It’s the 15th of June, so that means it’s time for Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day. Special thanks to Carol Michel of May Dreams Garden who has hosted this meme now in its fifteenth season. It may be the longest-running garden meme there is, and it’s all about the bloom.
So, what’s in bloom?
In June there are lots of wonderful plants in flower. Let’s see what’s out there, shall we? Of course, there are daylilies. June in Oklahoma means daylily magic in my garden. I don’t know what my garden would look like without their fabulous faces. [Click on the galleries to enlarge the photos.]
H. ‘Cancun Candy’ (Holley-B., 2012) is such a gorgeous flower. 
H. ‘Sherry Candy’ (Stamile, 2006) is even prettier in person than it is in photographs. It is very, very complex. 
Hemerocallis ‘The Band Played On’ (Stamile, 2006) with ‘Orange Rocket’ barberry and ‘Australia’ cannas. 
H. ‘Luminous Intentions’ (Pierce-G., 2015) is one of the prettiest flowers I’ve ever seen.
Flowers make the gardener and pollinators happy.
But, it’s not just about daylilies. The roses may have come and gone, but we have loads of other flowers to make the garden happy. In the cutting garden, my favorite flower so far this year is Nicotiana ‘Lavender Cloud.’ I planted seeds for two other flowering tobaccos, but ‘Lavender Cloud’ has outshone everyone with her beauty. These flowers close midday and open again at night for pollinating moths. Yes, I like moths, and I plant for them.
Nicotiana ‘Lavender Cloud’ is my favorite annual flower this year. I go out every morning just to see the blooms. 
Nicotiana ‘Lavender Cloud’ is tall and lovely. Just lovely. It smells good too.
Zinnias come in so many cool colors.
My friend, Karen, and I trade transplants in spring. She gave me ‘Will Rogers’ zinnias. In Oklahoma, we’re all about Will Rogers, our native humorist. These zinnias are a fabulous bright red. I like them a lot especially since my other zinnias, which I started outdoors from seed are taking their time to grow and bloom. Zinnias are perfect for a long spring and a hot summer. If I’d realized how red they would be, I would have planted them next to ‘Forest Fire’ salvia. At least I can plant them side-by-side here.
Saliva coccinea ‘Forest Fire.’ Just look at those red-black calyxes. 
Zinnia ‘Will Rogers’
Coneflowers are really starting to shine.
In other happy news, I finally succeeded with echinaceas including uniquely colored coneflowers. ‘Cheyenne Spirit’ reseeded throughout the garden, and it comes in all sizes and shapes. It is a seed strain so you never know what you’ll get. If you’re OCD, you’ll probably want to buy it in flower. However, I like seeing what new flowers it makes.
Several things are blooming in bed facing the street including E. ‘Prairie Splendor.’ 
Echinacea ‘Sombrero® Adobe Orange’ is a new addition this year. 
My echinaceas are plentiful now. They took awhile to get started, but are fabulous in the garden now. 
Another ‘Cheyenne Spirit’ echinacea with Sombrero® ‘Flamenco Orange’ 
E. ‘Cheyenne Spirit.’ I have this variety growing throughout the garden, and the cool thing is you never know what you’re going to get.
Dark purple foliage sets off the flowers.
You may notice I use a lot of dark purple foliage in the garden like cannas and purple smokebush. Against dark purple and red leaves, bright colors really pop. If those leaves are also thick and large, even better.
In the vegetable garden–potager–I grow a lot of flowers.
In a classic turn, I bordered my potager with lavender last year. Most of it came through the bad winter weather just fine. I’ll shear all of it once it has finished flowering. I am also in love with the ‘Phyllis’ African marigolds I started from seed. They are super tall, and Judy Seaborn, owner of Botanical Interests Seeds named them for her mother. You should try these next year. They are fabulous. When you start your own seeds indoors, you create plenty of plants to grow and share.
Borage is a great veggie garden plant. The flowers are also edible. 
Potager with Vegepod and my green she shed. I’m growing summer squash in the Vegepod to defeat squash bugs. 
‘Phyllis’ African marigolds are another happy flower I started from seed this year. 
I repainted my red chairs and table before Oklahoma Gardening came to visit. 
A carpenter bee on my lavender. This variety is ‘Royal Velvet.’ 
Honey Bee on lavender in my potager. 
I love how the ‘Phenomenal’ lavender looks in the potager
I grow a lot of flowers in the potager. For those times when some vegetable plants are finished and others not begun, flowers carry the garden and keep it pretty.
More containers on the deck. I had the chairs recovered this spring. Best decision ever. 
We planted a lot of petunias in containers because Bill likes them. 
Headliner Dark Saturn petunia, one of many fabulous petunias I bought this year. I like it against the dark purple kale.
Petunias were spring stars.
Petunias brought star power to much of the garden this year especially in raised beds and containers. We shall see how they handle this heat wave, and whether their flowers will stay consistent or wane.
Against the house, Hydrangea arborescens Invincibelle® Ruby is finally coming into its own. It was a tiny trial plant and took and a long time to get going. I’m now enjoying it very much.
With these last two pictures, I think that’s about it for this Garden Bloggers’ Bloom Day.
One more thing…
Oklahoma Gardening came out to video the gardens and chat with me this week. It was such an enjoyable day. I loved visiting with my friend and OG host, Casey Hentges, so much. Gardeners are just the best people, and I’ll let you know when the segments air.
Oh, another thing…
Bill and I are opening the garden this Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. I hope you’ll stop by to visit if you can. If you need my address, just email me at dee@deenash.com.
Rudbeckia Cherokee Sunset. 
Pots on the deck with Gaillardia. I used gaillardia in my containers for the first time. 
Hydrangea quercifolia ‘Ruby Slippers,’ ‘Orange Rocket’ barberry and an ‘Australia’ canna
Oh, and one last thing…I promise!
Carol Michel and I have a new Gardenangelists episode this week. It’s on dahlias and growing fruit in containers. Hope you’ll give us a listen. and that you’re having a fabulous, if hot, week.
Beautiful! Loving your daylilies and hoping my echinacea take off here, too.
Also love your new chair fabric!
Hi Merry! Thank you so much! It took me a long time to get the echinacea going. Don’t give up!~~Dee
This is where I come to admire gorgeous daylilies! Thanks for the tour, I feel like I was truly there.
Thank you so much Robin! I appreciate it.
I too have Lavender Phenomenal here in NE GA. Does amazingly well even with our humility. You garden is beautiful!
Hi June, it seems to shake off the heat and humidity. I appreciate that in a flower. ~~Dee
My roses have just started and I think of daylilies as July plants. Like Pat said, you’re way ahead of us.
Yes, because you live so far north. We’re always about a month ahead of you except for when we all begin to cool back down into fall.~~Dee
Oklahoma is way ahead of us in Massachusetts, but my garden (smaller than yours) will have a sampling of many of your flowers. A friend gave me some of her nicotiana seedlings – we’ll see if they survived the move. What a beautiful garden!
Thank you Pat! I hope your summer is really splendid. I’m so enjoying the nicotiana this year. So much. ~~Dee
Happy June blooming, Dee! Your gardens look amazing, as always. Someday when I’m driving through Oklahoma… (just kidding, I would contact you first). The lavender view is really special!
Beth, you just text me, and we will make it happen. I’d love to see you again.~~Dee
What? Your zinnias are blooming? Mine are still seedlings!
Great post. Wish I lived closer!
Carol, I do too. What even better fun we would have!~~Dee