Rain, little ducks, azaleas and alliums.

While Atomik is sleeping...

....some other neighbours cats are fishing... what a convenient watching place he found... do you see the red fish under Juniperus tamariscifolia growing at the edge of the pond?

Human kind decided to bike to lake and see what's new. By surprise....

We saw a little ducklings! Mallard ducks have babies!
... and plenty of them! We counted 16. Two are little older - maybe 2-3 days - this is what I think, without too much experience on growing them :) I remember that they grow very fast, so 2-3 days is long time...


Even if the weather is not sunny - it rains since few days almost without stopping - many people, even older ones like to bike, if there is only some time without shower....

On the way back we see that there came time for Crataegus laevigata 'Paul's Scarlet' to bloom. Lovely little tree...

Do you remember this beautiful neighbour's house, that I have showed you late winter? At that time we couldn't see that there is Wisteria growing. Every plant at this property seems to be in the right place - I wish one day I could photographed this garden.... Maybe it could be easier, than I think... Wisteria growing on this house looks just perfect and this gardener knows, that at certain height it needs to grow horizontally.

Back to my garden. Azaleas and alliums are in bloom... also on the right side there is Wisteria that I train to little tree...


Blooming azaleas from the left: pink Homebush, orange Golden Eagle and bicolor cream to red, double Cannon's Double.

Azalea Homebush and right next to it yellow iris is coming.



Almost black iris is coming.... Anticipation is so exciting...

Alliums aflatuense "Purple Sensation" is in its peak :)
Are they not amazing with its perfect spherical shape?


Ajuga reptans looks so lovely and makes bees happy...



Aquilegia Nora Barlow Black and its beauty.

As per request of some readers, I would like to show larger view of my garden.. This one is on the Western side of the house. If you look North, this is what you see.

If you look South - that is the view. The same apple tree from the other side - we walk along the Western bed and you come to the second tree, that is big cherry tree, visible on the picture. There is wheelbarrow standing there with cibora, that I took out of cellar and is hardening in the shadow to get to the pond....
...on the way you pass beautiful shrub Spirea vanhouttei, the amount of little spherical flowers make the branches heavy...



We come to chery tree, where the view to the back garden opens. It looks too spacious at the moment, I am not making any more planting, because one day there will be a porch build, that I am dreaming of... The rest of the garden you will see in next post :) Because we need to stop here and ....

... pinch gone rhododendrons blooms - it is time to deadhead. Rhodos and azaleas should be pinched before July 4th. That is the border date. If you don't pinch, plants put all effort on producing seeds and forming buds for next flowering season. If you pinch, they contcentrate only on growing and blooming - so it grows better and flowering is more profuse.

Pinching is very easy, if you grasp the flower at the proper place, like here... and then with one movement...


The head is gone, sparing new shoots and opening space for them to grow....