Blossoms in the Garden

I feel like my summer has finally started.  The big old dump trucks and orange pushmepullyous and crews have finally left the neighbourhood.  So, not a lot of words, but many many pictures of what is happening in the garden.  

(Not only do I have that feeling of summer, but a general lovely laziness has hit as well.  I'd started this post days ago and am only now getting back to it now.)  

So, this is the way things were:

From Loblaw a very dark double red geranium.  Love the fuzzy buds.

Butterfly bush in the back garden - after the neighbour removed their beech it really is no longer a shade garden.

Another Loblaw tropical Mandevilla.

Bart, a little wider than last year, seems to be removing bits of fence when he blasts around the yard.  Kevin's putting everything right again.

No mildew on the Monarda.

'Mary Todd' Hemerocallis blooms mark the middle of my summer.

You know what they say in life - it's all in how you frame it....

Much better.

I wish I could remember the name of this wonderful red spider.  So very beautiful.

'Kwanzo' has spread everywhere - and I'm happy to encourage it.

We'd gone to the RBG - this is the progress at the Helen Kippax wildflower garden:

You can see how much water we've had.  In other years it has been far more restrained.

'Julia Child.  It was about the only rose that looked decent.

Does anyone know what this violent patch of yellow is?  Couldn't find any tag.  I'd love to incorporate it somewhere in my garden.

Not my favourite flower, but these freebies from Duncan are very beautiful.

Here's my front establishing shot.  As you can see, greener than it usually is this time of year.  We've been told the final paving will happen in September.  I opened a bottle of wine when they took the port-a-potty away.

I've become an early morning remove-the-spent-blossom snapper, collecting yesterdays beauties in my little orange pail.

My bush beans started to send out tendrils to climb - found two of these little metal forms on garbage day.  Pretty good match with the one I already had.

I'm not sure why the construction crew decided to do this, but they dumped a load of limestone screenings into my garden.

And when I removed them, I found this.  It is an access point to my wastewater pipe.  It is something else that Halton Region has promised to cut back and cover with soil.

Your morning giggle.  Obviously a housing flip.  I can see the advertisement in the paper now - "beautiful landscaped garden, and no grass to mow!!!!"  Yes, folks that is black mulch.  The only thing I can say in its defence is thank goodness it isn't red.

The second in a series of destructive storms thundered through last week.

This old silver maple down the street is at the stage that it sheds the moment the wind comes up.

The earwigs are fierce.  I sacrificed this blossom and squished 10 of them.

I think I captured almost every red spider blossom I had.

More later, but sooner than last time - saw the most magnificent hawk this a.m. and am on the hunt for my bird book to see what we spied.  Hopefully at least one of the photos will turn out so I can share.