May the Blooms Be With You: Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day

We all knew it was coming ... it happens every month on this date ... and yet earlier this week, gardeners around the country (and perhaps around the world) could be heard lamenting the fact that May 15th seemed to have sneaked up on us. That's the official date for Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, hosted by Carol of May Dreams Gardens; due to heavy gardening activity, I'm late posting about what's blooming on my corner of Katy. May is a pretty floriferous month here: I took over 100 pictures as I wandered through the gardens earlier today and still didn't capture everything that's in bloom!

The beauty below is Triumphator, a lily that's a cross between an Oriental lily and an Easter lily. The Houston Chronicle's Kathy Huber had this to say about it last year: Triumphator lily (Lilium longiflorium/Oriental hybrid): Absolutely the best? This outstanding 4-foot-tall naturalizing lily carries huge, wildly fragrant flowers. They're great for cutting, and the thick petals are especially long lasting if you remove the pollen anthers after the flowers open. Plant in a sunny, organically enriched, well-draining bed. The stems are thick so the plant rarely needs staking. Expect blooms around Mother's Day. Allow the foliage to die down in the fall. Bulblets will form, increasing the clump size. This plant is doubly special because it was a gift from my friend Tricia, who I met through my late friend Amy. Tricia and I made a trip out to Enchanted Forest last month to check on the progress of the tree planted in Amy's memory; we found this there and Tricia decreed that I must have it. I am so happy she did ... thank you, Tricia!

There's a little something for everyone here on MCOK. Looking for wildflowers or native plants? From left to right, top to bottom: Indian Blanket, Engelmann's Daisy, Rudbeckias, Berlandiera/Chocolate Daisy, Calylophus, Ratibida, Echinacea, Queen Anne's Lace, Asters (in MAY?), white Callirhoe/pink skullcap/Gaura on a corner, Heartleaf Skullcap, Echinacea & Gaura, Pavonia, Gaura, and (yes that's the same) Gaillardia. (I was having issues w/Picasa today.)



Some gardeners prefer the old fashioned flowers, as seen below: Mutabilis rose, Zinnias, Hermosa rose, Vitex, Gartendirektor Otto Linne & Scaiosa, Evening Primrose & Pink Skullca0p, Verbenas, Souvenir de la Malmaison, more Verbenas, Hot Lips Salvia, Profusion Orange Zinnias, Butterfly Weed (Silky Gold), Stokes' Aster, Madame Alfred Carriere rose, Texas Betony, and a Pink Rain Lily.


For the daylily enthusiasts, here's some shots of what's in bloom right now. I never have gotten around to getting them all IDed. I know, I know ...

If tropicals are more your thing, here's a few of those for your blooming pleasure: Pineland Meadows Hibiscus, Coral Porterweed, Batface Cuphea, Bauhinia galpinii, Tropical Water Lily Lindsay Woods, Rangoon Creeper, Duranta, Erythrina crista-galli, Royal Purple Skullcap, Mexican Bauhinia, Variegated Turk's Cap, Pink Jatropha, Hibiscus again (@#$* Picasa!), Bower Vine, Duranta AGAIN?

I've saved the best for last, or at least what I'm most excited about this Bloom Day. This is my Oakleaf Hydrangea. She's been in this spot for about 3 years now and this has definitely been her year to shine!