Photo update, part 1

I have been snapping pictures but they haven't made it to the web. So here's a virtual tour of the bank bed over the last month and a half, oldest images first. This first group was taken May 12.

Early buds on the desert candles, also called fox tail lilies (Eremus)

'Southern Charm' verbascum, one of my favorites!

This was a particularly good year for the irises.

The gorgeous clematis at the corner of the house.

The weigela was beautiful this year, but it bloomed so early that there were fewer hummingbirds visiting it than usual. I have since trimmed this bush back drastically. I do that every other year to keep it a manageable size because it is planted right beside the house and in front of two windows.

I am really pleased with these alliums; I don't know why this variety is called Persian blue, it looks purple to me! They are in the very tempting sale catalog I received from Breck's. The catalog arrived just days after I had decided I really didn't need to buy any more flowers. But there are a couple of really good deals in this catalog. So far I haven't caved, but I probably will...too many gorgeous bulbs at too good of a price!

The rest of these photos were taken later; some June 3, some June 10 and the rest June 18.

The fruits of my labor on Saturday. I got another pickup full of mulch. It didn't go far, but it sure made this end of the bank look much better.

A beautiful lily that opened Saturday. I love the speckled throat.

More lilies, these opened last week.

Coneflowers that I found three years ago on the clearance rack at Lowes. They were distressed and diseased, and it has taken them a while to really thrive, but they look great this year.

I'm partial to orange, so it shouldn't be a surprise that this is my favorite coneflower.

Taken June 10: I love the way the light is catching in this stipa grass in this shot. The mixture of border lilies in front has been a constant riot of color for nearly a month now.

Stella d'oro daylilies; quite possibly the best perennial plant ever. They spread out to a nice ground cover, and they are loaded with sunny blooms for months. In my garden they are the first daylilies to bloom and they are still going when the others have faded.

Desert candles on June 10. These are so neat; flowering starts at the base and progresses to the tip. They are currently blooming about halfway up.

These are the most gorgeous red lilies...the rich red color is amazing.

The clematis off the front porch. This one has struggled, but displayed 5 nice blooms this year.

The mulched edition of Luke's corner. It is coming along very nicely, and the daylilies on the left side bloomed yesterday.

Foxglove.

Another favorite (how can you pick just one?).

Another lily. Orange again. Did I mention that among the tempting items in the Breck's sale, a beautiful orange tulip has caught my eye?

Delphinium

Poppies; beautiful but here and gone pretty quickly. This year instead of waiting for them all to go to seed, I plucked them out and mulched. It sure looks a lot neater. I may not have any poppies next spring, we'll have to see. I am not worried about the seed bank; that is very well established. But, I have noticed that if the ground is bare in the fall I have many more poppies in the spring than if the ground is covered.

Red hot pokers I started from seed a few years ago. They are going strong!

And we'll end the tour with more shots of these gorgeous red lilies!