Yes, welcome to my Garden Party! So glad you could stop by today and I hope you’ll make yourself at home. You might not know this, but as much as I love to decorate, gardening is right up there for me too in things I enjoy doing and I love to grow pretty flowers. I’ve got a pretty good green thumb, although I’ve managed to lose a few here and there too, but right now is a good time to show off what’s blooming.
We’ve just had a nice rain for the last 2 days, so everything is looking so green and lush (and a little windswept too, but that’s OK). I started all of my beds 3 years ago when we moved to Birmingham, so they are finally coming along and looking good. This bed has an Endless Summer hydrangea, underplanted with hostas and I always add pretty impatiens to the front that peek out over the edging.
I have always, always loved impatiens. They are probably my all time favorite flower to grow.
These Endless Summer hydrangeas are doing well and if they bloom like they did last year (which they are covered with blooms now), they will be busting out in just a few weeks. You can see that they will be a nice deep blue.
This little bed has evolved over the last 3 years and almost nothing made it from what was originally planted. I can tell you that if you’re looking for a good shrub to add in your beds, that Spirea that lines the fence is a good one. It is a gorgeous shade of lime green with little pink blooms in the spring. I planted 3 of them three years ago and they have really grown. Unfortunately, all the other perennials I planted in this bed did not make it for the long haul, so I’ve had to replace them in the last couple of years.
I added mostly dianthus and I hope they all make it.
This is a spiderwort that my mom shared from her garden and it does well.
Those purple sage are newly planted this year. You can see the delicate pink flowers on the spirea. I love this shrub & will definitely plant more of them.
This hot pink dianthus I just planted this year and it’s doing well.
Here’s that $4 birdbath I found a couple weeks ago, looking right at home here in this bed. Found the glass ball last year at a sale and I love it in the water.
Closeup of the spirea and my iron armillary.
The glass ball just sits in the birdbath.
These dianthus were planted last year and have grown a lot. If you’d like to see how these beds have evolved in the last 3 years, you can go here and take a look. And this next area by our front sidewalk is where I built a stone wall all by myself and that’s on the link too.
Moving on to the bed beside our front sidewalk. This bed was full of overgrown boxwoods when we moved in and I knew I had to work on it, so I built this little stone wall out of paver stones from Lowes and planted it with knock-out roses and Dwarf Mock Orange shrubs which have done pretty well. I was featured with this project in the Birmingham News 2 years ago and that was fun.
The double-knockouts have done well for me too.
This urn sits a the end of the stone wall and I just planted it with some cheapie annuals.
Mulching with dark mulch makes any bed look better, I think. Found that armilary at a yardsale a couple years ago for $10. I’m always on the lookout for more garden stuff.
And of course, there are a few bunnies in my garden. I’m sure you are shocked to hear that! :)
Down by the mailbox, I added a new perennial purple verbena this year. I hope it does well here. I had some of this planted in my other bed up by the fence and it almost took over the first year. Then, for some unknown reason, it just completely died. Plants are hard to figure out sometimes, but I sure love to watch them grow. Flowers just add so much to the landscape and I enjoy walking outside to see them blooming this time of year.
This clematis is 3 years old and has the prettiest blooms every spring. Too bad they don’t last longer.
Purple verbena up close.
I had tried to figure out what to plant down by the mailbox, since it gets full sun, so I decided on this Miss Huff lantana which is supposed to be really hardy and drought tolerant and hopefully it will get big and fill out. I planted 3 of them. Most of my garden is pinks, blues & purples (my fave colors in the garden), but since I needed something here that is tough, I decided I could stand some orangey yellow down here.
So, how about you? Have YOU been digging in the dirt this spring and how is it looking? Share with everyone by adding your garden to Mr. Linky and add a link back to THIS post so everyone can find our party. I can't wait to visit everyone's garden too.
Happy May, ya’ll!
Don't forget the rules on how to play with Mr. Linky. Go here if you need to learn how to do a permalink and don't forget to add a link back to MY post here so others can find the party.
Powered by... Mister Linky's Magical Widgets.
75 friends stopped by:
Hey lovely Rhoda
thanks so much for hosting this event, I have to say my contribution seems a little pathetic compared to all the beauty I see here...hey ho, I guess it takes all types
I think I must have missed the post about the birdbath, found at a sale for a ridiculous amount! I am after one too and woulda snapped it up, for sure that is on my cottage Most Wanted List
oh and like, you, I have always loved impatiens, so easy, so carefree and not too much fluffing around to keep them looking good - I guess that's my philosophy in life all round though lol!
happy days and happy outdoors, I've loved being outside in my day today and enjoying all you have to offer here too!
thanks for the great inspiration
sarah
ABeachCottage
and OMG I think I am the first,
ahhhhh, a miracle happens Down Under..!!!
S
x
Hi Rhoda,
thank you for hosting a lovely Garden Party. I love the look of your Garden, so very pretty. Mine is just starting to bloom but for the Party I shared the progress of our veggie garden which is a new feature in our yard.
Have a wonderful Wednesday,
Tam
I have been so excited about this one! When I finally got home last night, I told DH I had to hurry to get pics for Rhoda's party, and he knew who you were! Funny how our bloggy friends become so "close."
I love your gardens......soooooo dreamy!
I love gardens. Didn't used to, but the older I get, the more I love dirt - flowers - plants; beautiful.
Don't have one yet, but I will. Someday.
Rhoda,
Wow! You southern gardeners sure are fortunate to have everything blooming so early. Your flowers look very pretty. I think we are at least two-three weeks behind you here.
You mentioned how old some of your plants are. I thought I'd share this little garden rhyme with you:
First year they weep,
Second year they creep,
Third year they leap!
Ain't that the truth!
Thanks for hosting, it's always fun to visit someones garden.
Hi Rhoda...your gardens are beautiful as usual. Thanks so much for hosting this event.
We were J's Aunt Ruth's and I got several photos of her iris collection and other things. J was planting new iris, for her yesterday morning. Her place is for sale. He said he'd go back and dig irises when it sells. We have some of her irises.
I also got some photos around our gardens. Some things aren't blooming yet. Still a tad early here. But everything looks so healthy, we're hoping for a great season.
Hi Rhoda,
Couldn't wait for your garden party and our weather has been so wet, my yard is waterlogged. So I thought I would share a post anyway about my dream garden. I love your pictures and on of my favorties is the spirea too! Love that lime green. Your beds are beautiful and you obviously have done a lot of work! Thanks again-I enjoy your blog! Miss Bloomers/Sonia
Everything is looking great. You've done a great job at mixing shrubs and flowers.
We're getting there over here. This will be our third summer here and I hope to get some things started. There is a huge tree in the back that we have been waiting to take out. I didn't want to plant all shade gardens and then have to redo when the tree was gone. It's coming out in a couple weeks so my wheels are turning now!
Have a great week!
~Michelle
Oh, Rhoda, your yard is stunning! :)
Rhoda, I really enjoyed seeing your garden. Wanted to join in but it has been raining here for 10 days! It's a blessing that is driving me crazy right now.
How pretty!! I love diggin' in the dirt!! It's right up there with running in my book!! I had mock orange at my other house, but it got out of control. I'm going to look for some plants later today, and I will see about the dwarf mock orange. That's new to me. With all the rain we've had, the ground is just'a calling to be played in!!
Thougth of you on Sat.--I went to our church yard sale!! Woohoo! I got some good stuff. I'll post about it next week--I'll let you know when!!
Hugs,
Susan
beautiful! my 6 yo was looking over my shoulder when I was reading your post- she ohhhed and ahhhed at your garden and said "mom can we go visit her garden?" hee hee
Do you think my garden will grow up to be like yours one day? Sigh. It is so beautiful Rhoda - you've created an enchanting garden for sure.
Love to you Mrs. Greenthumbs.
xo,
Kim
Beautiful!
Thanks for the reminder that it takes a few years to establish a perrenial garden. I am also in my third year with my gardens.
You are so right about dark mulch. It really sets off the plants nicely.
I'll be out in my garden if it ever stops raining here.
Your flowers are absolutely beautiful, Rhoda! I wish I could participate, but we don't have blooms yet in Michigan. We have little buds, but I don't think that would have made for a very good post!
Rhoda - your garden is lovely!
Ours is a work in progress, I'm afraid. The previous owners of our home were an older couple who didn't want to keep up with a garden, so the only thing they had planted were some hedges in the front of the house. We're in it for the long haul though, and hopefully in a few years we'll be a little more colorful!
Thank you for sharing and inspiring me!
Lisa
Hey Rhoda..
I just love everything you have planted.. I think I'll try the spirea along my woodline, it looks like it really fills out nicely. We have lantana and it is very drought tolerant and have always had great luck with it. As you know here in Georgia we are always under a watering ban and lantana is our worry free plant. Ours is just now peeking up through the mulch and is the multi-colored.. Husband calls it the Fruit-Loop bush lol.
Thanks for hosting this fun fellowship event.. I love seeing everyone's garden's and getting new ideas.
Happy Garden Party Day!
Hugs,
Debbie
Rhoda, you're my hero! Such lovely, lovely flowers gardens!!
I can't believe your hydrangeas are already blooming. We are just a little north of you and ours aren't even close, but that gives me something to look forward to.
BTW, think you will find the lantana you planted a wise choice. We planted it several years ago and it's flourished even through drought. Also, I know it's not supposed to, but we've found if you cover it with mulch, it comes back even bigger and prettier the next year.
Thanks for letting me join your party. I'm so enjoying all the pretty gardens!
Beautiful gardens, Rhoda. We have nothing blooming yet and cannot plant anything here in Winnipeg for another ten days. My perennials are just peaking above the ground. So, I really enjoyed seeing yours already blooming! Hugs, ~CINDY S~
Hi Rhoda! Your garden is looking great. We're a BIT further behind you up here in NY, so I posted pics of my trip the the NY Botanical Gardens this past weekend. Thanks for letting me join the party!
Thank for all the help with Mr Linky. I hope I can get this and be part of the party.
Your garden is beautiful! Of course, you're ahead of us here in the Maritimes; but my garden is coming along nicely; all the bulbs are up, there are lots of blooms & lots of lush green folage in the background. Because I'm a novice at this new passion of mine, I'll look back at your previous gardening posts to get inspiration and instruction. (I've always wanted to do stone steps in the garden or built a stone wall.)
The lantana is so lovely; I'll have to check if it'll grow here. And although I planted Spiderwort the year before, I was so pleasantly surprised when it bloomed last summer; it's so pretty & petite & delicate looking.
See you at the party!
Everything looks so beautiful! I wish my beds looked that good. Great idea to have a garden party!
P.S. I posted about your dining room makeover on my blog today. Thanks again! :-)
I love your armillary (sp?). What a great deal! Enjoyed the garden tour!!
Love the blog Rhoda, and what a beautiful garden you have!
oh, Rhoda, I want to play. It's raining here right now but I hope I can get out and take some pics in a little while to post.
Your flowers are gorgeous. We are just starting our landscaping on this place, so I love seeing what others do and have.
Oh your garden is stunning. It looks so pretty. I love all the flowers and you have also added such beautiful yard art. So well done. Your thumb really is green. Hugs, Marty
great garden party! everything looks so pretty...we've had a lot of rain here in Texas ready for some sunshine
What a beautiful garden you have!!!! Breathtaking!
Morning Rhoda,
Linked up to your Garden Party and I just love your flowers. I will have to book mark this post because I (hope you don't mind) will have to use some of these ideas for the next house.
Cheri
Rhoda - your yard is immaculate! Ours is a work in progress, but I had one bloom that I had to share.
Oh My Goodness -- the difference a few hundred miles can make! Our gardens are just emerging and yours has burst forth like nobody's business. And the nice rain certainly did it's job. your garden is exquisite!
Jenny
Your garden is just gorgeous!! We've had so much snow and rain lately that we haven't been able to do anything in our yard yet. It is a horrible mess!
I look forward to checking out all the posts, hopefully I will find the inspiration I need!
Hi Rhoda, I just linked up with your garden party event. Your photos of your garden are outstanding. Your garden is beautiful and the envy of us all I am sure. Thank you for hosting the party the look of spring everywhere is a total joy. It just makes me smile.
Hugs...Jeanne
Wow, your garden looks amazing.
Rhoda - How wonderful! Those spring rains have made your gardens so lush and green. Don't you just love the variety of greens, especially this time of year. In the heat of summer, those greens just don't seem as fresh as they do now. Thank you for giving me some new ideas to try in my beds.
Charla
Rhoda, your garden is beautiful! That clematis is just gorgeous! My husband has been in the dirt but so far I haven't braved it. I'm afraid I'll kill everything!
Your garden looks lovely! I love all of the different shades of green in your garden.
Your garden is so pretty.
Glenda
Beautiful gardens! I'm not quite as far along here...
Hello Rhoda, sorry I couldn't join your fun today, our recent rain messed up my petunias. I do hope they recover today.. But your garden is wonderful, it's perfect for a party!
Rhoda,
Thanks for sharing your garden pictures and relating the names of
these plants. I got several good
ideas from looking at your pictures
today. I really like the way you explain everything on your blog, gardening, decorating, etc. It helps
to know how you did all these projects. I marvel at the creative
projects and ideas of so many
wonderful ladies. HOW DO YOU HAVE
THE TIME AND ENERGY TO DO ALL THIS?? I love your blog!
I had those spider worts in the yard when I bought the house. I didn't know what they were. Thanks to your post, I can now identify them.
Beautiful Gardens Rhoda. Thanks for hosting the May Garden Party.
Hi Rhoda!
I love the look of your Garden.
Beautiful gardens!
Hugs
What a nice idea Rhoda, your garden looks lovely.
My tulips are still in bloom but not much else; our trees are ready to burst, it's still early here. I love this rebirth each year and like you I love to try something new each year. My Grandmother had such pretty gardens she had such a green thumb, my own Mother could not care less about gardening, I got Mum's green thumb and just LOVE it. I make mistakes but who cares it's fun :)
You throw a mean party Rho,
xo Kathy :)
Rhoda...your plants are gorgeous. I missed getting pictures to join the party...not much is blooming here yet except for my annuals which I am still planting. I did post of few pics of my plantings from over the weekend....stop by if you have a minute...by the way...I had never thought to underplant my hydrangeas......going to now....yours look so beautiful....Thanks for hosting this lovely party!
Rhoda, you got the best garden in Bama. I luuuv them bunnies!!! And who gets a bird bath for $4? Now that's what I call a deal. Your perennial purple verbenas are gorgeous. I'm taking notes for my garden. Thanks for hosting a great garden party. Next time I'll grab my sun hat and bring a batch of sweet tea.
Your garden is beautiful! Since it's still spring in Oregon and too early for summer annuals, I've linked to some pics my husband took of the bulbs and other spring flowering plants in our yard. Thanks for this beautiful idea!
Becky
It's all so lovely, Rhoda. You have done a fabulous job making it all work together. It's amazing how gardens are an ongoing project and never really complete. I understand trying to work around the rain. Our yard is saturated right now, making it difficult to get some things done.
Thank you for hosting a fabulous garden party today,
Jennifer @ Fiddle Dee Dee
Your gardens are beautiful! Thank you for hosting this glorious Garden Party, I've loved every minute of visting other gardeners!
Dear Rhoda,
Thank your for kindly hosting a garden party. I am unable to participate with photos this time around, but I am sure gleaning from your garden and the other ladies who submitted theirs. Thank you for your suggestions in gardening as well. I too love digging in the dirt and gardening and these past three years on our property has been a great deal of learning. :o)
Sincerely ~ Tricia Anne
Rhoda, I loved the stroll in your garden.
Hey Rhoda!
Love your garden! I just spruced up our back porch to soften things up a little and enjoy being outside with nature.
Love this rain for our ever growing garden.....work in progress. Planted a hydrangea (in bloom already) and several azaleas this year in the back.
Good to see all your photos!
Thanks for the lovely stroll in your garden. I'm glad you visited mine last week. I think it may have floated away today after all the rain.
Thanks to ALL of you for coming by who added a link & for all who came by to enjoy all the beautiful flowers.
Believe me, I'm no expert on all of this & it has been trial & error in my garden too. Some things I've lost & had to replant, but luckily most all of the basics have made it.
And ooops, I forgot that many of you are further north and haven't got blooms yet, so maybe next year if I do a party, I'll wait a little later on ya'll!
Ooooooohh! Your gardens are beautiful!
***** SOOO L*O*V*E*R*L*Y, RHODA!!!*****
Many thanks for the smiles,
Linda *
Oh, things have surely changed in your garden, Rhoda! All still wonderfully delightful. I love gardens; unlike interior decor, gardens change and evolve all on their own. I love to see the changes from year to year, the surprise volunteers that start growing, the naturalized bulbs that come back, even when I didn't remember planting them.
Thanks for the beautiful pics!
Hi Rhoda! your garden looks lovely - so lush! We've just pretty much seen the end of our snow up north here in Alberta. My daffodils and tulips are coming up and I'm excited about a couple of blooms - it's doesn't take much to excite us northerners!! Spirea do well up here in zone 5. My favorite plant however is hydrangea and the lovely big blooms (either pink or blue) don't grow here:( Still we can find some very hardy plants and there are some beautiful gardens here - I'm still learning.
Take care!
I cheated a little....haven't had time to tweak my garden/yard much this spring so I linked to my front yard last April....hope that's okay!
I'll be e-mailing you soon about my bedroom update....and hopefully a trip up your way is not too far off!
Love ya,
Judy
I'll have to wait until later in May to post my picture (in other words..I need to weed first.)
But I have to ask? Where, oh where do you get that beaut-i-ful dark mulch? I WANT SOME.
I did post a while back on How to get your kids to weed. I'll try to find the link and come back later.
Great pictures. Very inspiring!
Love your garden. I'm going to have to get some spirea--It's beautiful. I wanted to participate today, but by the time I finally went out to take pictures this afternoon, it started raining. Oh well, it is great fun to look at what beautiful things everyone else has.
You have a beautiful garden! Great pictures!
Love the lantana! You all are probably a little ahead
of us midwesterners....will share in a week or so....
thanks for doing so Rhoda!!!!! love, kelee
I'd love to see your garden!
Happy May, Rhoda!
I just took pix of my clematis, too :)
GORGEOUS garden. Loved the hostas. I miss the garden I had when I owned my house.
Now I'm in a high rise. I'd have a garden this year, but I'll be leaving here in the next month or so for an extended stay up north.
I guess when I settle down up north I can play in the dirt.
Thanks for letting me live vicariously through your garden.
Rhoda.. I love how you set up Mister Linky so that the sights we've already visited aren't highlighted any longer. This makes it so much easier and ensures us that we've gotten to see everyones post. Now I can honestly say I got to see all that participated. Thanks again for hosting this fun garden party.. I'm gonna be a busy bee working on all the new ideas I got from everyone!
Hugs,
Debbie
Rhoda, I Absolutely love your blog and your garden is totally wonderful! I'll be back, joined you as a follower! Hey, I'm celebrating Mother's Day on my blog this week...deadline to enter is Mother's Day at midnight, PDT. Please feel free to drop over and enter...there are a variety of gifts I'm giving away and there are two different ways you can enter! AuRevoir~ ~CC Catherine from "Catherine de th`e Cup"
I don't have any photos to share yet, but I just wanted to say what a beautiful garden you have! Hydrangeas are my favorite, mine are about to open up any day now!
What a great idea! Your garden looks lovely, thank you for sharing:)
Hi Rhoda,
I guess I'm what you would call fashionably late to the party:)
Hi Rhoda,
Your garden is stunning. I remember the post about the garden wall and then your town paper's well-deserved article on it.
I know you're quite humble in saying that you're "no expert," but I really hope that I can twist your arm for some advice. I'm hoping to do a container garden on my balcony but I have no idea how to put together the colours. Would orange and red flowers clash, etc? I was originally thinking of doing all white flowers, but I thought that it might look too boring. What's your opinion?
Thank you very, very much! Maybe next year I will be joining your garden party!
Jo Draven
your garden looks just wonderful!
Wow...your garden looks wonderful! I love your garden. I'm going to have to get some spirea it is beautiful. Thank you for hosting this glorious garden party. My husband and I love this garden party. Thanks for letting me join your party. I'm so enjoying all the pretty gardens.
Post a Comment