May

May is the best time of the year for the garden. The garden becomes a series of fireworks displays, one after the other, flashes of brilliance and delight. I'm working on the garden having a longer period of bloom, although that also means that the peak is lower. It is spectacular when the entire garden comes into bloom, but when that only lasts a few weeks, what do you do about the rest of the year? I have something blooming just about year round now, but the most dramatic time is still May. Two years ago, I added some bearded irises to bloom earlier, before the roses, lavender and catmint. Right now it's peak time for them and the Salvia x sylvestris 'May Night'. I've removed the Salvia nemerosa 'Caradonna' for poor appearance after bloom. With 'May Night' I could just shear it to the ground and it will spring back and bloom again, just as dramatic. In a few weeks, the bearded irises will be done, and the spuria irises will come into bloom, as well as the roses, and lavender. Then other things will come into bloom as the summer goes on.