Strange Summer

This summer has been unusual in my garden.  As I've mentioned before, we've had lower than usual night time temperatures, which I think has confused my plant friends a little.  For example, as I was walking through my gardens this morning, I discovered my ginger is blooming.  Since I planted it, more than 4 years ago, it has always been the last plant to bloom in my garden, usually in late September.  Normally, the confederate rose, golden showers tree, aster, ginger, bleeding heart, loropetulum, white camellias ("White Doves" always blooms early), and mums are blooming around the same time.  This year, I have daylillies still blooming, and now ginger...  It's lovely and an unexpected treat.  The confederate roses and camellias have tons of visible blooms, but nothing on the golden showers tree yet. 

Another plant that I wanted to mention that has been just amazing this year with continuous bloom since spring, is the cleome cultivar Senorita Rosalita.  This is the first year I've used cleome in the garden and it has not disappointed at all!  It was in bloom when I planted it in May and continues to profusely bloom today.  The flowers are a pink, almost pale lavender and are in clusters atop approximately 24 inch stalks.  It is just glorious!

 

 



Blooming today in my gardens:  daylillies, hosta, verbena (red, white, purple), salvia (annual and perennial), vinca, yellow coneflower, crape myrtle, hibiscus, pink indigo, spiderwort, peace lilly, cannas, mexican petunia, bleeding heart, ginger, alstromeria, hydrangea, melanpodium, lantana (white, purple, rainbow), the odd old-fashioned purple azalea (that has not stopped blooming all season - still don't understand that one, either), and roses (miniatures, knockout, iceberg, and various other floribundas).  I'm a happy gardener today!

Hope you have a great day in the garden and I'll leave you with a picture of my morning surprise, which was a treat for the nose as well as the eyes - ginger in bloom!

 

 

 

Sherri