The lilacs are blooming about the best ever. I planted them twenty three years ago and moved them to their current locations ten years ago. I stained the "new" container planter. It went from this. to this. Now it needs a liner, then the 25 gallon containers and soil mix. Some spots didn't get properly covered, but I was out of stain. So I went to the gigantic home improvement store to buy more stain and other stuff. I brought a search and rescue dog to locate all of those things - hose repair parts, new pruners, stain, some flower seeds, and a couple of new plants. He likes to ride in the cart and get petted by customers. Also being in the cart, he's not underfoot. I noticed that the top rails of the planter box I built last year, were losing some stain. It was old stuff, maybe 29 or more years old. So I re-stained it with some when I did the new planter box. That has all but one container with the new soil mix, and about half of the pepper plants planted. Including two overwintered Tabasco pepper plants. The new stain looks so much better, I want to re-stain the whole thing. Plus I stained the top rails I made to give rigidity and support to a raised bed. . OK, now I think they all need a new coat. But not now. One of the rescued bearded iris plants is blooming. I think this one is "Florentina", but Im not certain. Tomorrow I'll need to water. Some hose repairs and new washers are needed. Unseasonably hot now. Then install the plastic liner in the new planter, fill the last growing bag in the other one with the last of the soil in the pickup truck, then I can buy more. There might be green beans to plant out, too. I want to start the irrigation lines very soon, but that planter comes first. The peppers plants are waiting for their new home.
Lovely bouquet of lilacs. They surely out did themselves this year. Dogs do love going out. Home Depot shopping was so busy yesterday.
Rufus has ridden in Home Depot shopping carts since he was a little puppy. I always keep a leash on him but he's very well behaved. I do have to watch - he likes to sniff people if they are nearby. He gets a lot of attention. The lilacs serve as a privacy hedge. There are about 15 varieties, plus starts from old ones. About 3/4 of the starts are blooming now too, eight years old.
Ahh Daniel— it is good to see your Syring flowers looking so smart. I brought some home a few days ago but they never looked that good. They wilted the first night and never did perk-up. That is admirable work on those boxes. Really professional. Striking irises, or is it irides? Whichever you use, they are very charming to see.
@Daniel W You have inspired me. Maybe I should add some new varieties along my front fencing. I didn’t know there were so many varieties. Any you would recommend?
@Jewell, mine were all from a garden fair about 22 years ago. They were from a lilac society. I don't know any of the variety names. If you want something small, the Korean lilacs are different and very fragrant. The Bloomerang series makes you say, "That's a lilac?!" I have a Bloomerand and one I think is called "Miss Kim". They look delicate but I have never watered them, even in 100 degree heat wave. One is more blue-ish and the other is more red-pink-ish. Very fragrant. Some of my lilacs are heirlooms, dug up as suckers that grew off off someone's grandmother's lilac. Today in the yard, a few irises.
@Sjoerd, that's a modern variety called "Starting Fresh". The tall blue ones are "Iris pallida Dalmatica" which have been cultivated since the 1500s and have a scent like grape juice. The one with the dark blue falls is "Alcazar" which was created by Phillippe de Vilmorin in Paris, France. It first bloomed in 1905, it was registered in 1909, and was introduced in 1910. It's a very nice old fashioned bearded iris. This one is also blooming. I don't know the variety. And some blooming in the chicken yard. An Itoh peony, Some of the Itoh's are not blooming. I moved them last year. Maybe they need a year to recover.
Mr D— irides is the plural in Latin, irises is the plural in English. I know this bit of trivia not because I can recall so much from high school Latin but because of my medical backgound. So when anatomical structures are being discussed among ourselves, we used Latin terms. Thanks so much for the names and more lovely pics. It is just the thing to see when semi laid-up. The Alcazar is one that I had several years ago. I recognise it. My grand parents had that one as well. BTW—that red Peony really is a looker, isn’t it. Thanks again.
