Lovely Schoolhouse! I love your red hot pokers. I've planted some but they don't seem to like me (disappeared). Yours are very well grown! Lovely!!

Thanks, girlgroup. Yes, that clump of Red Hot Pokers have been growing there quite a few years now.

I think I will plant more of the glads next Spring, even tho they flop I love the bit of color they give to this bed in July. This is the first year for them, and just had a thought - I wonder if I need to lift them in the fall? I'm thinking not, they aren't the typical really tall glads you see. Guess I'd better find out as I threw away the packaging they came in.

I'm always searching for a pure white daylily, so far "Roman Toga" is the closest I've found. I also have "Gentle Shepherd" which is a creamy white. The vet and his wife across the road sell daylilys every year, but it's been too hot to think of walking up and down rows searching for that perfect color!

I like your hedges and your little stone path. It's enchanting.
Renee

Such a lovely combination in the top picture, I've tried growing red hot pokers but they don't winter well in my garden, the neighbors can grow them but they don't do well for me.
How often do you have to clip your boxwood, I've always thought they make such a nice edging. It's something that looks good no matter what time of year and your flagstone, what can I say other than Sigh, I wish.

Annette

First the combinations are beautiful! I am really getting more interested in Red Hot Pokers from all the beautiful pictures I am seeing here.

Question: I love that tree trunk....what kind of tree?

Glads: I don't lift mine and I have had them several years now.

I have read if they are planted much deeper than recommended they won't flop. I plan to start filling in around mine and see if it works.

White Daylily: I have Joan Senior. It seems to have a faint green tinge to me. I do like that it comes true from seed and I have started a half dozen or more that way and they come true to my mother plant. Of course you have a two year wait.

Everything is so beautiful schoolhouse.

The "tree" is actually a very old Service Berry shrub. And the "stone path" isn't really a path, it's an area of laid stone with a boxwood border surrounding my "doggie poo" topiary. ha. I call it that because that's what it has evolved into over the years. Sometimes it looks like a Roman Catholic bishop with cap and gown when viewed from another angle.
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Annette, I usually trim hard in early Spring, then at least light trimming to keep it tidy one more time or twice if it isn't too late in the season.

Schoolhouse, you can buy the metal plant stakes at K-Mart for 99 cents, in their garden shop. They are green so it blends in with the foliage. Would work perfect for your Gladiolas.
We used to grow glads when we lived in our first home but not for last 35 yrs. You don't seem to see them around as much as you used to, except at funerals!

pippi, thanks. I do have a collection of those metal green supports (look closely at the glad pic, you may see them) and they really come in handy. I also use dead twigs and branches.

The kind I planted seem to be more of a Byzantine type than the "funeral" variety. Hope someone corrects me if I'm wrong. But I DO love the tall ones, I saw some this Spring with the most beautiful colored blooms on the packages. Amish women around here plant them at the edges of their veg gardens and they grow and bloom so well for them.

love the verticals of the redhotpokers, and your boxwoods are amazing!

"Doggie Poo" reminds me of a Turkish Turban - well, some kind of turban anyway.

I am still working on my plan for revamping the circular garden like we discussed last year. I hope my boxwoods and topiary turn out half as nice as yours.

I found a source of nice (semi-irregular) quarry rocks and am going to haul as many as I can. They are part of an old retaining wall that is crumbling and since I bought the place, I can get them if I want to do so (ha!) That is, if I can heft them. They are just various shades of yellow and red sandstone, but were used back in the 1930s to build houses, stores, banks and other buildings all over Oklahoma. Not sure just yet how I am going to use them, but what a great find. With our snakes here, I wouldn't even try to build a sunken garden like yours, but something along those lines of architectural structure, only above ground. Any ideas?

Wish I could root Boxwood. I keep trying, but am not doing something right as they never root. It sure would save me a lot of money if I could. I am very good at rooting Spreading Junipers and Barberry however. (go figure)

Your gardens inspire me to do want to do more with mine. In other words, YOU inspire me.

~Annie

Well, gosh thanks Annie.

Hey, I had to go to Walmart for something yesterday (ugh! people!cars everywhere!), and before I got out of there I decided to check out the shrubs they had on clearance. They had Winter Gem boxwood, 1' high in pots, for $3! Oh boy was I tempted. All I need is 10 to create another little boxwood bordered bed that I've been thinking of for a couple of years. But, I resisted and saved my $30 - for now.

Winter Gem gets 3' - 4' so if you want a short hedge it really has to be kept in check, gets about that wide too if left alone.

Annie-

You should give some young strapping farm boy a couple 20's and have him haul the rocks for you. That's hard work! And from the looks of your yard, you have more than enough work to do at home!

I saw the story about your puppy. I'm so sorry to hear about it.

Lovely garden!! I'm glad someone else asked about the interesting trunk in the first pictures.

Thanks for sharing.

Susan