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May 13, 2017

Central Florida Spring Garden



A beautiful, much needed, rainy day in Central Florida!  Finally!  I've run out of things to do inside so I'll take a few minutes and share what's been going on in my gardens this week.  
I have a variety of ginger plants, but Variegated Shell Ginger is always one of the first to bloom.  The foliage is wonderful year round, so I consider the blooms "the cherry on the top".  These are rather large plants and do a great job of  screening my chicken coop. 







The garden by the front porch has erupted with color.  The Amistad Salvia is doing it's part to draw in hummingbirds - love this plant!



Just beginning to bloom, Tithonia is going to mix well in this bed.



'Belindas Dream' rose is doing well here also...one of the easiest care roses for Florida.





A large flowered Clematis by the porch...



A smaller flowered one on the arbor...



This one is so dark, almost black on overcast days.



On the brighter side, daylilies are also blooming.  These are wonderful plants for all gardeners, with or without green thumbs, nearly carefree.



A seldom seen 'for sale' plant that I just love.  I've spread it all over my shade gardens and the hummingbirds are always visiting them.  Hardy red gloxinia...





'Climbing Iceberg'



The vegetable garden is producing mouth-watering, sweet onions and summer squash.  Tomatoes, possibly by Memorial Day.







Still lovely, behind the vegetable garden, Mexican flame vine and yellow bells.



Close by the vegetable garden, this birdhouse is home to a pair of Eastern Bluebirds _ Mama...



Daddy, watching from the shop roof...



Hope you're all having a delightful spring.  Happy Mother's Day to all the Moms!








7 comments:

  1. Wow, what a treat to see your garden at this time of year. It's absolutely gorgeous!
    I am so excited that I have a clematis growing at the new house. I've always loved them, they are so dramatic!
    I was wondering how your veggie beds are doing as far as wee control with the mulch? I'm thinking of using the cement blocks like you have, only because they are so easy to find on CL and freecycle.

    Seeing your lovely garden always makes me feel good. Enjoy your day!

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  2. Ooops, W-E-E-D control, not wee control. ;0D

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    1. Daisy, I have a pretty thick layer of mulch between the raised beds, so yes, it does a great job of weed prevention.

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  3. Hi Janice, So many wonderful things happening in your spring garden. I've never heard of Armistad salvia but it's very pretty, and all those wonderful coneflowers. I have the hardest time growing them. Belinda's Dream is one of my favorites. I need to add her to my 'wish list' of plants. Thanks for reminding me how beautiful and carefree she is. Luv your clematis vine. I've never tried one of them. Maybe, I should add that to the list too. What kind of onions do you plant and when do you plant them? They look really healthy!Your Bluebird pics are sweet as ever. Such a beautiful bird! Enjoy all the beauty that surrounds you!

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    1. Susan, I've never had luck with coneflowers either, at least with the plants I purchased. I started these last spring from seed and they all came back and even spread. I've never gotten but one season out of plants that I've paid $$ for. This is the second year I've planted these onions, vadalia sets that came from Bob Wines Nursery in Ocala, planted mid January.

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  4. Janice, Everything looks beautiful. All the gorgeous blooms are inspiring me to make the effort to update my blog that I'm desperately behind on. I truly LOVE the variegated ginger and it's blooms!!! Your vegetable garden looks great, and I love all the beautiful displays and vignettes that show off your plantings so well.

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    1. Lynda, thanks for your kind comments. I also took time off from my blog this winter, but as always, spring reinvigorated me. I'm looking forward to seeing the beauty in your garden.

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