Welcome to The City of Desire.

Tall Bearded Iris "Happenstance.", a photo by Leenechan on Flickr.

I wish that all flowers were as photogenic as the tall bearded irises!

I have the hardest time photographing roses, but taking pictures of irises and peonies is very rewarding.

I'll probably get a photo of Buckeye Belle later on. You can't really count your buds before they've opened. It seems that of all the new peonies, only Buckeye Belle hasn't suffered irrepairable weather-related damage to all its buds. That and First Arrival, which appears to be made of tough leather and is bulletproof.

Something broke the buds off James Mason...probably a bird, because they like to eat aphids and I found bird crap around the shrub. I'm not sure if we're going to get to see it bloom at all..but never fear, Marianne is here! With buds rapidly turning orange! And Madame Plantier is opening the rest of her buds. I think that I missed flowering for Madame Hardy, but she looks very happy in her spot.

Tall Bearded Iris "Coral Sunset.", a photo by Leenechan on Flickr.

About 80 percent of our new irises are blooming this year. That seems reasonable! This soft apricot iris is really gorgeous. I always love the warm-toned colors on flowers one typically associates with cool colors.