With all the rains this spring, things are growing very well this year. The only big nuisance has been four lined plant bugs. They've attacked the mealy cup and autumn sages, along with my chrysanthemums.

I'm excited that my coral bean is going to bloom for the first time this year. I started it from seed three years ago, and it has gotten huge the past couple of years, but never bloomed.

I planted some farwell-to-spring (clarkia amoena) this year and they were attacked by flea beetles. It looks like I might get some blooms soon, but I'll avoid planting them in the future. They really can't be made out in the photo below, but they are in front of the linaria. The coreopsis is doing well and you can make out some tall poppy mallows (annual winecups--callirhoe leiocarpa) in the back.

The butterfly bush is doing well. It is very popular with the hummingbirds and butterflies and it usually evergreen during the winter. I chop it back every spring to 1-2 feet.