the beach....

The Spring Flower Show

Hello! Are you ready and waiting for a hint of spring? Come walk with me through the annual spring flower show.

This year was exceptionally beautiful. The theme this year is the Five Senses. On entering the giant display area, we were greeted by this beautiful stained glass giant monarch butterfly. His flowers were white,

then in the surrounding beds the flowers were set out by color [sight] in a circular rainbow or color wheel.

Above was a large mechanical mobile with dozens of life-sized monarch butterflies suspended from its superstructure. The big hoop turned and the butterflies twirled and soared.

The outer circle of flower beds was secondary colors, like pale pink, peach , violet.

Flowering shrubs and trees:

Other senses: sound, a waterfall.

Taste: outdoor rooms surrounded by edible herbs and edible flowers like nasturtiums.

And fruit trees.

Scent was glorious, more herbs, roses, peonies and hedges of fragrant gardenias.

Succulents are still interesting and popular:

herb garden ideas, this was a raised table.

New and beautiful flowering rosemary.

More vignettes. I loved this tropical patio setting:

And this porch in blue and white.

Always lovely orchids and statuary. Buddha here.

Pugs....

golfers.

More roses: miniature heirloom David Austin ruffly scented roses. Full sized flowers on 12" plants!

Pansies and daffs for your own yard.

Urns with aconites, heather, pussy willow, very elegant.

Garden art.

Easter:

 I bought some heirloom seeds for my deck garden.

The cafe is supposed to be very good but we totally forgot to check it out, too bad.

I hope you enjoyed your garden tour! Click on any photo for a full screen slideshow, to see all the details.

  Here is a FB link to the show, for more professional pictures w/out people in them. You can really see the color wheel planting, here

love

lizzy

gone to the beach....

PS The fifth sense was touch--I was unable to get any pics there because that garden was a huge hit with mommies [wielding lethal strollers] and toddlers who were allowed to--well, touch. 

Smooth fine grass, mosses, grey lambs ear, pussywillow, a marble ball like a basketball fountain [no depth, just smooth water]; some fluffy reeds, papyrus? 

I understand how fun it is for the little ones to have a spot that is accessible to them, but I'd have liked to be able to enjoy this area too. Maybe a toddler garden next year would be fun?