Hollyhocks at Last!

At last, I get to see what a hollyhock is all about. It's blooming!

[Click on any image for a magnified view.]




































So far, I haven't noticed any scent. But they are lovely to look at.


The reliable coneflowers are also blooming, in their reliable way. As summer goes on, they get a little scraggly, but now they are crisp and lovely.





































Mystery plant no longer a mystery!


















It has become obvious, at last, what this plant is. A globe thistle. Of course. I vaguely remember ordering it, thinking the round heads would complement the allium seed heads. Right now there is only one allium seed head, being swallowed up by the ever-shaggier fountain grass.


















Maybe next year, the effect will be more complete.



Jack's beanstalk?



















Only if Jack would accept a morning glory as his stairway to heaven.


A surprise

I used to have a few mallow plants (malva) in the back where the hollyhock is, but every year they were decimated by rust, an orange-brown fungus. So I gave up on them. However, when I saw this one volunteer making a go of it, I left it. So far, no rust. It chose a lousy spot, just outside the edging of one of the beds, and it may not survive the laying of new pavers currently in progress (see next post). So enjoy it while it's here.



















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