The Irises are coming!

We are two days past the anniversary of the Battle of Lexington-Concord, where the famous battle call, "the British are coming, The British are coming" rang through the fields. But I couldn't resist the line anyway. Yes, The IRISES are coming! One has unfolded already, and many more are perhaps just a day or two in following.

In my meanderings around the gardens, I have been lucky to find a few old name tags that survived the test of time. The following are Iris tags: Luxor Gold, Tempting Fate, Blue Skirt Waltz, Marksman, Lace Artistry, and ____ Surprise (the label was broken in half). All the tags were plain white with typed names on them followed by an odd sequence of numbers and letters, like B9: 753 - 780. I am not sure what that means, guesses anyone? I have looked at up these lovely Irises online, and cannot wait to see them in action!

Last month, I had planted three Dahlia tubers. Since Dahlia's are not hardy in my zone, I planted two in the ground, knowing I have to dig them up later in the fall, and one in a large planter, hoping I could just take the whole planter into the shed in the winter. It wasn't until after I planted the tubers that I learned gardening lesson #256: Never trust the instructions on the packet alone. You see, the packet said plant in March for zone 6, so I did just that. A day later, while reading Barbara Damrosch (a great gift from my mother), I realized that Dahlia's should not be planted until after all danger of frost. Oops!

I had just about given up on the Dahlia's. We have had three hard frosts since I planted them. But today, out of nowhere, a little green set of leaves poked up his head in the container. Still no sign of life from the ground planted ones, but at least one has made it this far!