Wednesday, April 27, 2016

For The Love of Irises

Good morning friends! I'm sorry I have been absent for awhile, but we finally got the yard sale out from under us, selling a lot and donating what was left. In our county there is a place that sells items with all proceeds going to help battered women, so we donate pretty much everything we ever get rid of to them. Its a win-win for everyone. We now have a clean(er!) attic and garage, and others can benefit from relatively good items that we no longer need.


So, now it's time for us to sit back and enjoy the fruit of our labors in the garden, as most of the tall bearded irises are now in bloom. I took a few photos shortly after the sun came up this morning as the yard gets too sunny in the afternoon to take worthwhile pictures.If you hate irises and gardens, stop right here and wait for my next post!  Just joking ;~)

 Our shady fountain garden at the base of our deck
is looking pretty good now.
The hostas and ferns are popping,
and the hellebores are still in bloom.
It doesn't get much better than this!



These are the irises at the back border.
You may recall that this garden is less than
two years old,
and is mostly composed of irises and daylilies
that I had dug out when they weren't doing well
in other areas.
This is looking towards the left of the yard...
 

...and this is to the right of the yard...
 

Here are some of my prized beauties up close!
You can tell that the sprinkler system had come on
a few hours before these photos were taken.
Almost as pretty as dewdrops I think...
 

This is an example of how large one plant got
after I moved it.
It was originally just one sad little blade
sticking out of the pine straw...



While most of granny's irises were purple,
they are now being bred for more unusual
markings...


...and extraordinary color combinations...
 

...which are the ones I go for...
 

These two-tone plants are stunning...
 

...but I also love this solid-colored one with
its ruffles.
Such a gorgeous shade of blue-lavender...
 

This one has a contrasting beard
which you can see down near the throat...


When this show is over,
the interplanted daylilies will take over,
and there will be a totally different look to the garden,
seen here with the garden shed to the back...
 

The other daylily and iris garden is seen in front,
with the rest of the yard seen in back of it...
 

More plants previously started
sit on the deck's table,
and are not quite ready to be planted...
 

After all, a gal's gotta have something new to look
forward to after the tall bearded iris have gone by!

**************
What makes a real gardener?
I think that I may possibly be one.
We were supposed to leave for the mountains today to open up the getaway place,
but my last order of daylilies is supposed to be delivered today,
and since they arrive as bare-root,
I couldn't bear to have them sit around till whenever we got back home.
I dug the holes yesterday so that most of the work would be done.
I didn't think that Mr. Perch would go for it,
but, amazingly he did!
He would deny his love for the gardens if you asked him about them.
But I see him walking around the yard looking at them.
He even took a video of the yard the other day and sent it to me.
Hmmm....
Who can figure?!
 
How are you spending your time these days?




3 comments:

  1. Oh wow Sue, Such a glorious post! Your gardens and flowers are beautiful!! Love love them. Thanks for sharing.
    (my iris bed is Very old, and while the greens spring up, no flowers have bloomed in 2 years or more)
    I think for sure you are a 'legitimate' gardener! : ) LOL Enjoy the week~ Karen O

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    Replies
    1. Well, thanks so much, Karen! As for your Iris bed, perhaps they would benefit from dividing. I am reading a really good book about irises and they often stop blooming when the clumps get too big. The author recommends dividing every 3 to 5 years. Good luck!

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  2. Dear Sue,
    your garden is truly, so very beautiful, and filled with so many irises of amazing colors , oh such beauty, you have created.
    About your husbond saying he don`t like gardens, I have one here, too- and he is always out there, lol.
    Have a wonderful time in the mountains, and see you soon !
    Dorthe, xo

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