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| Welcome! |
Welcome to my zone 7b Long Island garden and I hope you enjoy your visit! The month of June has been the rainiest I can remember and the temperatures have been mostly in the upper 60's and low 70's, with the exception of a couple of days in the high 70's and just this week one day at 88 degrees, which felt like a heat wave! The foggy morning and evening skies and on and off showers have certainly delivered an abundance of moisture to the garden, hence all the plants have been thriving with lots of blooms. I find myself spending a lot of time in my own garden between working with clients, as being surrounded by plants brings on a feeling of peace and happiness.
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| Itoh Peony 'Bartzella' in early June |
As we start our stroll, let's take a moment to reflect back on just a week ago, with Itoh Peony 'Bartzella' along the patio border in full bloom. Their large yellow blooms are a sight to behold and last for only a short time, so I made sure to capture the moment. They are accompanied by Salvia 'May Night', which is still in full bloom.
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| Itoh Peony 'Bartzella' |
Here is Peony 'Bartzella' up close. 'Bartzella' is a cross between a tree and herbaceous Peony, so its stems are sturdy and do not flop over with the weight of the flowers. I wish it would bloom longer than it does, but at least the foliage is attractive too!
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| Allium 'Globemaster' |
Allium 'Globemaster' is in bloom poolside accompanied by Weeping Japanese Maple in the backdrop, and Spirea and Daylilies aside it. This view is also from just a week ago before the blooms started to fade.
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| Rhododendron 'Elegans' |
The Rhododendrons had a wonderful season which I just had to share. This is a view from the end of May into the first week in June.
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| Patio Garden |
Presently along the patio border is dwarf Spirea 'Candy Corn' now blooming, displaying its delicate rosy-pink clusters of flowers along with the spiked blooms of Lamb's Ear (Stachys). Balloon Flower (Platycodon 'Komachi') is starting to form buds and Echinacea 'Pow Wow' is starting to form its first flowers.
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| Patio Garden: Spirea Double Play 'Candy Corn' and Lamb's Ear (Stachys) |
I am enjoying the 'Candy Corn' Spirea as it is a smaller, more compact variety of Spirea, only reaching a height of about two feet, and its branches and foliage are a fiery reddish-pink in early spring.
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| Perimeter Garden-Kousa Dogwood |
Along the northern perimeter, Kousa Dogwood 'Greensleeves' is putting on quite a show for the month of June and will bloom for some time. I love the greenish-while flowers on this particular variety.
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| Perimeter Garden- Double Knock Out Roses! |
It seems to be a good season for Double Knock Out Rose as well, despite all the rain. Also in view is Weeping Norway Spruce, and the foliage of Nandina 'Obsession' and Sedum 'Pure Joy'.
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| Patio Border |
Salvia 'Blue By You', a taller and longer blooming variety of Sage is accompanied by the variegated foliage of Osmanthus along the patio border. To the right is Weeping Blue Atlas Cedar and Heuchera 'Caramel' (Coral Bells). With a little deadheading, the blooms of 'Blue By You' will last into late summer.
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| Pool Border |
Here is a present view of the pool border with Allium 'Globemaster', accompanied by Daylily 'Stella D Oro' and Spirea 'Limemound', which are now in bloom. Up on the waterfall, the Spruce, Variegated Boxwood and Juniper added three years ago are finally getting established and sending out a lot of new growth.
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| Spirea & Nepeta |
With all the newer dwarf varieties of Nepeta (Catmint) on the market, I am enjoying Nepeta 'Little Trudy' in a planter by the back stoop along with Spirea 'Candy Corn' in a planter behind it. 'Little Trudy' stays at a more compact size of just eight to ten inches high by twelve to sixteen inches wide.
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| Driveway Border West-Weeping Norway Spruce |
As we move towards the driveway border, here is Spirea 'Magic Carpet' with Salvia 'Caradonna', Weeping Norway Spruce, Dwarf Norway Spruce and Japanese Garden Juniper. Have I mentioned that I am a fan of Weeping Norway Spruce and dwarf conifers? You may have guessed that by now!
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| Driveway Border-Spirea 'Magic Carpet' and Salvia 'Caradonna' |
Here is a closer view of the Spirea and Salvia 'Caradonna', along with Japanese Iris.
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| Japanese Iris Blooming! |
This Japanese Iris is a clump that made its way outside the fence, branching off from the original iris patch that my mother planted back in the 1960's. It is a nice memory to still have a piece of it remaining after all these years.
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| Front Lawn |
As we approach the front lawn, Heuchera 'Caramel' (Coral Bells) on the main island bed have certainly been enjoying all the rain, and Osmanthus 'Goshiki' is also pushing out some new growth, which has a pinkish hue to it. Weeping Norway Spruce, two Weeping Japanese Maples and Blue Atlas Cedar are in the backdrop.
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| Driveway Border East |
I had replaced the coreopsis along the driveway border with these three Dwarf Norway Spruce, which have taken well to their home. They are accompanied by Golden 'Skylands' Oriental Spruce, Coral Bark Maple, Golden Hinoki Cypress 'Verdoni', Weigela 'Spilled Wine' and Nepeta 'Walkers Low'.
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| Thank you for visiting! |
I hope you enjoyed your visit to my May garden. I so appreciate you being here, look forward to your comments and enjoy seeing what you have growing in your garden. Special thanks go out to our hostess Carol at May Dreams Gardens, who makes it possible to see blooms on the 15th of every month with her meme Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day. Also, special thanks to Pam Penick at Digging who had hosted Foliage Follow-Up, a meme I will continue to honor. I am also linking with some other wonderful hosts and hostesses at Floral Friday Fotos, Nature Notes at Rambling Woods, Image-in-ing weekly photo share every Tuesday, Weekly Photo Link-Up at My Corner of the World on Wednesdays and Garden Affair at Jaipur Garden.
IN THE NEWS! Our home was selected to be on the local garden tour, "A Little Garden Music and Art," for the third time! It was a rainy day, but visitors came from near and far to see our garden and it was an honor to be part of this amazing venue!
Also, sending out a big thank you to FeedSpot for including A Guide to Northeastern Gardening in their top 20 Best New York Gardening Blogs. It is an honor plus be sure to check out the other blogs that made the list!
My sixth book, The Houseplant Guide: How to Easily Select & Maintain Indoor Plants is celebrating five months since publication! If you are into houseplants, this may be the book for you! I cover over 120 plant selections with full color photographs of each one and detailed descriptions on care and maintenance.
Other Places to Find Me:
You can visit my Author Page to learn about and Purchase My Books, each one focusing on different aspects of gardening, including landscape ideas, design principles, gardening by month for all-season interest, gardening tips and maintenance, shade gardening, gardening inspiration and more. And also be sure to check out my newest publication, The Houseplant Guide, to guide you on your houseplant journey!
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Until we Meet Again...Happy Gardening!
Author: Lee @A Guide to Northeastern Gardening, © Copyright 2010-2025. All rights reserved.
The rain has truly benefitted the garden! The rhododendrons (our state flower, btw) are spectacular! My eyes travel all over each of your photos, having such great year-round interest and structure, Lee. I'm still amazed at how your 7b can be behind so many specimens in our 7a garden (rhodies, kousa, bartzella to name just a few). Happy gardening!
ReplyDeleteYour garden is lovely in all seasons, but especially gorgeous right now. The Irises, Roses, Alliums, and Rhododendrons are stunning! Happy Bloom Day!
ReplyDeleteYour June garden looks fabulous, Lee! Of course, I'm envious of the peonies, which I don't seem to have a hope of getting to bloom (even though the foliage comes up each year). Your Rhododendron display is impressive too. How do you prevent neighborhood cats from eating the plant down to the ground? Mine have never survived more than a couple of days and I haven't wanted to put them in a cage.
ReplyDeleteI may be on the hunt for a Little Trudy of my own!
ReplyDelete