Asiatic Lily ‘Netty’s Pride’

Well there are many flowers blooming for this Garden Blogger’s Bloom Day, but the lilies have captured my attention.  These are just the first of the lilies coming down the pike but they capture the eye when you walk about the yard.  Besides ‘Netty’s Pride’, another contender for attention is this additional Asiatic hybrid.

Asiatic Lily ‘Forever Susan’

In Beth’s herb bed we have a brilliant yellow whose name has long since passed.

Yellow Asiatic Lily in the Herb bed

Then there also the Martagon lilies with their clustered flowers.

Martagon Lily ‘Arabian Knight’

Martagon Lily ‘Claude Shride’

This last one is a striking red.  So much so even in the catalog that I have already ordered more for planting this fall even before I saw this one in bloom.  We are beginning to attribute such actions to covid-brain around here…

A lily-wannabe that is pretty in its own right is the Alstromeria ‘Sweet Laura’.

Alstromeria ‘Sweet Laura’

Among the other highlights are two gentians with lovely blue flowers

Gentiana dahurica

Gentiana septemfida (Summer Gentian)

And then there is this Asclepias cultivar with stunning clusters of bright yellow flowers.

Asclepias tuberosa ‘Hello Yellow’

Nearby is Hypericum having one of its most floriferous years ever.

St. John’s Wort (Hypericum calycinum)

In many places we have triteleia showing up from plantings that go back many years.

Triteleia laxa ‘Queen fabiola’

And for a spot of orange we added a little calceolaria this year from Sequim Rare Plants out in Washington State.  I’m sure it’s not hardy here, but worth the experiment.

Calceolaria integrifolia ‘Kentish Hero’

A delightful surprise was to see the pointy little head of the arisaema candidissimum finally show up.

Arisaema candidissimum emerging

Every year I am at the point of giving up on this plant given that many other arisaemas have long since put up there leaves.  And then lo and behold, up it comes.  And it’s relative in lateness arisaema fargesii arose the next day.  Both are stunning arisaemas and well worth the wait.

Of course it’s important to add that around here fruit and vegetables are dominating the gardening scene.  We’ve been picking strawberries for three weeks and now the raspberries and blueberries are bursting forth.

Raspberries coming ripe

We also have cherries from the wild trees in the forest.

Wild Cherries in our woods

We figure these are seedling planted by the birds from our original orchard trees (and they are now 30-40 ft tall).  I picked some from the best tree today.

Best Wild Cherry Tree