This week around the farm

Last week the rain finally stopped and the sun was shinning.  The week of warm weather made me and the flowers happy.  I was finally able to do some serious weeding and get more rows seeded.  The sweet Williams are just starting to bloom in lovely colors like black cherry, red, white, and pinks.  The statice plants are putting up tall stems and starting to show some color.  The black-eyed susans are starting to put on their display, slowly but surely. I can barely contain my excitement as the Lisianthus starts to bud up.   But of course as the seasons change we have to say good bye to some flowers as well , like the bell's of Ireland and the Bell Flower that is slowing down in the heat.   

This is also the time of year when the evening primrose blooms.  It's not useful as a cut flower but it's a really cool plant that I always try to have planted up around the house. This variety is called Tina James Magic Evening Primrose, Tina hosted parties with this flower as the star.  What is so special about this plant is how the flowers open.  They literally unfurl in front of your eyes.  It's a fragrant pale yellow flower that opens at dusk.  It's pollinated at night by moths that can get as big as hummingbirds. 

Check out these arrangements that I made over the weekend.  One went to Mark's mom and the other is sitting on my desk, where some much flower planning and dreaming takes place.