Little surprises.

Every day, there's something new in the garden. If you were here, I'd spend an hour talking about the plants in the perennial bed. Another hour could be spent touring the backyard. The sweet tea would be cold and dark, just like Nell's. Mine probably has a little more sugar than hers.

The first tomatoes. These are Roma. Wintersown in early March.



A red blooming Four O'clock. I remember, years ago, when a power/light pole stood in the backyard just about where Mr. Lincoln lives now. I sowed these seeds and two tiny plants grew and struggled to bloom in the hard compacted clay beneath the pole. When the pole came out, the four o'clocks remained.



These yellow dayliles were offered in exchange for something I rooted or divided last summer. She didn't know for sure what they would be, but she was willing to part with them.



The same lady gave me this one.



Hilda brought me a clump of upright pointing elephant ears last year. They have curvy edges and can grow into huge clumps. At the Bojangle's restaurant here in town, they've got some in full sun that grow to more than 6' tall every summer. Mine were about half that last year.



The black stemmed elephant ear I planted in late winter has finally made an appearance. The black leafed ones rotted. They were soft when I planted them. I didn't expect to see them.



A brown/orange rudbeckia is blooming. These usually show up in the fall. Maybe this is one that overwintered. On a business trip in 2008, I stopped by a roadside plant stand in Delaware. I brought back a single plant called Autumn Colors. From those seeds, I've increased the varieties of blooms in the garden, with a little help from the bees.



Asters, purchased for 15 cents last fall, are blooming already. I spotted a white one this morning. This is the hot pink one. It's taller and less meatballish than the plants I purchased on clearance. I figured as much. I could cut these back I guess, but I won't. I have plenty that will be blooming in the fall.



Spirea, wintersown in 2008/9. I'll probably need to move this plant next spring. It should be in the shrub border. For some reason, I thought it was caryopteris. Obviously, it's a true spirea. It's nearly 3' tall.



Helenium is blooming too. I think this was labeled "Helen's Gold", but I could be misremembering.



Cherry Brandy Rudbeckia has made me rethink all the nasty comments I made about it to others last year. It was the color of dried blood. I wasn't impressed. Year two is much more Cherry. It can stay.



Second generation seeds were collected from Cherry Brandy last fall. They're blooming now. I think I'll keep them as well.





It's 72 degrees. I've finally decided to call a repairman for the HVAC system. It needs freon. I can't do that myself. I have a feeling, this is going to be expensive. When it's 94 degrees on Saturday, I'll be glad I spent the money. So will the cat.