You have a beautiful garden, Kirstin. What is the geranium in the third pic? I am guessing Rozanne? I just love how it intermingles.

Here is my Rozanne with shasta daisy Tinkerbelle this morning:

Stokes aster peaking now and looking much like a thistle:

Bloomerang Korean lilac actually blooming again as advertised:

Gorgeous, you two!

The summer clematis are blooming enthusiastically now. This is a current favorite area, one that blooms much of the late spring and summer and I see every day from above from the kitchen window - mostly gold and blu-purple with periodic pops of orange. Japanese irises, Veronicastrium/Culver's root, Coreopsis 'Golden Gain' and Clematis Venosa Violacea, and off to the left a few Delphinium Blue Butterfly and Scabiosa.

Ah, I love getting peeks at other gardens, especially now at the peak of summer!!

Arlene, you correctly identified the Rozanne geranium in the 3rd picture. It is very rambunctious, but I love it! I've always wondered if Bloomerang lived up to its name. Not a huge bloom, but, hey, a second bloom on a lilac should not be given the stink eye! Very nice!!

Here's a few angles of my biggest bed right now (the clematis that was meant to climb that trellis died to the ground, so I hope Bluestone honors its guarantee...)

And a few shots of my new-this-year corner bed...

The little beds out front...

And a few visitors...

I am dealing with my first real infestation (japanese beetles) and have learned that I had some misinformation on plant heights that will require me to make some moves in fall. But definitely making slow progress. If I would just finish filling in the beds I have before digging more... Hm.

Kirstin, what are the tall orange flowers in the deep background of your first photo? I love orange flowers and could use more. Thanks!

Here is what is happening in my gardens this week.

Jenn, what is the orange flower in your first photo? An echinacea?

Sherry, what is the groundcover in the last photo?

It's Echinacea 'Sombrero Adobe Orange' which I didn't really expect to return after a bad experience with other echinacea hybrids, but it surprised me. Even moved it early this spring because it was too short for the middle of the border, and it's still looking good.

We did have a VERY mild winter with only one late snowstorm, however.

Jenn, the tall orange flower in the background of my photo is Asclepias tuberosa. It's about 4 years old now, and a really great performer in my yard. I have
Asclepias syriaca in a nearby bed as well. I get lots of Monarchs in my yard, and my son and I collect the eggs every year and raise them to butterflies - and, interestingly, we have never found an egg on the Asclepias tuberosa, only on the Asclepias syriaca. Here is a closer photo of the A. tuberosa. The Veronica in front of it gives you a good idea of the height.

The ground cover is a Lamium that spread from my neighbors garden so unfortunately I don't know the name, it has yellow flowers and is taller than the other Lamium I have in my gardens.

Sherry

Gorgeous, you two!

Gorgeous all of you! Not only beautiful plants but such high quality pictures.

Wonderful combination 'sherrygirl' with "Chicago Fire".

Very pretty gardens, everyone!

This week

Phlox is coming on

Astilbe

Daylily, South Seas, such pretty shades on this one

It's summer when you see a red Rose, Rudbeckia, Shasta Daisy 'Alaska', along with some Veronica and Geranium 'Roseanne'.

Sherry..lamium looks like lamium galeobdolon variegatum..love your hydrangea..winter protection?..yours look great for zone 5..

A few photos from my gardens

Today.

Beautiful Sunny! Wow!

The garden here is waiting for the next flowering phase to begin - the hardy hibiscuses should be along shortly; the purple coneflowers have just started. 'White Moth' hydrangeas are a continuous backdrop in the front bed for July and part of August. These pictures were taken about 6:15 this evening and I was facing into the sun so there are funny spots on some of them :-)

The front bed from the road - you can see the Chinese wisteria on the left end and the Japanese one on the right end of the 'moat' bed. (The Japanese one was pruned at the end of last week and already needs to be pruned again! It is MUCH more vigorous than the Chinese one....)

I like how the flowers on the 'Elegans' hosta at the driveway end of the 'moat' bed mirror the shape of the 'White Moth' hydrangea behind it. It doesn't show that well in this picture though:

The view towards/through the arbour doesn't look much different now than the one I posted earlier in the month - except the weeds are taller on the path now! :-) Heat and rain gave them a big boost and it's been too hot for me to go out there and get rid of them :-(

The clematises growing on the north alley fence put on a nice show in July even when seen from a distance from the road I think....

Beautiful gardens everyone. Woody, so interesting to see how things have changed since the wisteria bloomed!