Ortel's Rose & Jacob Cline

At the edge of the circle the Yarrow 'Ortel's Rose' (Achillea millefolium 'Ortel's Rose')

has spread inward rather a lot this year. Pretty in pink fading to white

 I will have to curb it's enthusiasm.

Below the bright scarlet  flowers of  Bee Balm 'Jacob Cline' ( Monarda didyma  'Jacob Cline')

 make a nice contrast with the glaucous foliage of Rudbeckia maxima

in the middle of the circle

Blueberries, Beans & Potatoes

This day I harvested a whole plant of 'La Ratte' fingerling potatoes, all the decent sized beans (Romano bush) from the dog bed and a basket of blueberries from the 'Premier' bush.

The nice thing about having your own bean plants is you can pick them before they get to market size. I like the meatiness of the flat podded Romanos.

My friends want to know how long it takes for the blueberries to ripen. 

The great thing about blueberries in the home garden is that they don't all ripen at once 

so you can have fresh picked berries over about a month if you plant several varieties 

Premier (below) is the first of mine to ripen.

I have tied a cord around a branch of the 'Ira' 

( a cross between Rabbiteye and southern high bush if I remember rightly)

to photograph over time. Maybe we will learn something about ripening, who knows!

Kousa Dogwood 'Milky Way'

This is by far the best flower show ever from my Kousa Dogwood which is probably 7 years here.

With
 Oakleaf Hydrangea

&

Magnolia grandiflora