As we move on to June we come into the next wave of blooms following the early spring flowers.  First to flower is the oriental poppy with its papery peach petals followed by the first of my peonies.  The large ruby red flowers certainly make a statement in the garden bed.  Another plant that is making a statement this season is the lupine.  I grew them from seed originally and they now have large deep purple spires.  As of writing this post my cream and pink peony is beginning to bloom which I am very happy to see.  

Once again with a mix of sun and rain the garden is looking very lush and I do appreciate the shady areas when temperatures reach the high 20’s.  The trees and climbers also provide screening as our main garden is at the front of the house.  We are going to have an abundance of peaches this year…so much so my husband has had to thin them out a bit.  Meanwhile in the vegetable garden I am already harvesting lettuce.  I always tend to over plant but you can never have too much with neighbours to share with. 

As much as I love to garden I do at times benefit from a break away.  Just this past weekend I went on an MG run with my husband meeting up with friends across the border.  Gary’s run is in its 16th year now (in memory of Gary, a Canadian, who sadly passed away just before the first run he organized).  This year we headed into the Kootenays.  Despite inclement weather it was still a successful run.  We stopped at a ghost town in the Slocan valley area called Sandon.  This was once a booming place with a population of 5,000 and its main industry was silver mining.  It was also an area where there was Japanese internment and in later years the old Vancouver trolley buses were moved here for fear of the copper and aluminum being stolen.  

The scenery in the Kootenay region is spectacular especially on sunny days.  High snow capped mountain ranges surrounding blue/green lakes.  

It makes me feel good that with my cottage garden plantings I encourage birds, bees and butterflies.  We even had a pair of ducks drop by quite recently.  Our pond is a little too small for them but they enjoyed strolling around the yard. 

Happy Gardening…until next time.