Monday, June 14, 2010

Blue Monday: Horticultural Blues

Blue Monday is hosted weekly by Smiling Sally.
To see more offerings, or to participate yourself,
please head on over to her blog.

Although I come from a long line of farmers and gardeners, I've never been much of a soil-tiller myself. I have a few house plants that I haven't killed yet, and once in a while I'll stick some potted mums out on the balcony in the fall. But that's about the extent of my horticultural efforts. However, I do love flowers and the gardens that other, more clever individuals create. And fortunately, our condo community has some very talented and dedicated "grounds-keepers" who keep the place looking really nice all year 'round. But they've really outdone themselves this year. Took a walk around the place the other day and got some great shots of all the new plantings, and I was pleased to see that they've put in some really beautiful hydrangeas (one of my favorite plants) around the entrance gate. (Click on photos to enlarge.)


They've included several different colors, but I think the blue ones are especially pretty.


Also took a little excursion to a local garden park recently, and found this interesting shrub. It's called Leatherleaf Mahonia, and although it's not really familiar to me, it's apparently a common plant in the southern U.S.


It looks a little like a holly bush, but the little clusters of berries look like grapes and are a beautiful icy blue shade. Lovely plant - colorful but cool looking. Perfect for a summer garden in a hot and humid area like Virginia.

4 comments:

  1. Joy, those hydrangeas are breathtaking! They are one of my favorite flowers.

    Happy Blue Monday!

    XO,

    Sheila :-)

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  2. I've never seen a hydrangea bush with blue, white, and pink in ONE BUSH! How unique! Of course, I've always preferred the blue ones. My father used to grow them. Thanks for the memories, Joy. Happy Blue Monday.

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  3. Those hydrangeas are striking-all three colors no less. They are so soft they almost look like ice cream. I'd love to have those growing in my own yard.

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  4. One of my favorite flowers is a Hydrangeas, I see houses that have these as large as can be, almost half way up the house, I have one bush that is about 4 years old, has one bloom this year and is about 8 inches tall...I guess it just does not like my soil. These were amazing photos!!

    ReplyDelete

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