Summer Can Begin

Memorial Day always seems like the official start to summer here in Florida as the temps reach into the low 90's and the humidity creeps up on us. Summer is not my favorite time of year to do a lot of yard work (did I mention the humidity), so I made one last trip around the yard this morning clipping here, there and everywhere. I had a couple of last items on my spring "to-do" list that I needed to wrap up, and a few more bags of mulch to spread (pine bark only - no cypress). I'm tired, hot and sweaty but my garden looks so nicccceeee.




Now with the aid of my garden helper (Round-Up) I should be able to keep things in check throughout the summer without too much trouble. I will have to do a mid-summer trim because summer showers make monsters out of my plants. And, then there is the weekly lawn mowing that must be done. Most people would think this crazy, but I actually enjoy it (and I'm not one of those lawn perfectionists either). Weeds and crabgrass are okay with me, so long as they're green. But I must admit that the best part of mowing the lawn is when I dive into the pool after I'm done. It is such a refreshing experience.




I'm fortunate to have a very shady and breezy backyard.

This pathway leads from the side yard to the backyard, and both this photo and the one below have "borrowed" landscape from my neighbor. The pink Ti plants and the Lady palm above them are part of an adjoining flowerbed that belongs to my neighbor. We color coordinated :-)
Can you tell I just mowed the lawn?

The cold weather did a number on my Angel Trumpet, but it is making a comeback. However, the Plumeria (further down the picture) is very slow to generate some new leaves. We're keeping our fingers crossed on that one.

The Blooms of May

The riot of springtime blooms is now giving way to the returning heat and humdity of summer. There are still plenty of plants tough enough to standup to a Florida summer, and keep on blooming but Spring takes first place for the sheer volume of blooms. Or, perhaps it just seems that way following the winter months.

Blooming in the month of May are:
Fourth of July rose


Peace lily and impatiens Lotus begonia
A close up of the Lotus begonia

Agapanthus

The caladiums are back. The peacock ginger in the background will soon be disappearing.
The Dancing Lady orchid
A closeup of the Dancing lady and vanda orchid
And, not quite a flower but a fruit, a lemon boy tomato - yum!

A Show Stopper

The agapanthus is so fanciful with its large puff of dazzling blue color that sits atop a tall sturdy stem. At the first sign of buds, I impatiently watched as the stems reached for the sky and waited eagerly for the flowers to pop open. I was not disappointed with the show they put on.

A Place to Sit for a Spell

I photographed this part of my sister's garden on Sunday when we celebrated Mother's Day. It is one of my favorite parts of her garden. This spot is drenched in shade for most of the day, but for now the sun is shining in to highlight this peaceful place where you can sit for a spell with her cat(s).

Neglected Tomato

This volunteer tomato bush that sprouted on its own in pure builder's sand received no fertilizer and only rainwater so far has produced 51 smaller than normal roma (?) tomatoes. It is definitely a hardy variety (unknown) that didn't need any t.l.c. My pampered bushes that I planted can't even compare to this. I'm definitely keeping seeds for this variety that I named "Brawny Roma."