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In the grass bed

The ornamental grasses are still a no-show (all cut back and barely visible now), but look … planted as an after-thought the teeny little Salvia plants I couldn’t resist at a nursery visit are coming along splendidly! Who would’ve thought?

I’m always reading rave reviews about them, nearly every garden blogger mentions them at some stage and show theirs off – but if I’m being honest, I’ve never been overly enamoured. Up until now. They are so much more beautiful in reality than they come across in photographs. I absolutely adore them now. They are lovely, lush and green, cute little flowers and the whole plant smells simply divine.

Here are the hastily planted (between downpours a few months ago) Salvias …

[one_half]Right side of the new bed slowly waking upThe new bed slowly waking up[/one_half]

[one_half_last]Salvia filling in on left side of the bedSalvia filling in on left side of the bed[/one_half_last]

[one_half]Starting to understand their popularityStarting to understand their popularity[/one_half]

[one_half_last]I have pinks and whites and a single blueI have pinks and whites and a single blue[/one_half_last]

I love just everything about the Salvia and am so glad I planted them. What you can’t see now are three Russian Sage (Perovskia atriplicifolia) which I’ve planted behind these. They are still small and I don’t expect them to come into their own for a few months, but when they do … I think it will look wonderful here. Whispy tall grasses, Russian sage, Salvias, daisies and shorter grasses … going to be lovely.

So what happened to the Ipheon bulbs I planted? If you look carefully in the first photograph above, on the left hand side towards the front, you will see, peeping through in between the Carexes, some grass like foliage and tiny little blue flowers. These are the Ipheon bulbs I planted in June. They have just started flowering and are very cute. They work well there, but you sort-of have to know they are there to really see them. I’m hoping they will spread out a bit. They’re so small and like a little surprise discovery when you spot the dainty blue flowers for the first time. Lovely!

Here are some close up shots of the little Ipheon flowers.

Opening up - Ipheon

Fully opened Ipheon flower

Ipheon flowers and their foliage

So that’s the state of my “Grass Garden”. Not much grass but lots of prettiness!

What’s happening in your garden?
xxx

 

By Christine

Dominated by large trees on a medium sized property, my garden is very shaded. With no “full sun” areas I have to plant shade and partial shade loving plants. I love shrubs and flowers including camellias and azaleas but Roses and Irises are my favourite and getting these to thrive is a challenge …

8 replies on “In the grass bed”

Christine I also love Ipheon bulbs but they come up in late spring in a sunny dry spot for me and salvias the same. How lucky to see them in early spring. I would bet with the cold and wet of late your grasses are still waiting to break dormancy. My salvias do seed around and I welcome it. This garden is already looking lovely.

I love Salvias, of any shape or size. They’re tough, deer don’t generally bother them, and they bloom their little hearts out every season. I have Salvia greggii that reseeds itself every year in the same spot. I never do anything to it. I don’t even water it, but it looks great! Your Ipheon blooms look so dainty. Will they spread over time?

Hey!! wow! Things are starting to show their faces!! 🙂 Yup, gotta love the salvias. I just love mine – they are coming along, but not yet in bloom.
I trimmed back all my grasses and they are just shooting out! I;m going to spend the weekend feeding and hope that this will give them that needed boost! Yey for spring!!

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