Another One Bites the Dust

 Welcome to the merry month of February.  It's still cold and I'm still in the mood to look back at flower photos from summers past.  

The photos in this post are from June & July of 2010.  I hope I don't get too whiny.  Stop me if I do.        

Over the last couple winters, I've lost several perennials, as in, a devastatingly large amount.  See how full and fluffy my flower bed looked?  And, colorful?! 

As you know, perennials typically bloom once for a short period of time each summer and it's tricky to plan a garden where you have a lot of color happening at the same time.

In other words, I had it goin' on.  And, now I don't.      
    

I adore the blue hue of this bushy variety of Delphinium.  Gonzo. 

White Coneflower (echinacea) and red Monarda (bee balm/bergamot).  

Both were thriving.

Both are gone. 

Iceland Poppies.  Guess what?  Still alive.  I thought you needed some good news.  I love all things poppy.  Such a papery colorful flower.     

I was trying to create a large patch of Purple Coneflower (echinacea) so each year I invested in several plants.   

One or two came up last summer, but I've lost 10 or 15 plants.  Keep in mind, I only buy plants that should be hardy for my zone, which is 3a.  Brrrr, maybe I should move.  But, I kind of like it here.     

Lupines are a gorgeous flower and I enjoy the foliage every bit as much when they're done blooming.  

They bloomed and grew for several years, but did not come back last spring.  Wah.   

Beard-Tongue (who names these things?), also known as Penstemon, was a pretty asset to my perennial bed.  Was. 

The truth of the matter is, some perennials last for years and years and some are short lived.  

So, maybe it was lack of snow cover, maybe it was that they ran their course.  

Either way, the perennial bed had lots of empty spots last summer and a lot less color.  I miss the purple lupine!   

I was discouraged and didn't rush out to spend a lot of money replacing everything. 

My attention is turning toward annuals (bedding plants) that continue to bloom all summer long.  You have to buy them each year, but they are less expensive. 

I'm not done with perennial gardening just yet, but my faith took a hit.  Container gardening offers color all season and no weeding.      

I'm anxious to see what comes up this spring...