It continues to be a rather strange spring season with wildly fluctuating temperatures and above normal rainfall. Only a few Hellebores have flowered and achieved their normal size. A great many are just barely showing above ground and I am not sure what they are going to do. Early bloomers like Hepaticas are flowering alongside plants that normally appear two or three weeks later such as Hostas and Tulips. Despite the confusing weather pattern, the garden is coming to life at a rapid rate.
Helleborus 'Sparkling Diamond' has bright white double flowers but I rather like the wash of green on the petals when you look at it from the top.
The delicate pink color of Helleborus 'Sympathy' was a bit washed out this year but otherwise the plant performed as per usual. That is Epimedium 'Lilafee' aka 'Lilac Fairy' next to it. This Epimedium bulks up quite quickly and I've divided it dozens of times.
This is Helleborus 'Royal Heritage Strain' and is my oldest and most reliable Hellebore. But take a look at how it performed this year. Notice the brown buds at the top of the photo and the unopened short flower stems that go all the way to the bottom of the photo. A number of my Hellebores are still only an inch or two tall. In other years these three Hellebores have distinctly different flower colors. Not this year.
I grow a number of Epimediums and the purple-flowered varieties are among my favorites. This is E. 'Crime Scene.'
A few sunny days with above normal temperatures made Paeonia Mairei explode open. Now we're just coming out of more than 4 inches of rain in the last week. The combination has made this beauty's blooms short-lived.
Paeonia japonica
Epimedium pubigerum has tall stems loaded with tiny flowers that make an airy cloud above the leaves.
To see what other gardeners have blooming in their gardens today, visit Carol at May Dreams Gardens who hosts this montly meme.
Hellebores are so reliable. The hellebores in my garden have been lying down it is so dry here. Such a strange spring. I wonder what the next few months will bring.?? Happy GBBD anyway. I guess we are lucky to have any blooms.
Posted by: Lisa at Greenbow | Tuesday, May 15, 2018 at 06:12 AM
My in-laws who live in Verona are meeting us in Denver this weekend for a concert featuring one of our son's compositions. I was hoping to go to the Denver Botanic Gardens to treat her to some blooms since she hasn't had a lot yet, but the weather is looking iffy. Your epimediums are lovely. I planted one for the first time last year, but it didn't come back. I may have to try again.
Posted by: Kristin | Tuesday, May 15, 2018 at 06:45 AM
The last couple of springs and summers have been so beautiful that we kept reminding ourselves to appreciate the weather and enjoy it because it might be years before it happened again. Definitely this will not be a memorable year because it was so lovely!
Posted by: Linda Brazill | Tuesday, May 15, 2018 at 07:56 AM
I haven't been to the Denver Botanic Garden for years but I loved it when I was there. We're about to get some 80 degree weather which I hate to see in May. I am trying to tell myself that it is just going to be a crazy year weather wise.
Posted by: Linda Brazill | Tuesday, May 15, 2018 at 08:04 AM
Summer seems to have arrived early here too. Yesterday the high was 88 (my car thermometer read 92 driving through one microclimate on my commute that's always a bit warmer. Love your hellebore/epimedium combination. E.'Crime Scene' with it's blood-spattered leaves always makes me laugh. Happy GBBD!
Posted by: Peter/Outlaw | Tuesday, May 15, 2018 at 08:47 AM
Love the Hellebores!
Happy Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day!
Posted by: Lea @ Lea's Menagerie | Tuesday, May 15, 2018 at 08:48 AM
Love your big drift of Epimedium pubigerum, the species at the top of my Epi wishlist. [In any plant category, count on the white-flowering forms to be my favorites.]
How old is that planting? Is pubigerum faster, average, or slower on the pokey Epimedium bulking-up scale?
'Crime Scene' is aptly if ghoulishly named. Just needs a garden-gnome-sized chalk outline on the ground nearby to complete the scene...
Posted by: Nell | Tuesday, May 15, 2018 at 10:02 AM
Just endured four days of low 90s here, which has made the bearded iris show move along at a record pace. My cousin in Houston reported the same temperatures (though I'm sure it was muggier there), which made the episode even more unnerving.
Now the Houston-like humidity has moved in, but it's cooled off and clouded up enough to make it conceivable to do a bit of moving and dividing.
Posted by: Nell | Tuesday, May 15, 2018 at 10:11 AM
Spring can play with the gardener can't it?
Posted by: Loree / danger garden | Tuesday, May 15, 2018 at 10:53 AM
It's lovely to see your flowers today. I saw Paeonia mairei at the Rhododendron Species Garden here recently, and it's a beauty. It seems to leap out of the ground flowering. Sorry about the hot weather coming your way. We've just had two days in the 80s, and we're back to a bit cooler today.
Posted by: Alison | Tuesday, May 15, 2018 at 11:11 AM
E. publgerum is actually 20 years old but has grown from only one plant. I'm sure I divided it a couple of times but years ago. Compared to some Epimediums I would say it was one of the faster ones. But they all seem to take a few years to do much. I love the idea of the chalk outline with Crime Scene. One could use white flowers or white bricks or something should one want to try it!
Posted by: Linda Brazill | Tuesday, May 15, 2018 at 03:02 PM
I'm amazed you have peonies blooming already--mine are just budding up. I just discovered epimedeums a few years ago and am now a fan. The blooms on these are so sweet. This spring has been strange for sure; we haven't had as much rain as you, but the crazy temps have moved us straight into summer.
Posted by: Rose | Thursday, May 17, 2018 at 06:57 AM
These are species or woodland Peonies and they bloom a month earlier than typical garden Peonies.
Posted by: Linda Brazill | Thursday, May 17, 2018 at 07:36 PM