9 June 2015 -- What's Blooming in June

June is a beautiful time. Whoever said "and the desert shall bloom like a rose" may have been referring to Utah. There is something about the dry climate that makes roses absolutely magnificent here. You don't find black spot or mildew, just gorgeous roses. And better yet, everyone has roses. You cannot drive anywhere without seeing roses. Climbing roses, shrub roses, tea roses and right now they are all in their glory. Not only would you be hard pressed to find a single yard without at least one rose bush, but roses are also a major feature in corporate and small business landscapes. There is a dental office not to far from me that must have fifty rose bushes out front. It is just fabulous. 

My paternal grandmother loved roses. In addition to her own rose garden which was about ten feet wide and lined one side of a long driveway, she also had a second bed with all the roses she received for Mother's Day over the many years. What was I saying about apples? 

As I work on my yard, I have plans to add more roses as well. My only criteria is that they must be fragrant. 

But right now, the yard is heating up. The yellow shrub rose is in full bloom and smells wonderful. Its companion, the Austrian Copper rose is struggling as the deer ate most of it this winter. I will have to move it to a more protected spot.

  
The iris are peaking. I dug a few rhizomes out of an empty lot. They have rewarded me by putting on quite a show. And the deer don't bother iris at all.



 

The oriental poppies are just starting to come on. I love how this bright orange complements all the tools on my deer fence. 

 Several years ago Jack and I took a class on propagating native plants from seed. They are reseeding happily.  Here are firecracker penstemon (red) and orange globe mallow.  And a different pink mallow.

 Three years ago I planted some foxtail lilies. This year I have thirty bloom stalks and they are pretty spectacular. They are just starting to bloom and the bees love them--even better! These stalks are almost 6 feet tall. Definitely show stoppers.

 

The wisteria is doing well this year. Seems like every other year I get a really good bloom. This particular variety has a smell that is reminiscent of hotdogs.

I have been weeding. Bindweed, a pernicious type of morning glory is trying to take over my yard. It has a single extremely long tap root. If you break the root it just sends up more plant. Makes me crazy. 

This year I seem to have fallen behind in weeding and planting, but I'm doing what I can to catch up. Finally have all my pots planted. It will be fun to see them fill out and spill over the pots. 

I loved my flower arrangements in these porch pots last year, but they weren't bright enough to stand up to the  green background of the ivy growing on the house, so this year I opted for bright oranges and reds.

Since my shop has metal siding with a nice rusty patina I went for a contrast with cooler colors. The green plant on the ground is that nasty bindweed. More weeding.

And totally unrelated to what's blooming, unless it has to do with what's coming up...

My brother and a friend of his moved the last press out of the basement and up into my shop. I'm pretty darned happy to have it where it can be used. This press is a Pearl No. 11. It is sitting next to the much smaller Pearl No. 1. 

Even taking the fly wheel off, then taking the press off the stand, the pieces were almost too heavy for them to lift. But they persevered and even got it all reassembled. 


It is kind of fun to sit back and realize that I am finally getting my life a little more organized.