Pay dirt

It's time.... when all the hard work and anticipation in the garden starts to pay off.

The Lilac is in full glory and it smells amazing. It's still young (just three years old). It's not even as tall as the  fence yet... but it packs a big punch. I just wish it stayed in bloom all summer long.

I'll soon find out what colour the Columbine I got on clearance last year is. It's kind of fun buying mystery plants.

Speaking of mysteries... remember that poppy that appeared in the Little Bee garden. I thought it was my Champagne Bubbles poppy. But a few days ago, I noticed that the buds were a lot different than the poppies I'm used to. It finally bloomed and I'm pretty sure it's a Wood Poppy. They are a native wildflower, but are endangered here. I'm guessing the birds brought it for me.

The Alium has finally bloomed. I had 30 of these bulbs and about 20 of them grew. So far only the white ones have bloomed, but it's suppose to be a mix of pink and yellow as well. They are small and sweet - and the bees love them.

My Red Bearded Iris has bloomed. I was hoping to get some new irises this year, but the garden centre only had the usual suspects, so I opted out.

 The first of my lilies have bloomed (though they ALL have buds, it's going to be quire the show this year).  As pretty as it is.... this particular lily was suppose to be a very dark, almost black purple. There are four more from the same batch, so it will be interesting to see if any of them are as advertised.

I picked up another Armeria when Mom and I were out as they provide a nice bit of late spring colour. This one is taller and darker than the other one I bought earlier.

And strawberry season is coming! I'm hoping as these plants age, that the berries get bigger. The last couple of years they've been laughably small.

The Bachelor Buttons will bloom soon. This was a clearance plant, and it's become one of my favourites. It's big, and bushy and a prolific bloomer. And the bees adore this one.

And in the department of coming soon....

I tried this one last year, but it got crowded out by the Blanket Flower and I didn't realize in time. I hope I can make it work this time.

I normally wouldn't have gotten this one because of the price (it was part of their "pollinator" series - all the plants were twice as much as usual), but since I was using my loyalty points, I "splurged". The Coneflowers really bring in the butterflies, so you can never have enough - plus, they bloom all summer long, right into fall.

I admit, I've fallen in love with Delphiniums. They do so well in my garden, and since I have blue, and white and pink... why not add mauve?

And remember how I was saying I wish the Pasque flower came in different colours? Looks like it does. It also comes in blue, white and pink... but for now the red will do!

I'm done with new plants this year... at least until the clearance sale starts!