I hope you can keep the deer away. It's hard to do when repeated rains wash off your spray. I love the photo of Clown Parade with the yarrow. So bright and cheerful. Your phloxes are gorgeous. Good to see them doing well. Red Hot Poker is an interesting plant. There's some starting to bloom in the church perennial garden which I tend. Your roses are so beautiful!

Debra

I love your garden perennials. The phlox are beautiful. Is that red monarda (bee balm) in that photo? I love the red and say every year I am going to get some. I have the red hot poker but in yellow color. I hope you can keep the deer away. Among the latest ones they munched in my garden was Clown Parade. I don’t understand their eating habits-they ate every bud on Clown Parade and left all the other buds in that bed including a fully budded and tall Festive Jousting right beside it. The roses are lovely. The garden/house shot is so inviting!

Deb and Kate: Thank you for the comments. Another on and off rain day today and the humidty has creeped back in again.Hiding out in the house today.

The yarrow will get divided this fall. Way to big to stay where it is.

I am a perennial lover so I try to keep a mix in my gardens. Yes, it is red monarda/ bee balm. It got very leggy from all the rain. One of the poker plantings has a mix of just yellow spikes along with the other ones with multi color.Not sure how the just yellow ones got in there. Deer seem to keep away from it. My lavendar plants also got taller and wider this year so they are flopping into other perennials. Crocosmias will be blooming soon too. I did try this year to plant marigolds along edges of the garden. I heard deer do not like the smell. We shall see if it works.

Julia

Good to see your blooms, Julia. Your house & landscape look so very nice. I like Clown Parade a lot as usual. I too love that purple phlox! And Red Hot Pokers are great in the garden.

Brad

I love your front garden! your hard work paid off. I have perenials scattered around my beds but limited to a few varieties. I lean toward plants that look good all season. I love the phlox, only have a few now, love the colors of yours.

Sherry

Clown Parade looks wonderful. the phlox are beautiful. and your garden is lovely, ery nice. My coneflowers are quite tall this year too.

kay

I've grown Hot Poker off and on over the years (Kniphofia). Naturally for me, they were in pots. So many exciting new varieties to try now that the hybridizers have taken an interest. They almost all do not overwinter for me in a pot. I suspect too much winter damp. My favorite of all the ones I tried was "Backdraft" which repeated its bloom almost all summer. I've never had one do that before..........I'm a retired Rose lover. Austins are so beautiful and romantic and some are very fragrant. Not the most disease resistant roses around, but I still miss them. I love seeing pictures of them.........Seeing your flag reminds me I need to get out my Independence day decorations pretty soon. Lovely front yard btw...............Maryl

I love to see pictures of perennial gardens. Interesting to hear that Debra now tends one. I still tend the Urgent Care garden, but it is a lot of work, especially fighting the deerf. The phlox are wonderful? But the deer like them too. How have you kept them away?

mantis: Bobbex spray helps but when we had rainstorms over several days it becomes a challenge. Expensive product. The deer and rabbits did get a couple of the early growth on the phlox but I put the cloches over the plantings till they were too tall to fit under and then sprayed constantly when possible. I have the fencing on hold at the moment for the front garden. I want to finish a project down by the rock walls which should start by a local landscaping contractor in July. Too much work for me to do and definitely too hot.

I've always loved seeing your gardens you tend for ideas on additions. One surprise for me this year was the deer eating the rudbeckia on the one corner of the garden. Never had that happen before.

Julia