Ready for some sun

Just about everything is planted now. I grew a lot of perennial flowers including some wildflowers.  I have this hill off my back lawn where I have thrown seed for the last few years.  Nothing came up because it all gets washed away.  So I tried another tactic this year, since my greenhouse is back in operation.  I grew a few flats of wildflowers like monarda, poppies, anemone, black eyed susans, and some others.  And daisies are on my lawn growing naturally so I transplanted those to the hill as well.

I made sure to mow a few times earlier this spring, hoping to build up the soil so that it won't wash away.  Now it's knee high, almost, and I don't want to mow it again because then I'd harm my newly planted wildflowers.  I just hope the tall grass doesn't shade them out.  But that's what happens in fields...the wildflowers find their way to the top of the other grasses and survive nicely.  So I have hope for my hill but it'll take patience.

I actually want to start more seeds now for planting in the fall. Between the two plantings, it seems like next year would begin to give me some color...and the bees another source of pollen and nectar.  I know goldenrod will come up later on and I have always liked it and often pick it early to dry. It's great in dried flower arrangements.

You can see the hill between the fence and the birdhouse.  That's the hill I am trying to plant with wildflowers. This clump of daisies will be moved down onto the hill after they finish flowering.

But look at the fence!  I'm having a banner year for roses.  The ones on the left are from my mother's rose bush and I've taken a piece of it wherever I move.  It's doing very well.  These are old-fashioned roses with a deep rose scent. 

The ones on the right are Cecile Brunner roses that I fell in love with several years ago. They are a small rose, perfectly shaped and have a musky rose scent.  Both are highly scented so my house is smelling really good right now with roses everywhere.  Same with outside...when you least expect it, you get a whiff of something wonderful.  The Cecile Brunner rose doesn't take well to winters so I learned how to prepare them.  Sink 3-4 stakes around the plant and then wrap burlap around the stakes so the plant is surrounded by the burlap.  Then add leaves to fill up the burlap container.  The warmth of the leaves protect the plant from winter cold and wind.  It's worked for me two years in a row.

How I love this time of year.