For most of the history of our species we were helpless to understand how nature works. We took every storm, drought, illness and comet personally. We created myths and spirits in an attempt to explain the patterns of nature. ~ Ann Druyan

The peonies follow the iris and usually mark the Memorial Day weekend.  This year they are  over
two weeks late.  The cool weather has thrown them off their schedule.  Usually we have a doozy of a storm including hail and strong winds just as the peonies open.  Again the pattern is broken because the rains have been gentle and without hail.  It’s never good luck to criticize mother nature but it’s been especially pleasant this year not to find the newly opened peonies beaten to the ground and covered with mud.

The backdoor garden has a pasture fence for a backdrop.

June is Rose Month

Griffin Buck's Country Dancer is, in my opinion, one of the finest roses for the upper midwest.  Absolutely hardy with no cane damage from our sub zero winters.  CD doesn't seem to suffer from blackspot or other fungal diseases.  This year it's a 7 foot tall climber completely covered in pink roses.  Most years it doesn't get this tall but it has outdone itself this spring.

Once we start deliberately messing with the climate systems, we could inadvertently shift rainfall patterns (climate models have shown that rainfall in the Amazon might be particularly vulnerable), causing collapse of ecosystems, drought, famine, and more.

~  Jeff Goodell

Above is an heirloom gallica rose.  Absolutely winter hardy and disease free, but gallicas have the annoying habit of suckering all over the garden.  It would be best controlled with a lawn mower.  They have no disease and no fragrance but they do have that wonderful cabbage rose shape.  

Below is a Meidiland shrub rose bred to be a groundcover.  I couldn't dedicate enough real estate to this rose to make it groundcover so it's now a climber.  It suffers a lot of winter dieback but regains size quickly.  No disease.

Pretty poppy seedpods.

Below two petunias that caught my eye this week while shopping for a garden hose.  

The first one is a PW hybrid Pretty Much Picasso.  I think it's the cutest thing.  There is some discussion about the smell of this petunia and  while potting it I did  search for the source of the smell with pooper scooper in hand.  Then I read the comments on Dave's Garden.  It seems to only be offensive on hot, sunny days.