Friday, July 14, 2006

Summer Garden Stroll

And strolling is as fast as you would want to move in this heat! Its the middle of July and our temperatures have suddenly soared into the upper 90's with high humidity. I don't feel like working with wool, making soap, tending sheep, cleaning barns or pulling weeds when it is hot and hazy already at 5 o'clock in the morning (it was 71 degrees here this morning!)

Sorry for me, but these things do still have to be done!

But you don't want to hear about the unpleasant parts of farming, do you? Wouldn't you rather look at the lovelies that grace our gardens here at Serenity Farms?

Today I will highlight some of the lilies that grow in the Spinning Garden I touched on in Monday's post. So as not to overload with pictures, I will save my favorites from the Perennial Border for tomorrow.

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I'll start with the clusters of Asiatic lilies. No fragrance and difficult to put in cut flower arrangements because the flowers cover the stems, but they can't be beat for beauty in the garden!

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I'm not sure if you can see the honey bee who was busy in the middle of this flower or not...the bees love these lilies! Below, I love the contrast of the allium flowers against the lilies. Drumstick Alliums are one of my favorite highlights of the garden and is truthfully the only one that thrives or survives for me! For several years I also planted Blue Drumstick (allium azureum) and Purple Sensation and would get one year of flower from them, then nothing. The Drumstick, however, multiplies and spreads its cheer all over the place

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This is the stunning Oriental lily Mabel Violet:

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She is beautiful, fragrant, unusual and a long bloomer.

I'll close today with a picture from 2005, of another Oriental, this one called My Fair Lady:

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Now here is a mystery for you...this year I have not one white Oriental lily! Anywhere! Where did she go? Did she become a feast for the moles that threaten constantly to overtake the garden? Succomb to frost and freezing? These are not things that usually happen to lily bulbs.

Hmmm...

1 comment:

Prayerful Knitter - Shelly said...

Cary, your flowers are absolutely beautiful. Thank you so much for sharing them with the rest of us!

Could it be that your white lily was cross=pollinated with on of the other colors and is now a new color other than white?

Have a wonderful week,

Shelly