A splash of yellow

The 'Zagreb' (Coreopsis verticilliata) suddenly bloomed last week, spraying yellow from within the lilies: 

An explosive balloon-flower

A profusion of stars:

A pair of purple plumes

A double of purple daylilies, and an artistic shade of mauve:

 

Hydrated hydrangea!

The greenish-yellowish-bluish blooms have morphed into a deeper and more consistent blue now:

It now mirrors those across the street in the neighbor's yard. Note the insect tunneling through the florets.

The Lone Cone

Last year's purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea) is testing the waters with a solitary bloom:

It's beans a while

Here are the results of the last of the previous year's stock of bush beans:

This variety is not a climber, which makes it easy to grow almost anywhere. I mistook the saplings for sunflowers last year and was pleasantly surprised to find beans growing under the leaves.

Roses

What is a garden without some roses? Here are some yellow ones with a reasonable amount of scent:

These somehow escaped the wildlife.

Beautiful dahlias

I love the dahlia for its beautiful flowers and the range of colors and patterns. It is amazing to watch the buds evolve. Too bad they are not perennials!

Hydrangea mania

The hydrangea appears to be deer-resistant, since it is escaping the chomping fate of its neighboring plants. Here is the same bunch of flowers a week or so apart:

A nice transition from green to blue-yellow:

Wonder what the final version will be?

Daylilies galore

The daylilies are beginning to take over, adding some much-needed color to contrast the surrounding greenery and compete with the milkweed. And all glistening with the raindrops from a sudden thunderstorm.

Hemerocallis Purple de Oro:

More daylilies (The red Superlative and the yellow Happy Returns):

The Tawny (Tiger) Daylily (Hemerocallis fulva):

Balloon flower

The balloon flower (Platycodon grandiflorus) is about to open up! The deer have left it alone for now. Hopefully, they can bloom before they become deer salad...

Butterfly weed begins to blossom!

The bright butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa) is starting to bloom! It attracts hummingbirds and... butterflies. The Monarch is apparently partial to this member of the milkweed family.

Grape expectations

Update after about two weeks:  the vines are in good spirits!

It is very interesting to see these grapes grow from scratch! The leafy vines have created quite a shield around these emerging bunches, and I hope they are sufficient to keep the birds away...