June is Such a Pretty Month

A few weeks ago, when I was in Woodburn (Oregon) visiting my sister, we went nursery-hopping. One of our stops was not on any map and finding it was purely serendipitous. My sister was driving and when we saw the slightly tattered, "Plant Sale" sign, she braked quickly, turned us around and headed back. There was a very small dwelling surrounded by hoop houses and potted plants amid 4 foot tall grass. It was one of those places that you knew had hidden treasure but you'd have to put on your big girl pants and hunt for it. 

But first we had to hunt for a human. Finally, as Laura continued to search the premises, I went up to the house and knocked. A handsome young man named Emanuel came out and told us the rest of his family was at the farmers' market and we were welcome to look around and let him know if we saw anything we liked. One gallon pots were $5. 

Well, the price was right! So, off we went. 

I found this rose. I have no idea what the variety is but I love its clusters of small flowers, my favorite! The color is an exquisite cherry red. And the foliage doesn't look too terribly diseased. 

I might call her "Cherry" because she's so cheery. 

You can see her red cheeriness shining brightly in her new home.
Hopefully she'll get a little taller. 

I found one other polyantha-type rose in shades of pink. I'm thinking she could be 'Bonica.' However, I was forced to cut her completely down because, although she had lots of blossoms, she was royally pissed off that I pulled her up from the spot where she wanted to spend the remainder of her life, as evidenced by the deep root I had to tug and pull to loosen from the ground. I'll show photos of her when she recovers. I'd hate to embarrass her. 

I also found a sweet one gallon, Spiraea japonica 'Bullata'. I don't know why I don't have a photo of it but here is the photo from one of my favorite online nurseries, Far Reaches Farm in Port Townsend, Washington. I love the tiny, dark green leaves and of course, the pink blossoms are to-die-for. Plus this guy stays dwarf, at around 16 inches tops. Such a cutie! 

Spiraea japonica 'Bullata' in bloom at
Far Reaches Farm

Here are a few more goodies strutting their stuffs in my garden during the pretty month of June. 

Impatiens glandulifera ... the bees love to hide in these blossoms. 

Mimulus lewisii 

A newbie this year: Geranium 'Southcombe Double'
Its very first blossom! 

Penstemon 'Catherine Del LaMar'
My camera doesn't seem to be able to capture the intense blueness of this gem.

The Hypericums are coming in to bloom. 

And more of the Dianthus cultivars are lighting up the border.

Mock Orange (Philadelphis 'Belle Etoile') is intensely fragrant!  

Campanula punctata 'Pink Octopus' is such eye candy.
Even when not in bloom, the leaves are so nice.

I love the look of Ninebark, (Physocarpus opufolius 'Coppertina') post-blossom. 

Salvia verticillata 'Purple Rain' is just starting to bloom. 

My collection of Sweet William (Dianthus barbatus) never disappoint me.
On Sunday a Swallowtail butterfly was also enjoying them. 

My daughter Beth, who is a much better photographer than I ever could be,
took this photo. How cool is that? 

I love June when the callas bloom. 

And the pink Jasmine (Jasminium stephanense)

And check out the clemmies...

C. 'Niobe' 

C. verticillata 'Venosa Violacea'  with Rosa 'Rhapsody in Blue'.
Yes, I planned this. Don't you love it when your ideas work out? 

C. 'Alionushka' 

C. 'Pagoda' which looks identical to my 'Betty Corning' but oh well. 

A Clemmy by any name is awesome. 

C. 'Ville de Lyon' is in the process of swallowing the windmill. 

After being unable to locate Plume Poppy (Macleaya cordata) for years,
I was finally able to land another one during my nursery trek
with my sister. I won't let this one die, darn it! 

I just had to show you this photo of a fun green and white foliage color combo.
We've got your Pulmonaria, Polemonium and Sedum. Plus a few solid greens for good measure.

And now, because you all like to see wide photos of the garden, here you go. There are a bunch so I'm not going to comment. If you have questions, please don't hesitate to holler.

Finally, I wanted to share with you all Tracie Fish's blog, Fishtail Cottage. Tracie (who lives and gardens in northern Washington State) hosts a weekly Garden Party  link-up. Not only is her blog a treasure trove of garden goodness, the links to other blogs are really fun to visit. And, she is open to any garden blogger who wants to join. How sweet is that? 

Fishtail Cottage

June is such a pretty month, isn't it?