But first I had to move the house plants to the guest bedroom. They live there every summer and seem to like it just fine:
Apparently all the yellow Iris died over the winter, but the purple Iris outdid themselves. This was the last rush of flowers, as seen from my kitchen window:
Just about the time the Iris stopped blooming, the Rugosa Roses started:
Two days later, the Mock Orange flowers began opening:
And that same day, Swallowtail Butterflies were drawn to the Mock Orange. Oddly, I can't smell any fragrance from them, but apparently the butterflies can:
The bush was alive with Swallowtails:
They are so spectacular that I felt I had to take another photo. Several years ago, when I was renting the house, the tenants chopped this bush to the ground (they just thought it was a weed). I told them to let it grow back and it sure did. As with the Spirea, I think the severe pruning helped instead of hindered:
More Rugosa Rose photos. I may not be able to smell the Mock Orange, but these roses perfumed the whole area around the house:
Even when I stood on the porch, my view was bordered by Rugosa Roses:
And just so this post isn't entirely about plants, I also nailed up two bird houses which someone at church was selling as part of a fund raiser. I'm not sure the birds will be interested because they have so many other nesting sites, but the birdhouses look good there anyway:
