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Garden Update, June 6th

6/6/2017

7 Comments

 
In the past, there has always been a rather dull break in my gardens from early June when the tulips fade until the end of June or the first week of July when the roses, peonies, irises, sweet williams and canterbury bells all seem to burst into bloom at once. Not so this year! Columbine, evening dames rocket, mountain bluet, and lupines all come into bloom just at the end of the spring bulb season.
The lupines bring back fond memories...I gathered the seed along the river on a kayak trip 2 years ago. I planted them that fall at the same time as I planted bulbs, and they came up (to my surprise!) next spring. They even bloomed a little bit at the end of the summer last year, and have already self-sown themselves in a few places, which I'm very happy about! 
The columbines and mountain bluet were gifts from gardening friends. I've found mountain bluet to be a convenient filler as it increases rapidly, and will bloom all summer long if dead-deaded. 
Evening dames rocket is a flower I've admired in a nearby garden for a few years, so I'm thrilled to finally have some, though I really wish I had planted more!
Columbine
Just part of my garden :)
Bleeding Heart
Lupine
Evening Dames Rocket
Mountain Bluet
The lilacs have come into bloom this week! I love when the wind catches up their perfume and blows it over me as I'm working in the garden. It has to be one of the most delightful fragrances in the world! One of the features of my dream garden would be a lilac walk! 
Some cheerful heartsease! 
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Here's that mystery bush in bloom...
A robin enjoying the view from the top of my pumpkin trellis...
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With the weather finally warming up this week, it looks like I'll finally be able to plant corn. There is still a lot to transplant, too! 
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Celery that I've been growing for a friend. We're not sure how it will do as it really should have been started much earlier...
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Black Krim tomatoes growing in the greenhouse...
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And I know I promised to share some ideas for a winter window garden...I don't have time right now, but I do plan to write a post about that sometime in the near future. :)
7 Comments
Elsa
6/8/2017 08:35:05 am

I can't believe your lupine is blooming at the same time as your lilacs! The lupine in my area just started blooming and the Russian lilacs have been done for some time and even the Japanese lilacs are completely faded now.

I like the name Mountain Bluet. We call it Bee Balm or Wild Bergamot out here. I also like the name heartsease for what we call violas or Johnny Jump-ups.

I believe your mystery bush is a honeysuckle bush. :)

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Joanna link
6/8/2017 02:19:20 pm

Hmmm, maybe our native lupines bloom earlier! I think they always overlap a little with the lilacs here.
The scientific name for the Mountain Bluet is Centaurea montana, and it is related to the annual bachelor's button or cornflower (Centaurea cyanus). The friend who gave it to me called them bachelor's buttons, but I saw the name Mountain Bluet in a garden book and liked it better, and it's less confusing since I usually grow the annual bachelor's buttons too! I think Wild Burgamot or Bee Balm is a different species, but the flowers do look a little similar!
I love all the different old-fashioned names there are for some flowers! Tasha Tudor called heartsease/violas/Johnny-jump-ups, Lady's Delight. :)
And thank you so much for helping to identify the mystery bush! I'm pretty sure you are right!

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Elsa
6/8/2017 11:29:42 pm

Thanks for clarifying the difference between Mountain Bluets and Bee Balm!

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Joanna link
6/9/2017 09:07:55 pm

To be honest I had to google it to make sure...and I didn't know Bee Balm and Wild Bergamot were the same thing, so you taught me something! :)

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Elsa
6/10/2017 01:02:17 pm

Lol!! Good old Google!

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Tracy
1/16/2019 12:16:24 pm

Your mystery shrub is honeysuckle.
Are you in Maine, my home state?

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Joanna link
1/16/2019 01:10:54 pm

Thanks for the identification on the "mystery bush"! It is delightful when in bloom and the bees love it too! Every winter it gets crushed by all our snow, but then it bounces back again.
Yes, I am in Maine! How did you guess? 😊 What part of the state are you from? I am in northern Aroostook county.

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    ​I am a passionate gardener and seed-saver, who also enjoys playing the violin and accordion, running, spending time with my 4 golden retrievers, keeping chickens, photography, and reading. ​
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