Primroses and Rose Campions

The heat of summer is coming on in Bowie. It's not in the 90's yet, but we're going to be in the mid to upper 80's all week. Amidst the heat and afternoon thunderstorms, the garden is flourishing.  Early June is the bloom time for the primroses and the rose campions.

I finally (after trying to track it down for two years) know what the silver plants with the dark red flowers are.

They are rose campions.  Due to some detective work done by a friend (thanks Karen) I know that these are rose campion.  And a few more details (they are short lived perennials [2-3 years] that reseed easily and can be planted with yellow flowers for a "hot" garden.)

Speaking of yellow flowers:

the primroses are taking over the garden in cahoots with the rose campions.

Looking down the path from near the holly trees on the left in the panorama

The two compliment each other well in color and in bloom time.

Across the back fence we have 4 butterfly bushes coming along nicely that will start adding a wildlife dimension to the blooms very soon.

Butterfly pictures should start showing up soon. We've seen one or two butterflies already, but they'll be more as soon as the butterfly bushes start to bloom.

Field Trip to Montpelier Mansion

To celebrate a few days off leading into a long weekend, we went on a field trip today.  We visited Marietta Mansion, Montpelier Mansion, and Belair Mansion. It's a beautiful afternoon with temperatures in the low 70's, sunshine, and a slight breeze.  We couldn't ask for a better day to go out and walk around some well manicured grounds and gardens.

The highlight of the afternoon was the formal garden at Montpelier Mansion in Laurel.  I told Gloria that I wanted to get out to take some pictures - and I hit the jackpot for some garden shots.  They have a formal garden with Irises, Peonies, Roses, and herb among other plants. This weekend is a great time to see the peonies and the irises.

The formal garden looking up towards the mansion.

Near the entrance were several groupings of Irises.

The Irises posed for their close-up.

Then we passed through the formal herb garden and got to the peonies,  GORGEOUS!! 

Simple and fancy at the same time, the outer petals create a simple setting for the inner fancies.

Gloria has asked for more peonies in our garden.

I'm not sure what color to call these.

In the center of the peony beds there were several rose bushes.

(speechless)

And near the edge of a cleared area I saw this fellow.

I'll never have the time for such a formal garden, but it was fun to find one nearby that we can go visit together. We'll be watching heir website for activities at the mansion for more chances to go up and enjoy the grounds.