This year, June on the Lot has brought the passing of the last of the Spring bulbs and the transition of the season from Spring to Summer. The first half of the month found the Lot blooming with peonies, iris, false indigo, poppies, spirea, wysteria, bleeding heart, coral bell, and thrift. Unlike previous years, I’ve begun to cut little bouquets of flowers for the Other Half and I to enjoy in our home offices. I also am having a lot of fun bringing flowers from the Lot to friends and family.

Now it is the 15th of the month and it is once again Bloom Day! This year, that means roses for the Lot. Three of the four climbing roses on the Lot were already established when we moved here. This first rose was doing poorly and suffered from black spot because of a downspout at it’s base. After trying to dig it out of the ground several seasons ago, this is what it appears like now.

At the southwest corner of the house is our largest rose. This thing is a beast. It tries to entangle and devour trick-or-treaters, mailmen, and at times our guests. Since the Other Half is in charge of mowing, he has a deep dislike for this plant. As wild and crazy as it is, I think it is beautiful. Right now it crawls over the edge of the porch, but there are plans for a hanging trellis in it’s near future.

Here is a rose we planted in the backyard along the fence. I adore this “little one” because it is an offspring of my friend Mrs. J’s grandfather’s rose. Like she says, it has a pleasant scent of “Grandma Soap.” The four-footed garden helpers think the blooms made excellent bobbles to bop.

Last season Ms. A and I extended a south-facing bed in front of the house. The unusually hot and dry summer foiled attempts at starting many new plants in said bed. One plant that survived a move from the backyard to the new bed was this coreopsis that is just starting to bloom. Above it is the fading blooms of our fourth rose, a deep red one that is always the first rose to bloom on the Lot.

Last Fall I hit the garden centers and brought home a small flat of Jewel of the Desert Peridott Iceplant (Delosperma). It is pictured above to the left of the coreopsis. The little groundcover is supposed to be super drought resilient. It made it through the winter, is now blooming, and should continue until first frost. Here is a closer view.

And last but not least is a plant purchased this season during the 2013 Annual Spring Nursery Crawl. This plant is also in the new, south-facing bed in front of the house. Check out this lovely Cherry Brandy Rudbeckia.

Remember to visit May Dreams Gardens to see what else is blooming this month around the world!