What a treat for the senses, William. Just beautiful.

What a nice thing to say. Thank you, Bonnie.

oh dang, I forgot to give you some acorns
I was just saying to Asa last night that I didn't see any of the signature magical backlit creamy dreamy photos in the contest this year and I wondered if you didn't enter...and now I know. Anyway, point is--I noticed and I missed your contributions, William!

William,

Monet would appreciate the layers of color & form.......very beautiful images & gardens!

Have you ever applied some "painterly effects" to a photo with Photoshop or other program?

I'll spend some time looking at your other photos, too.

You've inspired me today.

William, Gorgeous, stunning, and absolutely beautiful garden.

Stunning gardens William. That picture of Light and Dreamy had me thinking "why was this not in the photo contest?" Then I opened more and more of them and thought the same thing. Gorgeous work.

Are your hellebores growing in shade? I adore them and want to start a small bunch.

Dirt, thank you for the acorns and it is good to know that you missed my photos.

Cal, I have tried out some digital effects and such on my photos, but not so much those painterly filters. Your comment remind me of what one of my aunts said many years ago. She tried to photograph the gardens, but she thought it was hard to get a good image of it and wished that her friend that was a painter could have portrayed it instead.

At that time I wasn't really interested in photography, but what I try to do now, on a good day, is to incorporate a little feel of a painting into my photos. Exclude everything that does not need to be there and concentrate on the light, the colors and the feel of the garden instead. It is wonderful if some of my photos can make you think of a painting as it then is more than pure documentation.

Iciris, so happy you liked the photos and thank you for the acorn gift.

Leslie, thank you. Do try a few hellebores. I have been surprised by the rapid growth of many of the modern hybrids. I have hellebores both in more shaded positions and rather sunny ones. It depends very much on the cultivar and what parents it has. Many of those with parents from warmer climates seem to appreciate some sun and a warm soil as long as they aren't too dry. It is unfortunate that hellebores often are clumped together as shade plants. Some can grow in deep shade, but at least in my experience that can give less flowers and growth.

william, wonderful photos to delight the senses. the air must be filled with heady fragrances, especially with the lilies during bloom season. gorgeous photos, and a breathtaking garden.

it shows your diligence and hard work!

William,
There are so many stunning pictures and gardens from everyone and most especially the ones posted to the data base by you. It is fun to browse through all these in "spare" time. Like many of you I was overwhelmed by the absolute numbers and beauty of the entries into the photo contest. I still have several categories to see before I can cast my votes. But I plan to stick with it until (and before) the contest closes.

On the subject of what do we grow besides irises; In my younger days (30's & 40's & 50's) I grew (or tried growing) just about everything that came along. There were daylilies, peonies, Asiatic lilies, Oriental lilies, spring flowering bulbs, hostas, fruit trees, grapes, conifers, and a multitude of assorted other perennials. We still grow our own vegetables too. Sooner, rather than later I had to slow down and back off due to age, jobs, children, grandchildren and other legitimate reasons. I use the "crutch" called "age" because it truly does slow us down, but I refuse to give in to anything that interferes with gardening in general. I hope to be gardening into my 90's if I live that long!

Some illustrations (lilies) of what I've concentrated on besides irises. From left Row 1; Orienpet, Boogie Woogie; Oriental Casa Blanca, Casa Blanca, Trumpet Casa Rosa With Pink Asiatic.Row 2; European Martigon, Speciosum (Japan), Star Gazer, & Lillium lancifolium.

Leon, thank you and it is a real pleasure to view your images as well.

Nothing is ever guaranteed, but it seems to me that regardless of age gardening is a great way to stay healthy, both mind and body, as long as it doesn't become so much as to be a burden.

shizen said:william, wonderful photos to delight the senses. the air must be filled with heady fragrances, especially with the lilies during bloom season. gorgeous photos, and a breathtaking garden.

it shows your diligence and hard work!

Thank you so much, Daphne. Many of the lilies indeed have a wonderful scent.

I do work hard with the gardens. I weed them at least once yearly, just before photo time.

No seriously of course I weed them more often that that, but I think we all know how it is, sometimes the weeds grow too tall as we are too tired or to busy to do anything about it, or it is too dry, or there comes a thunderstorm and smacks down everything just at peek bloom, but then sometimes the weather and growing conditions are just right and everything looks like we wanted it to do. Then it is time to bring out the camera and save some good memories.

tveguy3 said:William your gardens are beautiful!

dirtdorphins said:oh dang, I forgot to give you some acorns
I was just saying to Asa last night that I didn't see any of the signature magical backlit creamy dreamy photos in the contest this year and I wondered if you didn't enter...and now I know. Anyway, point is--I noticed and I missed your contributions, William!

A treat for the eyes, William and Leon!

Leon,
great show of beautiful pristine blooms.

Do you dig them up each year & re-plant in spring, or leave them in the ground?

William,
your garden looks like you put a lot of forethought (and work) into selecting & placing the plants
to create a tapestry. Does everything over winter or do you protect them from the cold?
In which month did you take this image?


Here are a few images from our 2016 garden.

I'm working on 2017's slideshow, and hope to post in another few weeks.

Entering the photo contest forced me to go through GBs of files,
but now will save images for next year's contest and slideshow as I go.

EscondidoCal said:Leon,
great show of beautiful pristine blooms.
Do you dig them up each year & re-plant in spring, or leave them in the ground?

Hi Cal,
I do not dig every year, but I do keep an eye on them to separate & divide bulbs when they get too crowded. Usually this is done now in the fall when the stems and leaves are frosted back. Some require attention when they get too crowded. Others can be left for years before digging. I try to maintain a "happy medium" of watching for signs of trouble. I am behind in my schedule this year, but hope to catch up soon. Here are a couple of examples of crowding. It is just a matter of "keeping an eye" on them each year.

Here are a couple of examples of crowding....

The crowd looks very happy.

EscondidoCal said:
Here are a few images from our 2016 garden.

Cal, amazingly beautiful and loved the show!

lovely garden, leon. really love your pics of the lilies, too.


wonderful slide show @escondidocal. altho' we live in the same county, i live in a 10a zone......coastal.



in my very small garden i grow, citrus, in pots. two eureka lemons, 1 bearass lime, 1 yuzu, 1 kafir lime, and 1 satsuma tangerine. 5 plumerias, an assortment of hibiscus rosa-senensis, 5 different colored anthuriums, justica 'fruit salad', several japanese maples in pots. (brought 19 different ones from norcal...only 7 survived they hate the weather, climate, water and native soil), assorted succulents probably about 50 -60 different kinds (too many to name), 3 fuchsias, several xanthrosoma monstrosum (sp?) 'mickey mouse, 5 different heuchera, 8 different cordyline fruticosa's (including two mini's 'amazing grace' & 'pink lady'), brunnera, leucospermum (which i keep tightly trimmed as a bonsai shape) many perennials including agastache, alyssum, lobelia (short-lived perennial here...about 2 1/2 - 3 yr. if pruned), and an assortment of annuals such as violas & candy tufts, most years they reseed themselves. i am sure i've missed many others, but that's the bulk of what's growing in my garden. everything is tightly squeezed in .

EscondidoCal said:Leon,
William,
your garden looks like you put a lot of forethought (and work) into selecting & placing the plants
to create a tapestry. Does everything over winter or do you protect them from the cold?
In which month did you take this image?

Well, I believe I shot that photo from a slight angle from the left and I used a 70mm lens to fit more blooms into one image, than if I had shot from more directly in front of the bed, so it is about photographic choices as well as the placing of the plants.

That pic was from 2015, which was a great year for all plants here, but it was a late year too. That pic probably was from August or late July, but I had some issues with the date settings on my camera at the time so can't say for sure.

Everything in that pic is hardy here, but there are a few annuals in the other pics, although I try to do less and less of those, because it is a lot of work. I do dig many tulips to give them a dry summer rest.

BTW: I had a look at your 2016 slideshow and it was gorgeous!!!

Edit: I dig crown imperials for dry summer rest as well.