this morning I started my day with a wander around the gardens…

I started with the vegetable garden and checked on the two tomatoes, miriad of peas, beans, and the couple of cucumbers that appear to have made a go of it…

the cucumber and butternut squash seeds have yet to reach the surface…

the columbines are getting ready to flower and it appears that the ones with double petals are happy in their new location along the house…

the dahlias are growing taller every day and the ivy slips from the house are holding their own…

next I checked out the pond garden, where the irises are blooming and the poppies are raising their heads slowly to get set to open… I had to detour back around the deck so that I didn’t brush against any of them… the hanging baskets are filling with flowers as they recover from the hail storm…

the petunias around the deck look good, but I need to find a way to raise up the new planter boxes as they are just a tiny bit too narrow…

the begonia and orchid in the back shady area seem to be doing well and the pansies by the bathtub pond are growing nicely…

the hibiscus is still in the shade since coming outside recently and the begonias and verbena are happy… sadly the pansies in between them are not doing well…the strawberry pot and dahlia next to the back door look excellent as do the morning glories as they come up…

on the deck the mandevilla seems content in its new location and the clematis continues to wind its way up the obelisk… the lobelia and alyssum on the table are doing very well…

after that lovely stroll, I brought out all the cushions, uncovered the deck chairs, and sat with my tea and read some of my book as the birds sang their morning welcome;-)…