Senior Moments

Betsy getting a picture of our Pink Perfection lily, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. May 29, 2012.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them once or twice.)

We knew lilies could grow to be tall, but we didn’t know how tall they could grow.  The picture above shows Betsy getting a picture of our Pink Perfection lily on the first day the flower buds opened.  The plant is a little over seven feet tall.

Pink Perfection Lily, May 29, 2012.

The blossoms are also huge.  Betsy says they are more purple than pink, but all I can say is that they are beautiful.

A closeup of a Pink Perfection lily blossom, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. May 29, 2012.

These lilies also have a delightful fragrance.  These lilies are in a bed try near the street in front of our house.  We’ve noticed people walking up and down the street often pause near these lilies for a few moments.  Why do you think they do this?

Cable Car iris, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 20, 2012.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them once or twice.)

All of our iris have now bloomed, so this will be the last post about these beauties in our yard.  You can catch the earlier post HERE, HERE and HERE.

I love the color of Cable Car (above).  Cable Car is in a couple of our flower beds, including one along the border of our big rose bed.

Summer Olympics iris, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 15, 2012.

Summer Olympics is in a bed that gets more shade than some of the others.  This year’s blossom seems to be more gorgeous than usual, which is appropriate since the Olympics will be held this summer.

Orange Harvest iris, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 21, 2012.

Orange Harvest blooms along the front of  the house, greeting people who pass by.

Stellar Lights iris, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 16, 2012.

Stellar Lights is one of the oldest of our irises.  But it is also one of  the most vibrant blossom we have.

Tennessee Vol iris, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 21, 2012. (Photo by Betsy)

Finally we have Betsy’s favorite — Tennessee Vol.  I think she would like anything with that name, but this iris is beautiful.  It’s only appropriate that I use a photo that Betsy has taken.

The flowerbed near the road in front of our house. May 19, 2012.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them once or twice.)

One of our newer flower beds is in front of the house near the road.  Betsy and I wanted color in the bed throughout the growing season, so we planted tulips, iris, roses, lilies and day lilies in the bed.

This year we’re getting a lot of color, often at the same time.  In the picture above you can see two varieties of lilies in bloom, and two varieties of roses.  What’s more amazing, if you look carefully you can see a purple iris that decided to bloom again of Friday.

I guess we’re going to have to stay home for a while so we can enjoy all this beauty around us.

Cantina Iris, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 15, 2012.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them once or twice.)

I’ve already shared two posts of our irises this Spring — you can see them HERE and HERE.

We’ve been very pleased with our irises this year.  We have many more blossoms than we did last year, and we’re enjoying them every day.  They make some of the hard work in the yard worth while.

Cantina has one of the more unusual blossoms among our iris.  At first glance it looks purple, but closer inspection shows orange, blue and white in the petals as well.  Cantina is in our front flower bed.

Halloween Halo iris, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 15, 2012.

Another iris in our front flower bed is Halloween Halo.  I guess it gets its name from the yellow trim around the falls and the orange beard.  It may not be as showy as some of our other iris, but I like it.

Hemstitched Iris, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 8, 2012.

Hemstitched is a pretty blue-and-white iris (even the beard is blue)in our side flower bed.  We’ve had this iris for several years.

Waltz Across Texas iris, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 11, 2012.

This yellow-and-white iris, Waltz Across Texas, should be one of Betsy’s favorites since she spent several years in Texas.  This iris has waltzed across several of our flower beds.

Blatant iris, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 9, 2012.

(Note:  All pictures may be enlarged by clicking on them once or twice.)

Our iris have continued to put on quite a display this spring.  They’re scattered in several beds around the yard, so we can enjoy them out of just about every widow in the house.  I shared four of our irises in an earlier post (click HERE), and I will now show four more.

Blatant (above) is probably the most vibrant iris in our yard.  We’ve had it for several years.

Clarence iris, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 8, 2012.

Clarence is a newer iris in our yard.  It is also a re-blooming iris.  I really like the different shades of blue in the blossom.

Electric Shock iris, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 12, 2012.

Is the color of this iris electrifying?  This is Electric Shock.

English Charm iris, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. April 12, 2012.

English Charm has some beautiful pastel colors.  This, too, will bloom again later in the year.