Pretty as a picture.

My Valentine Rose

It's like taking pictures of your child with different expressions on his face.  That is what a garden is like. You keep loving it as it changes day to day.

And this is such a lovely red. The color takes so long to begin to fade. The flowers seem to last forever on this bush.

And it loves to poke through the fence in different places.

Just perfect!

Verbena

Verbena is one of my favorite flowers.

It has come back in several spots in my garden.  So that makes it a free plant!

It's growing in my back garden outside the fenced patio area. 

 I love the way it drapes over the stones.

This area is inside my little fence.

Evidently I had red planted here as well as pink.

And in the corner near my climbing Roses,

 it's quite happy too.

My F.J. Lindheimer Rose

I love the rounded look of the petals before it is fully open.

The  F.J. Lindheimer is one of my favorite bushes. Named for Ferdinand Lindheimer in the 1800's, it a Texas Pioneer Rose.

 It has a lovely yellowish apricot color which blooms lighter as the weather becomes warmer.

But the ruffly look of the petals when the Lindheimer Rose is fully open is really pretty too.

And it smells so nice.

It is planted right by my front door so I see it all the time.

The leaves are a pretty rich green.

The literature says  the F.J. Lindheimer Rose grows to about 4 ft.  I have had mine for almost 5 years now and it is almost 5 ft.  And we need to take into account Gustave...the Hurricane that flattened this rose!  As I  cut the roses I am cutting the bush back down to a lower height. 

It doesn't need much attention at all, except to pick the roses to bring inside.

I like that it really is an upright bush.  I don't have to do anything and it  grows just  right.  I feel like I can get more roses for less space.  I would like some more of these upright roses!

Belinda's Dream

This is the very best Belinda's Dream has EVER been. 

 It did have a wonderful flush of Roses over a month ago but the bush was so infested with thrips that most of the roses were brown.

This is the bush from the back side of the fence where it peeks into my fenced garden.

A pretty rose and a good one for cutting and giving to friends.

This is where Belinda's Dream lives.  On the outside of my picket fence.

This has been such a great year for my flowers.

  I wonder if our extra cold winter had something to do with it.

I am visiting Rose Gardens  with Make My Mondays Rosy.

"The gentle mind by gentle deeds is known.  For a man by nothing is so well betrayed, as by his manners."

Edmund Spenser, 1552-1599

Hello Morning Glory - Goodbye Sweet Peas

This is my beloved Morning Glory.

It's not your run of the mill Morning Glory.  It grows from a tuber and comes up by itself every spring.  It  is about 3" across the flower front.  And it stays open for many hours.  Always the same pretty soft purple color.

 I found it in an out of the way nursery on a car trip about 9 years ago. 

I thought you would like to see a side view.

This is what the leaves look like.

To my great surprise, it showed it's pretty self in April this year.

In all years past it didn't come up until I was convinced it was dead.  That was near the end of May.  You would find me digging in the soil to examine the tuber for signs of life.

In the process of pruning out the Sweet Peas.

Normally, the Sweet Peas are completely dead and gone before it arrives.  This year there was a conflict.  There were still a few Sweet Peas left, though pretty far gone.

I had to unveil my Morning Glory and found a bloom!!  Yeah!!

The last Sweet Peas!

They are so delightful.  

Goodbye Sweet Peas!

I can't wait to see you again next spring!

I'm joining Tootsie today for more pretty flowers.

View From My Kitchen Window

I want to be in my Garden even when I'm not there!

So I planted flowers that I can see from my windows.

My climbing Pink Rose is perfect here. 

I planted it last fall but it has had two wonderful bloom flushes already.  And blooms in between too.  I think it is Climbing  Pinkie but not sure.

The Rose Buds are perfect.

And the pause before they fully open are the most beautiful thing.

A slight pure Rose scent makes this rose very desirable near my back porch.

Have a Rosy Day!

Lily of The Nile

I love these flowers.  I love that the color is blue. My favorite color. 

Agapanthus.  I like to say the name Agapanthus.  It is such a cool word.

Lily of the Nile is a prettier name though.

Beautiful transformation!

My Agapanthus lives on both sides of my Front Garden.  If you look close you can see it on the right behind the little Crepe Myrtle tree.

Here it is.

The plant doesn't always die back in the winter which is nice.  And I like the fluffy leaves in my garden even without flowers.

"One's real life is often the life that one does not lead"

Oscar Wilde

Maggie The Rose in my Front Garden!

Isn't she Beautiful??   Maggie.

Did any of you pick up on the title "Maggie The Rose"?  I always think of the old move Cat on A Hot Tin Roof with Paul Newman and Elizabeth Taylor.  Elizabeth Taylor is Maggie The Cat. 

Most of you are just looking confused!

I put up a trellis so Maggie can be  a Pillar Rose. 

I have a Maggie Rose in the Back Garden and I loved her so much I wanted one in my Front Garden too.  She loves it out here in the sun.

Maggie Rose has a slight sweet  smell too, which I love.

Very Old Fashioned looking but so hardy.

She lives in the left corner behind the Lantana.

This is what my Front Garden looked like a little more than a month ago.

You have to be fast to not miss something in your garden!

Lantana in my Front Garden

I love the Lantana flower.

Here in Baton Rouge, it is more of a Shrub.  Some might call it a weed since it grows so well.

It lives on the very left side of my front Garden.  Right in front of the tall Rose against the brick wall.

Do you see it? 

Do you see the Butterfly?

They make sweet little Doll Posies.  And in fact are cute when cut and put in a little vase.  They don't last long though when cut!

The plants have cute names too...like "Bacon & Eggs" because of the different color combinations in one flower bunch.  Hmm, I don't remember what this one is called.

And Butterfly's love them.  

I need to put one in my back yard too.  The spring is getting away from me...!!

Have a happy day today in your Garden!

Flowers In A Teapot!

Isn't this a cute Flower Arrangement??

I love it!

The 'vase' is a teapot.  And a Bluebird is feeding her babies.

I love Teapots, I love Flowers, I love Birds!!

Is this not perfect for me??

After the flowers are gone, I will have a Teapot. 

Notice that the top has a Rose handle at the top.

The arrangement was lovely too.

Can you see the blue Hydrangea?  I love blue Hydrangea's!!

And daisies!

And little yellow Roses!!

To all the children of Mothers...

have a perfect day!