I would have to say my garden is at it's best the last week of May, the first three weeks of June, after that there are only spots that look half decent. I try to keep it tidy, you noticed I said TRY, this is the time I start pulling things out, planting different things, hoping that the following year it might look better. From now on it's Annette move your butt outside and get with it, WEEDS wait for no-one.

Annette

Annette, I've always envied you Victoria gardeners thinking you had the perfect conditions year round, learning something new every day! M

Mora, I live and garden in Nanaimo, north of Victoria, our winters are a tad bit colder. I can't grow some of the things they can in Victoria :o(.
There are a lot of year round gorgeous gardens here, mine just doesn't happen to be one of them. It doesn't help that I'm supposed to stay out of the sun, so things do get away from me. The last few years we've had so much rain through the winter and early spring it's hard to get things done early sooo, it's an ongoing battle for me. This year I'm getting more done then in the past. I think it's all of you fellow gardeners that keep my energy level up :o).

Annette

April thru May are my peak months for overall beauty - dianthus, violas, clematis, azaleas, pinks, violets are all in full bloom along with late bulbs. The perennials are all neatly contained with fresh new growth - no one is out of bounds. The rest of the year including winter have pockets of interest. I have finally realized that the garden cannot have the full lush magazine cover look all year round. I am trying to get some really nice foilage plants incorporated into the gardens to add interest during non-blooming times and stragetically place containers of annuals to add that extra WOW factor. Right now I am pulling out all the spent larkspur which gives me a clean look again - daylilies are on the upswing and asiatic lilies have been blooming for well over a month now with the taller lilies just starting to take over. It is an ever evolving process but I love it......

Lynne

I don't know yet. I'm new to this area and still trying to figure out what works and what doesn't. I know for sure that things peaked just last week. Had to pull out all of my beautiful snapdragons after discovering that they were covered in some sort of rust. So sad-- until this event, I was just about ready to believe they would end up being an all-year-round perennial.

My California Poppies seem to be going strong-- tons of blooms, still, and many more getting ready to open. The foliage is starting to turn gray, though-- kind of ashy looking. I guess this is the beginning of the end for them.

How long do Nasturtiums last? Those boogers have turned into total thugs and show no sign of letting up. The leaves are just huge on a few of them and the flowers are profuse. They are throwing out runners right and left-- the runners just keep getting longer and longer and longer!

Same for Sweet Peas-- how long will they keep going over here on the West Coast? They were only about six inches high at the beginning of May and now they are over five feet and just about spread that wide. I only planted three seeds. Who knew??? Not me! I think these guys are going to end up being my very favorite flower. So hardy and so delicate all at the same time.

Red Oriental Poppies just began blooming yesterday. I didn't even know what the were until then-- forgot I planted them, it was so long ago. I had no idea just how tall these guys get!

Lavendar and sage is blooming along with a new Clematis, a Jasmine, a Potato Bush, some Morning Glory vines, some Pansies, and a few other misc. plants. The Pansies are hardy little souls. I planted them last Fall and they've been blooming ever since-- even through some freak hard freezes.

Hmmm.... now that I think on it, the Hollyhocks I started from seed a couple of months ago look like they are forming blossoms. So exciting! Maybe I'll be able to have a couple good seasons around here.

Nancy

I would have to say second half of April, first half of May for mine - with the rose peaking season. There is a second season of interest around October and November (exact times vary according to the weather conditions on the particular year). I will try to find some meaningful photos to post on the gallery, but probably won't make it tonight.

Great post(s), Martha!
Eduarda

For the past several years I've worked really hard at having minor crescendos every couple of weeks, rather than one big show a year.

I'd say that probably what I think is one of the prettiest times happens in October, even though we have very little fall leaf color as compared to the north. The second might be when the Azaleas and Dogwood bloom late March to early April.

Nell

Here is a link that might be useful: Recent Minor Crescendo

I'm not quite sure, either, because my gardens are so new. I think that I haven't hit full stride yet, although the daylillies are blooming. They're repeaters so I expect them to put on more shows in the coming months. My roses are just cranking up, after a weak first flush....I think the cold weather we experienced here this winter played a part in that. It's been a bad season for powderey mildew, too....even my icebergs have it and they usually don't. What's really freaky is the only two roses that don't have any PM or BS at all are my two newish Angel Face bushes. I was anticipating trouble with them. Anyway, I expect June/July to be peak months for me.

Madhabitz, a clump of my snaps had that same rust thing going on. I cut them back and now they're fine....they're like blooming machines this year. I planted some sweetpeas, also....little things, and they're growing and blooming. I seem to remember my father-in-law's blooming through the summer, and he's in the foothills of the San Gabriel Valley (read HOT)....they are planted in part shade, though. Most of my pansies and violas are still cranking, too, which amazes me.....but then again, it's been on the cool side this season. Hopefully, they'll last a month or so longer. From what I've seen, nasturtiums can go all summer and into fall. I don't grow them, but a neighbor does and it seems I always see them in her bed.

Lorin, my snaps were covered from top to bottom with this stuff. I thought about just cutting them down like you describe, but decided to just try again later. I now know that it was likely my fault-- I was bad about watering from the top and these guys were jam packed together. Next time I will spread them out a bit. Thanks for the tip on cutting them back. Also thanks for the glimmer of hope that my sweetpeas will last a good long time!

Nancy

ItÂs April/May here too  azaleas, gardenias, vitex, milkweed, coneflowers, plumbago  then the heat sets in. The veggie garden is already taking a beating. I pulled 3 tomato plants today. Black-eyed Susans are starting to bloom and soon theyÂll provide more interest.

Like Nell, I also find fall, October-December, has a lot of potential. Most of whatÂs in bloom that time of year is of interest to Western migrating hummers who overwinter here  abutilon, firespike, turkÂs cap, pineapple sage, cardinal flower, cypress vine, etc.

Hmmm...my garden is pretty new here in Lompoc, but I do know that my garden was lookin' pretty good in April/May with all the roses blooming. I can't wait to see how things progress. I've got lots of new stuff this year. Hehehe...I've got lots of new stuff EVERY year!
~Melissa

Melissa? You are in Lompoc, CA??? Small world!! I just moved here last year.

Nancy

When I think about what it might look like a few years down the road - lol. Though right after a rain isn't too bad.

Depends on the plants.
For my evergreens, it's early spring when they begin to flush new growth.
But for my garden, overall, I'd have to say mid-summer is when all the beds are at their peak and look the very best they're gonna look for the year.
The majority of my flowering plants are late winter-sown annuals, so they don't hit their stride until late June or mid-July.
I'll post a photo or two when they get to that point...they haven't hit it yet. My zinnia, periwinkle, and cleome are only now reaching their full height and getting buds and my elephant ears haven't reached their full potential yet, either. Still a few weeks to go.

RENEE

The first flush of roses in the spring is always pretty but I think I like my gardens best in the summer and fall. We don't have the triple digit temps of the inland So.Cal valleys or the high desert that spreads out below me so most things bloom straight on through until the first hard frost, which often doesn't come until the following Jan.

I try to grow things that will bloom for several seasons. I am an outdoors person so I need a bloomin' garden for as long as I can get it. : )

Diana

Nancy, welcome to Lompoc! My husband and I moved here about nine years ago from Michigan. I have really only been gardening for about three years or so. This forum has really helped. I was lurking for quite a while. Every year I am figuring out what works and what doesn't.
Happy Gardening
~Melissa

Thanks Melissa! I am loving it here (except for the wind-- could do without it). It's so much quieter and no more Fresno heat! I am new to this gardening life and it's the same for me-- so different than any place I've lived before.

Nancy

Update....scrap the third week in June for my garden, a lot of things seem to have gone to seed almost overnight, clematis and azaleas need deadheading, the welsh poppies and columbine are now a sea of seed pods.
DH has reminded me now is the time to go down island for strawberries for my freezer jam. I'm trying to get a grass smothered gravel path, which was at one time bordered with sedums and sempervivums cleaned out, I can't believe it, some are still alive. While I'm doing this the couch grass, buttercup, and god knows what are taking over the rest of the garden.
We've pulled Abraham Darby out of the dirt, tied him back to a post with a ugly piece of blue rope, He's a beauty but I'm annoyed with him at the moment, when he fell over in a drunken stupor he did a number on some lilies. As soon as this crop of blooms are finished he is going to get the haircut of his life.
Well if I can get this one path cleaned out today and get this strawberry thing out of my hair that will at least be something accomplished. I know, whine, whine, whine, but it feels good to vent every so often.

Annette

My garden is usually at its best yesterday, or tomorrow.

Yesterday's Hibiscus has only one blossom today, now that the camera batteries are recharged.

Nell

Nell - Lol! That's me...

I will say, at our old house, we ended up doing things a little backwards. The front of the house faces east, and we spend most of our time outside in the afternoons. So, in spring and fall, I prefer to be in the backyard, and in the heat of summer, in the front. So, what did I do?

Front yard climaxes:
April - daffodils and grape hyacinths
Late May/early June - roses and blue flax
Sept/Oct - hollyhocks and asters

Backyard climaxes:
July - assorted daylilies
August - Purple coneflower, liatris, etc.

Oops!

The new house faces south, but with a nice big shade tree in front, so there shouldn't be as big of seasonal differences between the front and back this time!

My roses are so beautiful right about now, so June is wonderful for them, but for the rest of it, for the garden as a whole, I'd say July is better. Things are bigger and lusher by then, and that's about how long it takes me to get on top of the weed situation :), and lots of things do bloom then. Right now I still have lots of seedgrown plants that are TINY, so the beds look a little more roomy than I like.

Arrg! I started this post with the full intention of replying to everyone who responded...work has grabbed me by the neck and I have just not got the time I need, but I have read all your posts and have learned so much and thank you all for responding.
Looking forward to your "climax" pics in the gallery, M

I would have to say early summer. Almost my entire garden is summer and fall flowering with plants that thrive in the heat. However by the end of the summer I do tend to get weeds and that dreaded trumpet vine that pops up everywhere constantly (and grows huge) cause I'm just not out there in the heat trying to do something about it. I deadhead in the hottest times and that is it.
Meghan

This is such an interesting post. I always find it so interesting to see what people have that is thriving.
Madhabitz . . .I have to say I am a little envious. I have decided I just have to give up on sweet peas. I planted FIFTEEN packets and got ONE bloom- I think it is just too hot here. I would say my garden is at its best later in the summer when the dahlias have taken off. My garden is still so young though- only three years old. I still hold out for the "promise" of what it will look like-hopefully!- in a couple years when there is more continuous color.

Mora, I sure understand the work imposition....work ruins my weeks and now that it is the weekend we are getting pouring rain! This has been an interesting thread...I have loved reading everyone's answers. As for mine...well, I have worked really hard at having blooms from the first possible minute until the last possible minute. Early spring (that was the end of April for us this year) I look forward to Johnny Jump-Ups and blue, freckled and pink violets, spring tulips and daffs of course and crocus. My crab apple, cortland apple and lilac all bloomed gloriously while we were on vacation out of state. The neighbors enjoyed them though. Then as those start to fade I get forget me nots and bearded iris (iris are still blooming), yellow daylilies are blooming as are my siberian and dutch iris. My Nellie Moser clematis is more beautiful this year than I have ever seen it. My "the Chatelaine" lupines have surprised me by blooming very early this year (now) and have tons of buds coming. I also have peonies that are budded up really well. We had to replace our Bonica rose bush this year and have put it in a different garden that gets more sun. If this one is anything like the one that died of old age we will be more than happy. My asiatic, oriental and tiger lilies are getting lots of big buds. The Sweet Williams are beginning to bloom. Everyday I go out and find something else has reached blooming point. I guess I just live to garden and love growing anything and everything I can. Yup...blooms from as soon as possible for as long as possible...gotta love it.

Bonny

This is a really good topic, Mora. I can appreciate what you are saying because I tend to feel the same way when those lucky California gardeners start posting their pictures while we are still burried in snow lol. I am surprised though that I am now ahead of you in blooms even though, during winter, I'm two zones colder than your area is. Funny!

I was happy this spring with all my new spring bulbs followed closely by iris and daisies. The daisies are now fading but the cinquifoil, achillia, hardy geraniums, salvia, hollyhocks, lilies and some of the daylilies are blooming. Knockout roses have given me three flushes of bloom and promise more throughout the summer. Later in the summer I'll have some reblooming on a few things so over all spring and early summer are the best and fall is the worst for me garden wise. It doesn't really matter though because by then I'm so deep into canning and freezing the vegetables that I never really have time to notice. I have tried to find things that will bloom in fall but it's difficult. Even Chrysanthemums aren't hardy enough for this zone. We get our first hard freezes at the beginning of October and then that's it until May again.

BTW...speaking of sweet peas, I direct sowed some this year(first time). They are close to a foot tall and I am having to force them to climb the trellis (wire). They seem to want to just flop over on themselves and are getting really jumbled. Is that normal? How long does it take from sprouting to blooms? I'm wondering if they'll give out on me, as soon as it really heats up in a couple of weeks, like regular peas do?

MeMo

Since I started this garden in 2005, I've struggled with "when" I want the garden to peak. We had a pretty good show in the spring since I interplanted daffodils and Spanish bluebells throughout the outer garden. The phlox subulata and dianthus did their thing and the Dutch iris were really great.

Now that I'm into summer, I feel that the garden color is too scattered. As it will be when these colors fade and other plants bloom all along. So, I still struggle with whether to just plant for a summer peak at one time, or let the color dribble along all summer. In other words, am I going to move everything around next spring!

Cameron

my gardens are at their best from mid-june 'til mid-july ... i am kinda surprised all the hotter zones in above posts seem to be at their best right now too ...

the pictures below were taken this morning ... quite a riot of color going on in that particular corner!

also in full bloom are a bunch of knock-out roses, astilbes, larkspur, penstemons, forget-me-nots, daylilies, hollyhocks, malva, and lots of annuals ... wonderful time of year here in the midwest!!! phyl

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darn!!!! ... i forgot to mention the most important detail ... this is the beginning of my 4th year, so for most of these flowers this is their *leap* year, & i am thrilled! ... phyl

phyl, that's some GORGEOUS color you have going there! I love your mix.

My garden peaks with the roses for about six weeks from early April to late May, then looks very full of perennials blooming for a month or so longer. Then (now) I do a big clean up. I'm about halfway through that now. But I have things blooming from February to November. It wasn't always true. I've added lots of plants to make that happen.

We have such mild winters here that lots of people plant winter annuals -- Iceland poppies, violas, stocks, primroses and the like. But I don't. I think flowers look peculiar in the low sunlight of winter. For me that is a time to be turning my attention to other things.

Rosefolly