This is my first time to participate in Bloomin' Tuesday over at MsGreen Thumb Jean's. My sister Deb is a frequent participant--she has quite the garden! I have been working on my flowers for a couple of years. Several areas are coming along, but there's still a lot of work to do.
It's been hot in the Upstate of South Carolina. In fact, it was 97 today!! Watering has become an almost daily activity by necessity if I want my plants to survive. I've lost a few along the way. One of my bachelor's buttons couldn't stand up to the hot afternoon sunshine where it was planted. I'm hoping it will still come back next spring.
The day lilies are still going strong. These are the tallest day lilies! They have done very well in this spot and will need to be divided next year.
Below is a new perennial just planted this year: astilbe. It's doing ok. I have three of these on one side of my patio and three on the other side. The flower is a tall plume, sort of feathery. I'm hoping they will grow and multiply and look better next spring.
Not everything is a bloomer in my garden--below is fatsia, interesting for its foliage. It's a new addition to my garden this year also, and it's grown quite a bit. I love the large, glossy leaves. Fatsia is native to Japan and Taiwan.
I finally have a shade garden! and now I can actually plant impatiens, something I've never been able to do before because I've had such sunny areas to work with . Here's a pot of impatiens and a view of the entire shade garden area with hostas, ferns and a bird bath area.
And finally my coneflowers. Last year the blooms were so heavy they fell over about halfway through the summer. This year I used some wire cones to hold the blooms up. It's working much better.
Hope you've enjoyed seeing what's blooming in my South Carolina garden in mid-June.
Well, of all your beautiful flowers and yard, do you know what caught my eye? Your toad house! And the owl and frog at your birdbath. And the tin bucket with a flower in it. Love all that.
We haven't planted astilbe because we have NO shade! Love your purple bloom! Glad you joined Bloomin' Tuesday!
Posted by: Deb | Tuesday, June 21, 2011 at 09:42 PM
Welcome to Bloomin' Tuesday! Your garden is looking great! Love your little 'critters'! Jean
Posted by: Jean | Tuesday, June 21, 2011 at 10:17 PM
What a great start to your garden! I noticed the toad house too! Thanks for stopping by my blog. I am now a follower.
Always great to meet a fellow gardener!
Posted by: deborah | Tuesday, June 21, 2011 at 10:36 PM
You will have full beautiful blooms soon! I love the lavender coneflowers!
Posted by: Raw Thoughts And Feelings | Wednesday, June 22, 2011 at 06:48 AM
Beautiful blooms today. Welcome to your first Bloomin' Tuesday, hope you join in again. :)
Posted by: Racquel | Wednesday, June 22, 2011 at 07:26 AM
Your garden is lovely, I am so jealous of Southern gardens, mostly because garden season is sooo short here. My sister lives in SC but I have never visited there, I have heard how lovely it is though!!
Posted by: Shannon Olson | Wednesday, June 22, 2011 at 11:22 AM
lovely lilies. Your garden looks great.
Posted by: Suffia | Thursday, June 23, 2011 at 05:49 AM