Sunday, July 17, 2011

Buds, please don't bloom to quickly!

So much in my garden at the moment is luscious green and budding! Besides the roses and hydrangeas all other flowers are still wrapped tightly in their buds hiding, maybe from all this rain? One thing I am grateful for, is all this waiting has made me appreciate the beauty to be found in a bud, the moment before they burst open and the bloom steals the spot light....

The bud of a Star Jasmine (Confederate Jasmine) I love the curl of this bud, its unlike any other I have seen. The swirl of the tip with the soon to be petals and the fragrant smell that is already lingering. This is one of my "thought dead" Jasmine that survived after a brutal winter, making these buds a happy sight indeed.


This plant keeps coming back every year, one of those plants I don't remember ever planting and just appeared one day by surprise. These little buds are so soft and velvety and form in little clusters at the tips of its long stems. It fits into the scheme of things pretty well, gorgeous bunches of small purple blooms growing right next to my lavender, peonies and hydrangeas its a very pretty patch in my back garden.
However, does anyone know what it is called?

Endless summer Mop-head Hydrangea, these blooms will be huge once in bloom spanning the size of a dinner plate. But these little tinny buds remind me of a pin cushion, so beautiful and round contrasting against the jagged spiky leaves. Oh the excitement to see what color this one will bring. Last year this particular plant bloomed in all shades of blues and pinks as if it couldn't make up its mind, an indecisive plant I love it!

Again another mystery plant that I do not remember planting? It has appeared in my garden for the last 3 yrs and returns only to have spread further through the garden bed, I do love it! The gorgeous little round buds first appear in July with a late summer show and is usually the last flower in the garden in early fall. The buds appear on long thin stems bursting with one or two on a plant. The flowers themselves are quite "art nouveau" looking, something you would see in a 1920's art work...beautiful!


Finally my snap-dragon is just now blooming! With spring come and gone, this flower is a little slow to wake up this year. It has been frozen in bud stage for two months and I was wondering if it would ever pop its flowers. I am so excited to see the petals now finally emerging....the blooms are coming!!

I loved the walk through my garden appreciated the different buds, they are all so unique and beautiful in their own ways, I am looking forward to discovering more. 
Are there any unique looking buds that you have growing? I am loving the bud stage!

26 comments:

  1. The second photo looks like it could be a Checkerboard Mallow. The fourth photo down looks like it could be a Japanese anemone. I could be wrong though.

    You're right. The bud stages can be just as delightful as the blooms themselves, if we take the time to look.

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  2. Your photos are gorgeous! I just bought some cone flowers and they're in different stages of bloom. I love the little crown that forms right before it goes into full flower.

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  3. As always, your photos are amazing! And you always capture my thoughts as if you were right inside my head. I was looking at rosebuds today and thinking how beautiful the roses would be at the end of the week!

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  4. Julia, I have missed visiting your garden and am happy to return. I see you still have rain and we are in a drought. So my buds are opening fast and then dying or they are reluctant to open. Boy Mother Nature certainly has her own plans. Your buds will reward you soon....

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  5. You are so right Julia! I was thinking about posting 'before the bloom' pictures. They are as pretty as blooms themselves! Wonderful images from your garden!

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  6. Grace@ Oh I hope it is a checkerboard mallow, the name alone is wonderful ;) It should be blooming by the end of the week and will post another pic!

    Girlsprout@ would love to see the cone flower progression, sounds like it has quite a beautiful shaped bud, I really am loving buds now. So happy you enjoyed my pics =)

    C&S@ Thanks for stopping by and enjoying my pics, its funny how you go out in the yard with a purpose and then before you know it you are distracted by something and a blog post is born. It seems like my whole garden is in the budding stage just screaming at me...post ;) Hope you post about your roses, rose buds are so gorgeous, like little presants waiting to be unwrapped!

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  7. Donna@ Welcome back my friend =) This year is proving to be a year of extremes! Droughts to downpours, its hard to believe we are here wearing our woolen coats while you're in a heatwave. Hope you are well and that there is rain in sight for you soon, its so good to hear from you...Cheers =)

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  8. I just photographed a gardenia bud. I enjoyed your photos. Glad your Confederate star jasmine survived - and you have the fragrance to look forward to!

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  9. I love the idea of capturing the buds before they bloom. Your shots are beautiful! It is so interesting to see the transformation.

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  10. Too often we focus on the obvious, flashy drama and neglect to appreciate the simple beauty of foliage and buds. I loved this post. Thank you!

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  11. Beautiful photos, the buds certainly show the promise of what is to come, Enjoy the moment !!!

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  12. I also love the bud stage of plants - it's such a hopeful time and the beauty of some buds rivals that of the blooms. We are long past that stage here - with the exception of those long blooming plants that stand up to the summer heat such as zinnias and gaillardia. The colors of the hydrangea blooms in my garden are now muted - no longer bright blue and lavender - but they are still beautiful in a different way.

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  13. Julia,

    The second mystery plant is a Japanese anemone. They take a while to get started when newly planted, but then they go crazy. I am desiring the second phase to happen soon in my garden :)

    Glad you are savoring these moments! Thanks for sharing the pretties from your corner of the world.

    Julie

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  14. Hi Julia,
    Your photos are amazing! Capturing the buds is a new take and I like it! I have never noticed the swirl at the tip of a Star Jasmine, so intricate! I also vote that the second mystery photo is a Japanese Anemone. Do post another picture when it opens to see if we were all right!

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  15. Beautiful pics. It's good to remember it's not all about the open blooms.

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  16. The anticipation just might be the best part.

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  17. I love little buds, too! Add my praises to those of other commenters. Your photos are fab!

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  18. Nice post! Sometimes the anticipation truly is the best part. :)

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  19. Dear Julia, I love the bud stage, too. The anticipation of blooms is one of the joys of gardening. Love your pics. P. x

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  20. Your garden is at an exciting stage right now. I enjoyed this stage in February...I believe. :) I love, love hydrangeas. I am going to try an oakleaf maybe next spring and give it a try.
    We used to live in Puyallup, WA and my husband worked in Olympia...At times, I do miss wearing galoshes.

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  21. Gorgeous pictures as always, Julia! That Jasmine bud is particularly lovely. The bud stage is so exciting! It's like a little present unwrapping itself...even if you know what's inside, it's still a thrill. Sometimes I think no matter how closely I follow a bud's progress, I'm still surprised to walk outside one day and find a flower in its place. It will never get old or tiring!

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  22. Hi Julia, Just wanted to let you know that I enjoyed this post so much I linked to it in the blog carnival (Berry-Go-Round) that I am hosting this month over at Beyond the Brambles!

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  23. Beautiful beautiful pics! I love snapdragons too.

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Thanks for stopping by and reading my latest post! I love sharing my gardening adventures and reading your wonderful comments. Happy digging...Cheers Julia!!

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