Category: flowers

“Beauty For A Day”

The scientific name for daylilies, hemerocallis, comes from the Greek words hermera, meaning day and kallos, meaning beauty. The two terms together can be translated as “beauty for a day”. This term aptly describes the lifespan of the plant, as each individual flower lasts only one day.

Daylilies are at their height in Central Massachusetts right now. As I travel the area, colorful lily displays abound, most likely due to the consistent sun and heat this season. Below are a few “beauties for a day” that I enjoyed in my own garden recently.

Orangeade

My yard is popping with orange this week.

Holden, Massachusetts
Orange daylilies like this one abound everywhere I look. They are also known as “ditch lilies”, as they thrive in neglected areas like drainage ditches, fields, and railroad tracks. These humble plants are very hardy and extremely easy to grow. They don’t mind poor soil, tolerate pollution and drought, and prevent soil erosion. Ditch lily blossoms are edible, and sometimes cooked in a similar manner to squash blossoms.

The ditch lily softens and adds interest to this fieldstone foundation.

Asiatic lilies take up where the ditch lilies left off. Unlike the ditch lilies that grow from roots, Asiatic lilies grow from bulbs, are are highly prized for cut flowers. Here the lilies are placed in front of a spirea bush for contrast.
The aptly named “candy corn” spirea picks up on the orange theme with leaves that change from green to orange to red over time.
Candy corn spireas are topped off with raspberry blossoms.

Here, the Asiatic lilies contrast with evergreens nearby, lending a more “Eastern” feeling.

The plain ditch lilies thrive in front of a hemlock tree and a bucket of flowers. (The flowers in the bucket are fake, having been placed there earlier for some needed color, but are surely not necessary now. )
Hurrah for orangeade in July!

Pensées

The word pansies comes from the French word pensées, which means “thoughts”. For centuries, pansies have been given as symbols of remembrance, contemplation and love.

On a visit to a local nursery, I saw thousands of pensées, or pansies, in all colors. One of the first flowering spring plants in Massachusetts, they are also practical. Both their petals and leaves are edible, and have a slightly spicy flavor similar to lettuce. They are a source of vitamins A and C.

There are about 400 varieties of pansies. They are popular due to their hardiness and adaptability.

In Victorian times sending pansies as a gift meant “I’m thinking of you”. Coded messages of feelings or intentions toward another person were sent via the color of a particular flower.

Although the symbolism of colors might change over the years, blue often symbolized peace, tranquility and faithfulness.

Orange often meant energy and enthusiasm.

White most often symbolized purity.

Cheerfulness and happiness was symbolized by yellow; red could stand for thoughts of love.

Wishing you many colorful thoughts this spring!

Flowers and Fresh Veg

Visiting woodchucks, rabbits, a racoon and even a bear made gardening more difficult than usual this year. Still, on a sunny July day, it seems worth all the extra effort.

Lillies overlook the beans, squash and hydrangea.
Basil is easy to grow from seed.
Tomatillos are a new veg for me this year. Salsa Verde recipes, anyone?
Hydrangeas sport a deep blue because of my slightly acidic soil.
Lady Belle Sweet Peppers growing on the deck.
Zinnias hiding from rabbits in the pots of Swiss Chard.
The parsley usually lasts right up until snowfall.
Perennial flowers topped off with a hanging basket of marigolds and nasturtium.
Salad Bowl Lettuce doesn’t seem to mind the heat.
Potato flowers emerging from grow bags.
Boston Pickling Cucumbers are a New England favorite.
Tall Phlox and Scarlet Emperor Beans share a trellis.
Basil and marigolds used as companion plants with tomatoes.
Carolina Gold Tomatoes
Eggplant, Cosmos and Zinnias
Hoping my French Haricot Vert Beans are “woodchuck proof”!
Annuals grown from seed.
Green and Yellow Beans With Marigolds
Luckily, I Planted Extra Marigolds!

Paper Flower Power

The paper flowers at Tower Hill Botanic Garden, Boylston, MA “pack a punch”.
Hundreds of flowers, some several feet across, create a bold statement against the backdrop of traditional New England architecture.
Enormous blossoms enhance the bright red and yellow hues of winterberry bushes below them.
The strings of electric lines are lit each evening for the popular Night Lights display.

Apple Art

Apple leaves that fell from my Baldwin apple tree onto a white table inspired me to add garden flowers and windfall apples to create this still life.
Keeping the leaves exactly where they had fallen, I experimented with the addition of a small garden bouquet of freshly picked flowers.
Windfall apples added contrast in keeping with the theme.
A gravel “frame” was a simple addition.
Baldwin apples trees usually bear fruit every other year, but this will be the second year in a row I am looking forward to harvesting Baldwins for applesauce, muffins, pie and other delights.
Central Massachusetts holds a special affinity for apples, as Johnny Appleseed was born in Leominster, Massachusetts.
Close-up photography highlights different aspects of the artwork.
The Baldwin apple is one of New England’s oldest, and was first discovered in Massachusetts.
Apple season is coming soon to Central Massachusetts!

Sparky, Marietta, Petite and Crackerjack

It’s marigold time in my garden.

I usually buy six-packs of marigold plants around Memorial Day. But last winter, dreaming of spring, I bought a set of four different types of marigold seeds. It turns out that four packages contain thousands of seeds. Now I have an explosion of color and texture weaving through the yard. And what a bargain! I have seeds left over to plant next year.
Sparky Mix Marigolds have wavy petals of orange, yellow, crimson, gold and bicolor. They are mid-sized, at around fourteen inches tall. These popular companion plants attract pollinators; they are “on duty” as a border around the squash garden.
As their name suggests, Dainty Marietta Marigolds are quite small, and known for the bright yellow petals with maroon centers. They have been the most difficult marigolds for me to nurture, but their delicate flowers are delightful.
Petite Mix Marigolds are only 8 to 10 inches in height, but they bloom in all colors. They are in containers around the yard, and used as annual borders. They are so abundant, that even if the rabbits find them, there is enough to share.
At three to four feet tall, the Crackerjack Marigolds are eye-catching, with large ruffles of yellow and orange blooms. They lend a festive feeling to the yard.

Books and Bee Balm

I grew up in a rural town in Western Massachusetts, where a large patch of bee balm featured prominently in our garden each summer. One day an elderly couple, complete strangers, stopped their car to ask my father what the fiery red blooms in the garden were.

“It’s bee balm, a perennial. Would you like some?”

He dug up a clump for the pair to take to their summer home at the edge of town.

A few days later, the couple reappeared with a box of children’s books. They were retired teachers, who had noticed my siblings and me playing in the yard.

“We have collected so many books over the years, and since we are retired, we don’t need them. Would your children like some?” they asked my father.

That summer, and for many summers thereafter, the couple brought boxes of books of a variety of genres. Some were almost new; some were gently worn. Each box was a thoughtful gift.

The sight of bee balm might bring thoughts of insects, bright flower petals in a salad, or perhaps herbal tea to most people.

But me? I simply think of books.

Bees, butterflies and hummingbirds are especially attracted to bee balm, which is a member of the mint family. Monarda, bergamot, horsemint, and oswego tea are other names for this plant. It has many uses, being found in everything form skin salves to digestive teas to salad toppers.
Bee balm getting ready to bloom.
The blooming time for bee balm is July through late summer. Cutting back the blooms as they finish flowering will encourage regrowth and extend the blooming period.
A Silver Spotted Skipper butterfly visits.
Although bee balm likes sun, it tolerates partial shade, as shown here growing in a mix of ferns and Queen Anne’s Lace.
Vigorous bursts of bee balm contrast with the calm of the apple tree in my yard. Time to sit in the shade and enjoy a book!
The  Little Pear books by Eleanor Frances Lattimore were favorites from the book boxes. These books related the adventures of a young boy living in a small village in China long ago. First published in 1931, they continued to be published until 2006. (The book pictured above is the edition I remembered as a child.) They are considered popular vintage books today.

Yellow Celebration

A coat of paint on one small structure can sometimes uplift a whole yard.

A coat of paint on one small structure can often uplift a a whole yard.
A fresh coat of yellow paint on the backyard hut led me to consider the many shades of yellow vegetation to be found throughout the yard.
A coat of paint on one single structure can sometimes change a whole area.
The yellow stair rail extends the color theme. Queen Anne’s lace, orange daylilies, and red bee balm pop out against the bright backdrop with white accents.
Queen Anne’s lace seems to float on a yellow wall.
A lemon yellow daylily remains vibrant after yet another shower.
Erin Lea lilies show ruffled yellow petals tinged with brown.
Stella d’Oro daylilies, white yarrow and rose campion contrast with the cobalt blue birdbath.
Amber and gold-toned calendulas are companion plants throughout the vegetable gardens.
The blue chair lends a “primary colors” touch to this area.
Erin Lea daylily.
Purple D’Oro lily with a buttery yellow center.
Bumblebee yellow on a calendula!
Pineapple yellow non-stop begonia with blue hydrangea in the background.
One final touch: a mint green ladder hung on the back wall lightens up the shady side of the hut, and provides a year round color contrast.

Rainy Day Vegetable Blossoms

The various blooms popping up in the vegetable gardens are an appealing sight, especially during wet and gray weather.

Scarlet Emperor Beans
Green Peppers
Eggplant
Calendula (The whole flower is edible.)
Yukon Gold Potato
Green Zebra Tomato
Trailing Nasturtium (Flowers are edible.)
Summer Squash

Orange You Glad…

An extravaganza of orange in my garden.

…that there are easy to grow flowers?
I planted Pacific Beauty Calendula seeds in early April, and they survived a Spring snowstorm.
Orange Ton Asiatic Lily
The Asiatic Lilies started as one plant a few years back, and expand every year without my help.
Common or Orange Daylily
Just try to stop those orange daylilies!

Peony Present

My neighbor, a fellow plant enthusiast, appeared in my garden yesterday with this gorgeous peony bouquet. What an exquisite gift for me and my garden!

During the pandemic, neighbors have been walking by my yard more frequently than in years past. This has offered us all opportunities for friendly chats and shared interests, making the year much more pleasurable.