Buds with Ambition

This is such an exciting time in the garden! So many things blooming all at once.  Of course, thats probably due to my timing in getting things planted.  Next year, I would like to get some more early and late spring bloomers in, so we can have spots of color throughout the spring, summer and fall.  

This year, the spring was more focused on getting the beds ready, I missed the tulips and daffodils :)

Of the flowers I do have, there are many exciting little buds just sitting and gathering their energy. The sunflowers are all waiting, slowly growing.  I think they are about at their max height by now, each in their own way.  I saw in one of them today little petal bits forming under the leaves!! Yay.

These little guys are very cute, no more than 12" tall, which as high as they will go, they are my three little pigs of the sunflower lot.  All snuggled in together, getting fatter and fatter.

 I have a few of this variety.  They each have several buds on them, which I am excited about. Several buds = several sunflowers!

This is the third variety of sunflower that I have.  If I remember correctly, they only produce one flower. Its interesting, the different types.  The one above has more of a prickly appearance, whereas this one below looks very soft

There are so many other plants with sleeping buds right now

My Coral Rose, for instance, has several more buds it got out.  It sent out two flowers to test the area and apparently decided its safe to go into full blossom now :)

This Dahlia had a flew flowers a month ago, and now it looks like it has several more laying in wait 

This has been an interesting plant to watch as it flowered.  I have never seen an echinacea plant before, and the flowers on them are so interesting!! This is another one that sent out a couple scouts ahead and decided its a great spot to grow :)

Oh and my gorgeous red rose has more beauty to bestow upon us!!

I have a little Dahlia on the SW Corner of the house that I have never seen in bloom.  I got it on sale from a gardener down in Waldport as she was closing up for the season (cant resist 50% off!) and have yet to see its colors!! So exciting! I love surprises

My lilies have had buds out for a while now, over a month, but they are just now changing color from green.  I hope that means they will open soon!! :)

The left is from early July, the right is yesterday

There are three new yellow Poppies ready to pop (har har)

And my sweetpeas are finally getting ready to open!! I cant wait.  They smell soooo good!! I have a couple of them by the door, so hopefully when one is walking into the house, there will be a lovely whiff of sweet pea.  As it is now, I have Alyssum blooming near the front door, and I often catch their scent as I let myself in.

There are couple of little sunflowers by the Sweetpeas, I love how they are being used as scaffolding :)

There are two Passion Flower buds as well!! Oh man I am so excited about these, I cant wait to see what they will look like!

Here is a closeup of the one on the Left, I think it is so pretty how tightly folded the petals are.  Part of why I enjoy taking so many pictures is you can easily see over time how they unfold.

The passion flowers have really been making progress up the arbor!

Hmmmm....lets see.....who is is getting ready to grace us with more beauty?

This little guy has another bud out.  Funny story about this one.  Its obviously in a pot, and in this pot used to be another plant.  For the longest time, I let the pot sit, and let the other plant grow, since I had no idea what it was.  I let it grow for months, watering it, feeding it, lovingly tending to its needs.  Then one day mom comes over and I am proudly showing her my garden, and we get to this pot.  I tell her about my efforts to help it grow and thrive, and being my garden guru, I ask her what she thinks it is.  She bends down, inspects it.  And then stands back up with her answer.

Its a weed.

A WEED?! I have been nurturing and encouraging the one thing in my garden I persistently pull out?? Ugh.

Well, I got that weed out of there, and when I did, this little guy was in there. Its one of my favorite flowers, the Osteopermum Hybrid, also known as the African Daisy.  There was one yucky looking stem, no leaves, and one little blossom on the end of that stem. The poor little thing was barely getting by in there, nearly overgrown by a weed that I was supporting!! :'(

Well, obviously it is doing much better now.  That initial flower died (of course), but not before it put out a couple more stems. I planted another of the same kind (different color) in the same pot to keep it company (you can see it in the background). 

Now this little guy finally feel safe enough to bloom again!! I am so happy its doing well!!

Here is another opening I am eagerly awaiting.  I am pretty sure my mom said it is a Poppy of some kind (though obviously not the same as the others I have)

It is coming up in an area where there is a collection of plants growing that I didnt intentionally put there.  I had a container that had old bulbs in it, and once I picked out the obvious Lily, Daffodil and Tulip bulbs, there were still some things left. So, I dumped that dirt in a special cleared place and have been happily awaiting whats been growing. 

 There are some violas

And these.  I cannot remember what they are called, they are so pretty though.  The petals are so delicate looking, like tissue paper!

So many beautiful flowers on the way! And a few surprises I am happily looking forward to :)