Garden Bloom in May

Preparing to post for Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, I was surprised at how much is still in bloom in the garden.  Temperatures have already crossed the century mark more than once, but then dropped back down quickly, allowing many plants to continue a prolongation of spring bloom.

The main season for annuals is over, though a few faces still show up here and there.  The early sunflowers are ripening their seeds; I've removed some of the violas and need to take out what's left of Cerinthe major purpurea.  But the chamomile is very much in bloom.

California poppies (Eschscholzia californica) are still flowering as well.

Dianthus has threatened to quit more than once; but every time temperatures drop, it starts bravely on again, thriving on water and shade from the nearby rose bushes.  It has set loads of seed, and I hope to be able to keep it as a fixture in the garden.

Dianthus is getting a little worn, and I can't keep up with deadheading it, but it is blooming on into May.

One annual (or rather, very tender perennial) recommended for warm season use here is Madagascar periwinkle (Catharanthus roseus).  I have just planted some, giving it a first try this summer in the borders.

By and large, though, the emphasis in the garden is shifting to the perennials and shrubs.  Woody subshrub Chrysactinia mexicana, though a young plant, is loaded with bloom...

...as is Tetraneuris acaulis.  For once, the color scheme of the East Border can be guessed at in the photo below, still a jumble as I wait for plants to fill out! 

The big surprise here is the chrysanthemums.

Lantana "Denver Red" is also blooming well.

All the lantanas are blooming well, in fact.

Lantana at the back of the patio.  These plants were already growing here when we moved in.

The newest lantana, a white variety blooming in the White and Silver Garden

Back in the East Border, Berlandiera lyrata still is blooming heavily, though we've reached the time of year when the flowers begin to close by midday.  Some of its stems have straggled up through nearby plants, such as these peeking through Acacia leaves.

Special mention should be made of another yellow-flowered plant: little Tagetes lucida, which sulked until the weather turned warm but is now happy.

And although neither of my columbines had blooms for this month's GBBD, it is their season; that is to say, Aquilegia chrysantha "Swallowtail" has been blooming off and on for weeks, and A. desertorum is just putting up its first buds.

One reason for ample bloom this May is simply that the garden is more heavily planted than it has been before, with the East Border filling out and the North Border beginning to take shape a little bit.  North Border plants include a medley of purples and reds.  Ruellia brittoniana has flowers...

...as does the still bluer Salvia farinacea, which deserves a post of its own and will hopefully eventually get it!

Also there is a plain Osteospermum, bought to test the possibilities of oversummering it in the open garden.  Last year I met with no success, but I would love to be able carry these plants through.

Also a scarlet Pelargonium is at the top of the border.

In the Central Bed there is another Pelargonium.  I am hoping to ease these through the worst of summer; I have read various recommendations for this, from restarting with new cuttings to allowing the plants to go completely dormant.

The Central Bed contains many blooms this month.  Lavender "Goodwin's Creek Gray" continues to bloom, combining with Gaura (now Oenothera lindheimeri) on one side...

...and Penstemon pseudospectabilis on another.  This penstemon has a wonderfully long bloom season.

Other plants blooming nearby include Cuphea ignea "Vermillionaire" and a newly planted Cistanthe grandiflora, still sold as Calandrinia.

The various Salvia greggii varieties bely their common name of "autumn sage".

And Russelia equisetiformis "Big Red" is looking good.  I think it has belonged in all but one or two GBBD posts since first planted two and half years ago.  It needs to be pruned back out of rose Wollerton Old Hall and vice versa.  I wasn't really expecting it to reach its full 5 ft (1.5 m) spread here!

Now, I have been encouraging the roses to slack off for the hottest months, a different tack than I used last year, but I am hoping it will enable them to put out a stronger flush come autumn.  Most have received only one full feeding this spring, plus topdressing with composted manure.  However, some have their own ideas, one of which is that May is a good time to bloom.  So...

William Shakespeare 2000

Graham Thomas

St. Swithun

And The Generous Gardener -- very generous, but betwixt...

...and between.

A few more shots from around the garden...

A smattering of late blooms from Eremphila maculata "Valentine"

A burst from Leucophyllum frutescens, probably "Green Cloud"

And the nearby Eremophila hygrophana, combining with lemon thyme flowers (a photo taken very much in the shade).

There is also Pennisetum setaceum "Rubrum", heading into its first summer here.

It's the end of the season for Oenothera pallida "Innocence".  I intend to shift these rampant stragglers entirely to the White and Silver Garden by autumn; they're a little too robust at self-seeding for the regular beds anyway.  But the smell is fabulous!

It's the beginning of the season for a couple of plants, however.  Perovskia atriplicifolia put out its first flowers for the occasion.

Even more exciting is the very first bloom from one of my Crape Myrtles.  This is Lagerstroemia indica "Rhapsody in Pink".

A good beginning to summer!  The real test lies ahead and is named "June"!

Flowers on the young Parkinsonia "Desert Museum", newly planted to help shelter the Rose Border.

Weather Diary; Sunny; High: 91 F(33 C)/Low: 69 F (21 C)