New Roses

We received the new rose from Amity Heritage Roses to replace the floribunda that died. This is the Julia Child Floribunda. It has a wonderful fragrance but it has funny little fat dark yellow rose--not quite what I expected. This came as a live plant in a small little pot. The branches are very young unlike the roses from Jackson Perkins. It was $14.00 which is fairly cheap but the shipping/handling was $15.00. That was really steep, I thought. I guess they make their money through shipping. We watered it and then planted it immediately after dinner in the large pot and set it by the other roses, which are doing much, much better. We have a lot of new growth on them and are recovering nicely. Getting them up out of the bog and away from the critters has saved them.

New Guinea Impatiens

Name: New Guinea Impatiens
Type: Annual

We purchase one of these every year at the local nursery for the small table on our deck. They are a shade plant and so it works well, since the deck is shaded in the late afternoon. However, in the past these plants havent done extremely well. They usually produce a few flowers and look sort of nice. This year, however, the plant has done extremely well. We had rain every day for more than a week and in all that rain this plant has grown and bloomed. We discovered that it needs lots of water. We are now watering everyday rather than waiting for the soil to dry. It makes a big difference. This plant has tomato-red blooms and green foliage.

Day Lily

Name: Day Lily
Variety: Hemerocallis
Type: Perennial
Height: 3 feet
Light: Full sun
Color: Yellow
Bloom Time: Early July

We dug this plant up at the church. It was one of those plants that were going to be removed and replaced so I got it for free. Unfortunately I have no idea what sub variety it is. However, it does bloom very well and this year was especially showy. The bloom season it short, but it is gorgeous. It's another one of those throw away plants that we rescued.

Balloon Flower

Name: Balloon Flower
Variety: Platycodon Grandiflora Sentiment Blue
Type: Perennial
Height: 12-14"
Light: Full Sun
Color: Blue
Bloom Time: Early July


I love these flowers. They get their name from the fact that the unopened flowers look like balloons. I think they are fun and whimsical. On top of that they have a wonderful show of flowers. I've had these several years and they never seem to disappoint.

Rain

We had a light rain yesterday, but it was enough to keep things watered.

Huge Rain

Last night a storm blew through. I was at the pool swimming. The rain came down in torrents. It sounded terrible on the fiberglass roof. But it was nice to be in the pool safe and relaxed. It finally let up enough to make a dash to the car, but it was still raining. It was dark and gloomy out even at 8 pm. It rained all night and supposed a lightening bolt hit close to the house (our renter said it shook the house). By morning the pond was fuller than we've ever seen it. It's up to the first pine tree and the small tree is partly underwater.