Firsts

I'm revelling in the first peony. It's the first peony of the season and of this garden. I don't know why I have never grown peonies at this house. I grew peonies at my last house. That's when I learned how tough they are and how careless non-gardeners can be. We were having our first large backyard barbecue. I bought white wire fencing to put around my gardens. White, so that it would stand out, fencing to make it clear where no one should step.

It was all to no avail. Our guests stepped and even sat wherever they wanted. The only plants that escaped destruction were my hanging baskets. Otherwise, the devestation was complete. I was heartbroken. In July, it is nearly impossible to find replacement plants. I reconciled myself to having to wait until the following spring to replant.

You can well imagine my delight when my peonies came up and bloomed the next year as if nothing had happened.

There are other firsts in my garden this morning. This is Madame Pierre Oger. I bought her on sale at Home Depot last year. She began to bloom for the first time last week.

The flowers on the Seven Sisters rose are much tinier than I had expected. I thought that this rose had died last year and requested a replacement from the catalog company I had purchased it from. By the time the replacement arrived, the original was showing signs of growth. I carefully moved it and planted the replacement in its place. The replacement died, but the original lived on and bloomed for the first time this year.

I finally have some color in the Entry Garden. I had ordered four iris last year, all Dykes Medal winners. Three made it through the winter. The fourth has disappeared completely, most likely a victim of the voracious squirrels.

This is Stairway to Heaven. I've discovered several iris with musical names. I'm considering creating a "Rock 'n Roll" iris bed.

Here's an oldie but goodie. Two years ago, I purchased The Fairy and General Jacqueminot for less than $5 each at the local drug store. The Fairy has bloomed each year sincebut not a peep out of General Jac. I thought I had lost General Jac completely last year. I didn't have to heart to dig it up and throw it out. Good thing, because it later sent out a few green shoots. The trouble was that they were from the bottom and most likely from root stock and not General Jac

Looks like I was right. I compared this flower to a photo in my rose encyclopedia. They look nothing alike. It's a pretty rose, though and I desperately need color in the front of my house.