Blue, I'm blue. And purple. And pink. And white.

Yellow is the color of springtime around here, but this year there was no forsythia and few daffodils. Even the dandelions lacked enthusiasm. But the follow-up act has been stupendous.

I'm not really an iris person - too much show for too short a time, and then they spread and spread and spread. Do newer cultivars not spread? I see them in polite little clumps in other yards, but mine (which came with the house) have been a PITA. I dug up and gave away all the white ones, while the purple have been less than stunning. Until this year. Someday they may follow the white to other homes, but for now, I guess I'll keep them.

Iris

Is catnip the same as catmint? I have purchased catnip in the herb section and catmint in the perennial section, but they look alike. Recently, I found a site that says they *are* alike. The only difference seems to be whether they have a fancy name, like 'Walker's Low'.

Catnip

Catmint

Chives are chives, I think. These are regular chives, which bloom in the spring. I also have garlic chives, which are much less robust and bloom later in the summer, with completely different flowers. I like them both, but use the regular ones more, while waiting for the onions to grow.

Chives

I had to look the next one up. I knew it was "false" something - the color should have given it away. I'm not sure when I planted it - cant' find a blog entry for it - and I can't find the plant tag, so if it is something special, we'll never know.

False indigo, up close

False indigo, holding its own

The columbine is running rampant this year, spreading here and there to its heart's content. Fine with me. I bought a fancy cultivar a year or two ago, but have not noticed it yet. Maybe it succumbed to the winter? Or was eaten alive by the catmint?

Columbine

I was able to find the name of this shrub. It not only survived the winter but the rabbits as well; the snows were deeper than the chicken wire was high, so it got nibbled a bit. It strikes me as a very hardy specimen.

Wentworth highbush cranberry

These phlox also came with the house. Some years they nearly take over the yard, but they are welcome guests who know when it is time to leave. Once the flowers have turned to seeds, the plants dry up. The seed scatter as I pull out the stalks, ensuring their return next spring.

Phlox (please ignore all the thistle)

Too bad salvia are not long bloomers. If pinched back, they sometimes bloom again, but I don't have the patience.

Salvia nemorosa ‘New Dimension Rose’

What color is your garden today?