Don't you love this heuchera? I just added this one to my garden this spring. I love all the new colors we can get them in now...with names like Peach Melba and lime something or other - I want to be a plant namer -have a couple of drinks and name new plant cultivars...sounds like a party.

As opposed to this sad little lavender plant in my own garden. It's fighting for light since it's in shade most of the day, and it's in moist, loamy soil. I cut off a major branch of it too when I was trimming the dead stuff off it this spring. Poor thing, it's still hanging tough.

This is a perfect lavender patch that I stealthily photographed this morning in someone's driveway. Perfect conditions for lavender -- 100% sunny, hot and dry, with lots of sea salt (ok Sound salt) in the air. My husband is from Long Island and is a beach snob -- he hates it when people call the Sound the "ocean" and he thinks our sand is nasty and coarse and dusty compared to the world class beaches on the south shore of Long Island. It is all those things but it's still sand and it's still a beach with salt water near by and it's beautiful in my book.

Ok I know it's got nothing to do with gardening, but these birds perched up on these pilings all in a row were too cute to not get a picture of. 

The rugosa roses - I just call them beach roses - are starting to fade but these are in the shade so hanging in there. We have tons of these by the beach here on the Long Island Sound. And I swear, as wild as they are, they are the sweetest smelling roses around. Hmmm...does that apply to people? The strong, tough ones of us are actually the sweetest of us?

From this morning at my halfway point - what a day!  

Ok ok maybe a couple more...look at these colors...geez I can't resist...I think I have hydrangea addiction. 

I know I said I'd stop the torture of the constant hydrangea pictures, but I saw these on my run (ok some run, some walk) this morning at a house on the beach. I think the white one is limelight. Amazing.

My nine year old gardener has strawberries!! Can't wait to show him after school.

Mark is going to be so pumped to see the flowers on this succulent! The heavy rains last night and hot sun every day lately have really gotten this guy going. 

Look how pretty they are today!

Ok I'm gonna stop posting my hydrangea photos soon, but I just can't get enough of them. The colors this year are so intense.  Def my favorite shrub ever. Reminds me of all the yummy flavors of ice cream with all the varieties and colors.

The terrarium Mark and I made - all you need is little plants that love moisture and you never have to water. Fun for my young gardener....and for me.

Check out this orchid

New York Botanical Gardens early spring visit with Mark -- photos I never posted

Seaweed on Jennings beach, Fairfield, Connecticut - right by my house. I just learned in my nybg organic gardening class it's good for the garden...why was that? Puts nitrogen in soil? Add it to the compost pile? (gotta make a compost pile first, put that on the list) Better look at my notes...

My summer snowflake viburnum is coming back. I planted it in the spring during a warm spell and then in typical New England spring weather fashion it got cold again and this baby went into shock and looked like it was dying. But I watered and watered it and mulched and generally babied it and it's back!

Mark's rock gardens - he loves succulents. Check out the dwarf conifer - that's "mark's tree" - he's been longing for a tree and our yard is too small!

Check out this dahlia - yummy fuschia.

So much going on today...these coneflowers just showed their pretty faces today

My Russian sage and butterfly bush just coming into bloom - I can't get enough of that periwinkle blue.

This is one of my dwarf hydrangeas - this color is just unreal!

Wish I could get more photos on here - can't remember how I did it the first time!

My endless summer hydrangea and lacecap hydrangea right now - so showy - love them!

I just started blogging from my phone...can't this thing cook dinner and do laundry yet?

Summer is Here!!

Yesterday was the first day of summer and my garden is in its glory. All of my hydrangeas are in full and glorious bloom, the russian sage is out, lilies of all kinds are blooming, my new dahlias are crazy with hot pink flowers, and the phlox, black eyed susans and purple coneflowers will be busting out soon. Everything is buzzing with bees, thank God, so lots of pollinating going on. My containers are getting lush, and the strawberries actually have berries. The hot sunny days are pushing those lazy flowers out everywhere, and our warm spring this year helped everything along early.

Still haven't gotten our veggie garden going yet... Too much baseball, lacrosse and end of year school stuff... is it too late? We tried peas in pots and also carrots, and we got a few snow peas which were yummy. The carrots need to be moved or they are going to be really short little things.

Mark and I are anxious to get it going, but my husband has been too busy every weekend with baseball to build our raised beds. Now that's over...unless my 8 year old makes the summer team. We find out today. Veggies or baseball...hmmmm...tough one...