June Foliage Follow Up

I'm featuring some variegated plants for Foliage Follow Up hosted by Pam at Digging ...

such as this Variegated Ginger - not sure what kind, it was a passalong plant.

This Tricolor St. John's Wort survived the terrible winter with no problems.

One of the caladiums in a bulk package from a box store.

This nameless hydrangea has variegated leaves and flowers.

I know these leaves aren't variegated, but I had to show off the beautiful stems of this black-stemmed hydrangea - another passalong plant.

Check out more fabulous foliage at Digging.

June GBBD

I'm joining Carol and the gang at May Dreams Gardens

for Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day

with some cheerful June blooms ...

First is the lovely Lady in Red Hydrangea,

followed by Forever and Ever Peppermint Hydrangea,

a happy sunflower,

a bright Butterfly Gladioli,

some Shasta Daisies, Chaste Tree blooms,

and an Irish Eyes Rudbeckia and a fuzzy Stoke's Aster.

I'll check out what's blooming in your garden at May Dreams Gardens!

Green World

Today - actually tonight at 11:59 - is the deadline for the

April Picture This Contest on Gardening Gone Wild.

Nothing like waiting till the last minute, huh?

Rob Cardillo, the judge this month, has chosen the theme "Green World"

and he wants bloggers to spotlight "green's infinite range of personalities".

As a professional photographer for major gardening publications, businesses

and landscapers, he is definitely familiar with green worlds and their personalities.

I wasn't planning on entering this month because I couldn't find just the right picture.

The stems of the fallen blooms on the Silverbell Tree (Halesia sp.) look like
tiny arms reaching out to the world - but this wasn't what I was looking for.

The male flowers of the Podocarpus bush hold a

world of new plants, but it still wasn't right.

Then I saw the new buds on the Oakleaf Hydrangea

and knew I had found my entry! I don't think I have really noticed them before

at this stage - tiny worlds ready to burst forth into a whirlwind of white blooms.

Hope you enjoyed my green worlds. Stop by Gardening Gone Wild and

check out all the other fascinating green worlds.

April Foliage Follow-Up

There is a lot of new growth in the garden

but I just chose a few pictures for Foliage Follow-Up.

So much is coming up and getting new growth and blooming,

that it is hard to keep up with it all.

I love the way the center of Bird's Nest Fern (Asplenium) looks

when the new fronds begin growing.

I'm not sure what the blue succulent is,

but I'm pretty sure the green one is Coral Reef Sedum.

The Golden Barberry (Berberis aurea) must have liked

the cold winter - it is brighter and fuller than usual.

I use Tri-Color St. John's Wort as filler in my perennial beds.

This one is low-growing and spreads slowly.

I need to thin out the Parrot's Feather in the pond

or the poor goldfish won't have anywhere to swim.

Hope you enjoyed this sampler of foliage from my garden.

Check out the foliage in other gardens at Digging with Pam.

April GBBD

I didn’t realize how hard it is to keep up with a blog. I don’t seem to have any time or energy left after gardening and doing things with my daughters and grandsons. Oh yeah, I do some house cleaning and cooking too, when I can’t get out of it.

Anyway, with being busy, having an icky virus and some family problems, I haven’t managed to actually write any blogs lately. At least not online, although I have done plenty in my head while in the garden or otherwise occupied.

But I made it for April Gardener Bloggers’ Bloom Day hosted by Carol at May Dreams Gardens. Here are some pics of blooms that have come and gone, and what is blooming now.

The wind has already blown away the dainty blooms of the Siverbell Tree (Halesia). The blooms on the Yoshino Cherry Tree are gone too - this was the first year it was full of blooms; there usually are only a dozen or so.

The pink Lorapetalum is still going strong. I have one white Lorapetalum, but the picture didn't come out very clear.

Fringetree or Old Man's Beard (Chionanthus virginicus) grows in the woods in this area. I love its spring time decorations.

I bought this native azalea several years ago in Georgia, but I lost the tag (of course), so I don't know its name.

Lousiana Irises also grow wild in the ditches here. I have them planted in several areas of the garden.

The blooms on the Hartlage Wine Sweetshrub (Calycanthus) are a gorgeous deep red color. It seems like they are blooming early this year.

I added this picture just for Dave of The Home Garden. I have had this creeping phlox for more than 20 years. I got it from my husband's grandmother, who called it "thrift". I still do sometimes.

Be sure to check back soon – I hope to have more articles posted today or tomorrow. And don’t forget to visit Carol for more April blooms from bloggers around the world.