Some of my perennials are starting to bloom now:

• Salvia ‘East Friesland’ just began this week, although there are plenty of them that aren’t quite there yet.
• Dianthus — both the generic bright purple ones and the low-growing mini-carnation kind (Dianthus gratianopolitanus) are blooming. The mini carnations just started this week and the other was starting last week.
• The white candytuft has been blooming strong for several weeks. This is the first year the deer didn’t damage it so much, and I like it a whole lot more now!
• The purple Rock Soapwort has been blooming for more than a week.
• My strawberries were in bloom for a few weeks now, and there are many, many berries growing now. Some are quite big but haven’t turned red yet.
• The creeping phlox is just about done now. I’m wondering if shearing it a little will cause a rebloom?
• Vinca minor has been blooming most of the month quite well, but I need to kill the grass that’s growing in it!
• My Irises just started blooming a few days ago.
• And this isn’t a perennial, but some orange California Poppies started blooming last week, along with a pink Shirley Poppy that found its way into a crevice between rocks in the front rock retaining wall.
• My Viburnum shrubs have been blooming, too. The Burkwoods were about a month ago, and they smell good! The leather leaf ones were a few weeks ago, the trilobum ones are just ending now after about a week.

We finally finished with the second load of compost. This was a total of about 25 cubic yards, and I still could use a little more for a few beds. I might borrow a neighbor’s trailer to get two more yards.