The color did darken up today, I will take a pic and post it with my NOL pics.. I don't know if she is going to open today or keep me waiting another day. Daniella if the petals get stuck one time does that mean the blooms will alwys be this way on the echinacea plant? Thanks all. And yes, the little trip was nice...thanks for asking. Shawn

Very nice!! Looks so pretty...you must have a huge deck! I love how you have arranged the plants..its perf! We'll be waiting on the bloom pix!

Thanks for the comments :) The blue feathered/wierd one has only put out about 8 flowers so far and 3 didn't even open all the way. I haven't been able to get any seeds so far from it either so hopefully I will get some before it freezes or I will have to try to root cuttings and overwinter in the house. The blue in the photo is a little darker than real life because my camera wants to make all the blue hues more purplish for some reason. The phillipine violets are more blue than purple too. Both our cats look like Halloween cats lol. We have the black one and one that is white, black, and orange calico with long hair. Shawn the plants I won on BGI are: Freckles (It has a green on green variegated foilage-just can't see it that good yet cuz it is so little), The other two are named yet but he is planning to register them. One of the others has a orange almost bronze flower, and the other one is a whitish cream flower, I think, that is a really spectacular bloomer. They are babies of the hybridizer Fred Sommers. kylie, that could be a deficiency-who knows, there is a mother plant and another normal pup in the same pot that are very healthy maybe they are hogging all the nutrients. I just think that pup is so wierd regardless lol~growing really slow too, only grew @ 3 inches all summer. I should separate it in the spring and see what happens. Jim, you get much hotter than us here but I know that MGs grow in hot climates and reseed themselves to the point they become invasive. I just let mine climb wild up other tall plants like the brugs and other vines. Some of the newer varieties don't seem to produce as many seeds so might not be as invasive. I don't have that many exotic types yet- but there are some really strange ones out there now-look at ebay lol.

Thanks everyone, I so love my iris, almost as much as my daylilies :) I'm seeing new bloom stalks every day. The weather is set for a cool down thankfully-possible light frost next week! This is the first year for bloom on Starple & All Revved up. I've had Starple for a couple of years, thought it had died so pleasant surprise. I think the trees you are seeing are all evergreens-neighbors on each side of us lined their property with spruce. Each of them have a big brick mansion & manicured lawn, I like the white country style house with lots of-guess what-FLOWERS! Suits me, I love the privacy & I hardly know they are there. But anyway, even though the photos don't show maples & other trees I have, other have already bloomed & leafed out. Crape myrtles aren't showing anything yet, but hydrangeas are starting to leaf out. Jean, I've heard people talk about their iris changing color, but I've never had that problem in any of them. I've had a few iris since I moved into this house, 17 years, although didn't really start collecting til about 8 years ago.