That is SOOOOOOOOO beautiful! I've never grown Dahlia's before, but now I'm inspired!

What a great dahlia Shauna! I am horrible with Dahlias so I'll just enjoy yours.

That is a beautiful dahlia Shauna!!! How big does the flower get?

Here's a few more from my poor soggy garden...

more...ahemmm lilies.
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A tiny view of my large perennial bed.
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First foxglove that bloomed this year.
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Delphs....some are slower to open this year.
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lupin
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Blue chips companula...with hostas
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Snap.
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Nemisia
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We finally got a little sun yesterday but still a shower in the evening. It came with a nice rainbow over the house across the street ....see there is a bright side! Ya thats it...a bright side. LOL!!!

Sierra

Love that "Wildcat", Shauna! Very tropical looking.

Lots of colour in your garden Sierra and the pictures are great. Hopefully things will dry out for you soon!

In my garden right now the lilies are really stealing the show....

Here's a very tropical looking Tetraploid asiatic lily rightly named, 'Tropical Dream'

And if that's too hot for ya, asiatic lily 'Antarctica' will cool you down.....

To me, my garden has always been my 'Royal Paradise'....

I really like the shape of this datura flower.

Here's 'Figaro White' Dahlia at sunset.

This is Ascelepias 'Milkmaid' that was w/s last year. Hopefully the butterflies will like it too.

Laurie

Everyone's photos are always so great. I wanted to join in on the fun, finally.

I love this pot of flowers; the colours are so cheerful. I can't take credit, however. I bought it a couple of weeks ago at Rona, of all places.
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We had an old Hibatchi type barbeque that needed replacing. Instead of throwing it out, I planted some herbs and small flowers.
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And, this photo's for dotcom. Susan, my non-blooming Siberian Iris seemed to like all the rain this year. It gave me several flowers, but my husband had taken the camera out of town, so I only caught the last one today. It grew at a 90 degree angle, for some reason! The variety is 'Silver Edge'. Huge blooms--I love it. I can't wait for the one you gave me to bloom.
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Doris

Wow everyone! Love that Dahlia Shauna. Did you get a chance to see my before & after pics? I am humbled and impressed by the variety of species and cultivars everyone is growing and impressed. I've got a lot to learn.
Kate
Feverfew in bloom

Morden Sunrise

I love this time of year. Time for all of us to enjoy our labours (and obviously everyone else's, too).

Laurie, which Datura is that? I'm new to daturas this year and I just love them now. I just have the regular white ones, Datuara metel single blooms, I think it is. I'm looking for seeds of different one already and having a difficult time finding something different in my catalogues. Where is a good place to get different seeds?

Thanks, everyone on the positives on my dahlia. The blooms on 'Wildcat' are in the 4" - 6" category. This one is about 5", not fully opened. I haven't grown them in years and even then, they were Wally's World varieties. This is my first time for mail-order, different varieties. I've got 5 and I can hardly wait to see the others. It is so funny with dahlias. They all move at their own pace. This ones blooming, another has buds, another is just starting to bud and the other two have nothing yet.

Shauna

Great pictures everyone. Shauna, love the dahila, I will be looking for that one for next year. Everyones' flowers are ahead of mine so I always have to go looking for things that haven't been posted yet. Here are a few of mine.

Achillea millefolium 'Cerise Queen'
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California Poppy
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Camanula glomerata
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Delphinium
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Unknown Daisy from a friend. Seeds everywhere....
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Syreeta

Shauna, for some reason I kept the seed package of that datura which I got from Canadian Tire about 3 years ago. All it says on the front is Angels Trumpet, La Fleur Lilac. On the back, it states it will flower 3 1/2 months after sowing and grow to 18" tall. Well, mine have gotten to 5 feet tall and start blooming 1 1/2 months after germination. I have seedlings every spring all over the yard, you never know where they'll pop up!
Laurie

Definately a wonderful time of year! I'm enjoying everyone's gardens as much as my own.

That is one great Dahlia Shauna. Truly "wild" colours!

Here's some of the latest in my garden:

"Pink Pompom Poppy" -- I keep calling it "The Bad Hair Day Poppy"

"Moonshadow" Sunflower

I just love this Lavatera ("Silver Cup" I'm guessing) especially when it starts to really fill in.

Mostly lilies doin stuff this week...

Oh BTW I LIED that I have a daylily called Strawberry Candy. I think that was one my mom bought. *blush* Oh well here's what I do have. They all bloom well, thank goodness.

Unknown daylily #1 (MIGHT be Always Afternoon)
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Unknown daylily #2 (a really great bright red and dark orange)
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Pretty basic yellow with brush marks...
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White Asiatic Lily that might be Antarctica
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Two (climbing) Double Delights - Quadruple Delight?
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Here's whats in bloom this week...

Mimulus Monkey Flower

Dwarf Bleeding Heart

Verbascum nigrum

Campanula White Clips

Campanula Blue Clips not as far along as the white ones..

Sedum

More Sedum

Blue poppy

Nasturations Alaska
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Agastache aurantiaca "Apricot Sprite"

Shredded Poppy

Blue & Red Flax

I guess I'll add to these amazing gardens! I just got my first lillies this year....here are the first 2 to bloom:

Black Bird
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Virginia
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Here is Morden Amorette
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Hope for Humanity
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My new Delicata
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The Fairy poking through at the front step
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John Franklin showing off
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Thanks for looking.... more next week :-)

Lori

Beautiful photos, everyone. My plant wish list is getting way too long! Looking at your post, Lori, makes me realize I don't have enough roses. I can see by your photos that your GW name is well deserved!

Northspruce, I think your last daylily (the yellow one with brushmarks) might be 'Bonanza'. There are thousands of varieties, and many look very similar, that it's hard to tell for sure, but 'Bonanza' is a common oldie (but goodie. I have 2 of them.)

Shauna and Laurie, I'm envious of your dahlias. I was given some non-blooming plants at the end of last season. I successfully overwintered the tubers and started them (or rather, they started themselves and I just put them in pots) in April. I may not have them in enough sun, because they're still non-blooming (and showing no signs of forming buds). At least they're growing...and there's always next year, right?

Doris

Here is a link that might be useful: Daylily 'Bonanza'

Here are a couple more for this week.

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dwarf munstead lavender and storm petunias
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closer pic of storm petunias...after one of the storms and these ones were under cover of the eve.
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It got down to 3 C last night here. :O

Sierra

Beautiful everyone, too much going on here to keep up! Lori love the roses, Sierra love your bright colours even with the rain...and hail...and more rain (lol)

Doris, you are so right that my daylily is Bonanza, thanks!! I'm a stickler for knowing names but that one came with the house. Testament to how hardy it is, I didn't know it was planted there when I moved in (it was kinda in the lawn) and mowed it for a year. Next spring I got behind mowing the grass and saw a familiar looking leaf come up, said OMG what is that? and let it grow. That year it made one tiny yellow bloom. Well 5 years later it has about 10 fans and as you can see it's thriving. A survivor!

Lovely pictures everyone..
strange poppy...I saved seed from danish flag poppies last year and this is a poppy from them..the danish flags are single red with white..this one is a double..but oh so lovely
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not sure if I like the Victoria Sunset calendula
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Tidy Tips-found these seeds on a wild flower rack at a nursery and they are charming little plants
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dahlia_ Mistery Day..unfortunely it doesnt look anything like the picture on the bag it came in :-(
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savona

Wow that is SUCH a cool poppy! I forgot to post my fave Asiatic Lily, "Tinos". He usually has more red in the inner petals - don't know what gives this year. This is the one I have to grow in a cage, because it is irresistably tasty to EVERYTHING for some reason. I am thinking of eating it myself...haha... It's 4' high.
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To all who posted pics--thank you! How inspiring!

A question for Kat 3--you are in Zone 3--correct?
What's the secret to your beautiful blue poppy?

I started several from seed about 3 years ago, and the only survivor this spring is about 1 1/2 inches high. At this rate, I will never see any blooms!

It just get's better & better every week, wonderful photos and plants everyone! Shauna, I quit growing Dahlias due to the fussing to store over winter, but after seeing your 'Wildcat', I'll have to reconsider growing them again ;)

Here are some of my plants that are blooming right now...Enjoy!

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Asiatic Lollipop

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LA Dazzle

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Asiatic Tabasco

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Asiatic Honeywood

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Tiger Lily Feuerzauber

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Asiatic Lemon Pixie

Alcea rosea Hollyhock & Daucus carota Queen Anne's Lace

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Ignore the shabby deck, another project for hubby to get going on this summer! LOL

Petunia Crazy!

Have a great weekend everyone, I'll be shoveling a truck load of &%i+ tomorrow!
Sharon

Here is a link that might be useful: Week of July 17th

Sharon, your yard and flowers are beautiful, as always. And, your photos are well done. A woman of many talents!

Have you noticed a fragrance with your Asiatic lily 'Honeywind'? One of the catalogues (Parkland Perennials?) mentions that they're scented. I was going to order some, but only if the scent is noticeable and nice. What's your experience with them?

Savona, I love those Tidy Tips! Do you have a botanical name for them? They're adorable.

Doris

Doris, did you notice my spelling error, I wrote ÂHoneywood under the photo. LOL, oops, its ÂHoneywind ;) Anyway, I just ran outside to see if they have a scent and really I canÂt detect any smell right now, other than getting a bright yellow nose to do so! It could be that itÂs windy as the dickens out there, wind gusts reaching up to 70km/h today! I'll take another sniff test tomorrow ;)

Thanks as always!
Sharon

Sharon, this summer I fell in love with a new (for me) Asiatic lily called Amarone. Unfortunately, I didn't get a decent photo of it. I was too busy burying my nose in the flowers, drinking in the intoxicating fragrance. I had no idea that Asiatics could be fragrant! Now, I want to find as many scented Asiatics as I can.

Two other lilies that I've added to my garden, and just adore, are Suncrest (an LA hybrid with a very, very faint perfume) and Latvia, another Asiatic. Since I've also recently ordered Creme Brulee from Vesey's, I guess I really like yellow lilies spotted with burgundy! The lighting was wrong when I took the photos of Suncrest. The petals should be a soft lemon yellow. The colour is too pale.

Suncrest LA lilies
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Suncrest, close up
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Latvia Asiatic--buds in focus, flowers blurred--sorry!
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Here is a link that might be useful: Photo of Creme Brulee Asiatic lily from Vesey's

They are beautiful Doris! Those "dot" Lilies are really becoming popular....I really like the LA Sunset especially if it has more of a lemon background as you pointed out, for sure, must add that one on my wish list ;)

Sharon

Doris the botanical name for Tidytips is Layia Platyglossa..hope this helps
Another one of my mystery poppies..at least they are all very pretty
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Polyanna asiatic lilies
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lolly pop asiatic lilies
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savona

Petunia2 Blue poppy secret... Moisture, partial shade & luck...

I am really appreciating all of your lily pictures, everyone. Please keep them coming. And all of the others, too. This is such a great way of discovering different plants to try.

Are Asiatic lilies as fragrant as Orientals? I love Orientals and have not grown Asiatics. I want to try some Asiatics because they sound like they are much hardier and easier. But, I don't want to lose the fragrance of the Orientals. Doris, sounds like you are finding really fragrant varieties?

Shauna

Sharon, make sure you put 'SunCREST' and not 'SunSET' on your wish list, if you're looking for the lily in my photo! ;-)

(I get names muddled, sometimes, as well. My students just roll their eyes. Oh, wait. They're adolescents in Junior High. Rolling the eyes is an involuntary reflex at that age!)

Here's a link to some photos I found that show the colours of 'Suncrest' much more true to life. The pictures were taken and posted by Gerry Danen, who lives in Edmonton, and who sometimes posts on this forum. I hope he doesn't mind me supplying the link.

By the way, I was lucky enough to find my Suncrest at Costco, early in the spring. Costco had bags of bulb combinations. The bag I bought, for less than $15, had 9 Suncrest and 9 Amarone lilies. All the bulbs were large, grew well and bloomed (although the two varieties didn't bloom together). Luckily, I saw the packages on a large display shelf that was still covered in clear plastic; the bulbs had just arrived at the store, and so were as fresh as they could be. Altogether a great deal, since Suncrest usually sells for at least $5 a bulb.

Of all the spotted lilies I've seen, 'Suncrest' is the prettiest, I think. Highly recommended!

Here is a link that might be useful: Many gorgeous photos of 'Suncrest'

Savona, thanks for the botanical name. I will be on the lookout for those plants.

Your photos are great. Your mystery poppies look like a new hybrid between Danish Flag and peony poppies. You could be on to something!

Shauna, I think you snuck your question in there while I was looking for 'Suncrest' photos.

Asiatics are hardier and more reliable for our climate because they bloom earlier, so the leaves have more of a chance, before frost, to nourish the bulbs for the next year's growth and flowers. Most Asiatics have little or no scent, unfortunately. I was REALLY surprised to discover that Amarone is very fragrant. (I have yet to find a reference to scent in any of the descriptions of this lily. The package I bought it in was shipped directly from Holland, so I'm convinced the identification is correct. All the other specifications fit the plant that bloomed in my garden.)

Amarone's scent was not as pervasive as an Oriental's, though. You won't notice the scent from across the garden. But I did notice a pronounced fragrance just walking past the clump; otherwise, I wouldn't have stuck my nose in them (and kept it there!!)

I started searching the 'net for other scented Asiatics, and am discovering there are a few available. Some Oriental lovers might be disappointed because the fragrance isn't as strong, but I find Orientals a little overpowering and (sometimes) not entirely pleasant. 'Amarone' was similar to, but stronger than, my lemon daylily (Hemerocallis lilioasphodelus). Totally delicious.

There are lots of flowers where the fragrance is so faint you can barely tell it's there; I'm now on the hunt for more satisfying olfactory experiences like 'Amarone'! If anybody knows of some, please share the names!!

Here is a link that might be useful:

Sharon, make sure you put 'SunCREST' and not 'SunSET' on your wish list

I did it again! I can't type and think at the same time when I see something I really like I get so excited ;) LOL

I took another whiff today of the 'Honeywind' and I can't smell nothing ;)

Sharon

Doris, hmmm, I think I know why my 'Honeywind' does not have a fragrance, it's because its not suppose to.... you're probably referring to 'Honeyqueen' which is supposed to have a fragrance. LOL

Golly, I make a good investigator at this time of hour ;)

Sharon

Here is a link that might be useful: 'Honeyqueen'

Thanks for the correction, Sharon. You and I have had problems getting names straight, lately, haven't we? Sorry for making you smell your lily so often! 'Honeywind' is lovely, and I may add it to my garden someday, but 'Honeyqueen' is on my "have to get very soon" wish list. Love those fragrant Asiatics!

Doris