The pond dig has begun!

[j.w]

I'm still waiting for my Georgia Peach to bloom. It sure is a beauty tho! I need to get my camera out and snap a few of the ones that are starting to bloom here. Been busy w/ stuff other than ponding lately unfortunately.

 

[CountryEscape]

My peach lilies just started blooming about a week ago, and since I never get to photograph them until weekend (silly things start after I leave in the a.m., finish before I arrive home in the p.m.), it was last weekend before I was able to SEE them myself! Other lilies have been blooming for a couple of week at least before that.

 

[j.w]

We are slower here due to our cooler weather, although the warmth is picking up steady now and sun comes around each day now. Bright and beautiful out there right now. I'll try to get some lily pix in today!

 

[CountryEscape]

Here is the second Georgia peach lily, so now I'm happy to report I didn't give them all away, and likely had them correctly marked when sent them in the mail to other ponders! Really like the pale pink lily that is blooming right next to it, too. That one is also a "keeper" for next year. I'm going to try to mark the pots (on paper, as to where they are located in the ponds) this year and put all the "keepers" in the koi pond, all the ones I want to give away next spring in the goldfish pond on the shelf, where they are easier to reach. Then will have them all marked as to what color is what, when I want to selectively give away the prettier ones to other ponders. LOL The ones that I simply have too many of will go to the local pet shop for him to resell.

 

[addy1]

Yep, have quite a few flowers, but none better than the Georgia Peach which is blooming beautifully, and I'm not sure where I got this lily, but it's way more beautiful in person - darkest fuscia ever! Pretty sure another lily that had fallen off the shelf, and got put back up on Thursday is also a GA Peach! Happy girl here!

GA peach .JPG

Deep fuscia lily.JPG

mayla..............a beautiful lily, think I sent it to you

 

[CountryEscape]

I figured you must have sent that deep pink lily, Addy. The only other ones I got from Menards, none of them are solid colored, always have a pale color on the tips of the petals, which can be very pretty, but I just have too many of the same ones.

 

[CountryEscape]

Exciting morning! Not only did the new Perry's Orange Sunset lily from Addy bloom this morning ....

But I now have a yellow lily, thanks to Larkin!!!! Hoping the 3rd lily I got from you, Larkin, is also yellow. Then you will have to let me know which one is the tropical, as this yellow and the one that has not yet bloomed have similar spotted leaves, same size leaves, too.

Here's the pale blue lily, standing way up off the water on strong stems, also from Larkin.

My hardy hibiscus I bought last summer late, full of blooms, is going to be putting on quite a show very soon. The buds are beginning to open to show the deep red flower inside. Maybe in a few days I'll have a few of the 150+ blooms open!

 

[j.w]

Lucky you CE and all very nice looking plants!

 

[callingcolleen1]

I am so I'm jealous of you CE, I don't have flowers on my lillys yet! Nice to have the longer growing season down there, cause soon it will be August and our nights will get colder. I think my pond does not have enough sun to get the lillys to bloom. Your pond looks wonderful!

 

[CountryEscape]

Colleen, my sister that is moving to WI said she only had 2 blooms last year in her AZ pond! I could not believe that, but then I remembered she has a screen type of a semi-shade over her pond, and I wonder if they didn't get enough direct sunlight. Now she's moving to a yard with tons of trees, going to be the same issue, no blooms, not enough sun. I'm very fortunate to have so much sunshine for the lilies. I love living where I can put a plant just about anywhere and call it "full sun". In fact, I have a hard time finding full shade. Only place I can truly say that is under my white pine tree! And, I planted hostas, coral bells and ajuga under there, to see if they will survive and multiply! I'm tired of those branches whacking me in the head as I mow next to that tree. hate to cute the branches back, so hoping the plants will grow and spread outward. If so, I'll use Roundup to kill the grass out farther and farther as they grow!

 

[callingcolleen1]

CE I am also tired of wacking the trees down here. Some people have trouble with weeds, but I get trees like weeds!! Things are so bad that I am always risking my life climbing trees and hacking the branches as high as possible to get more sun to my pond. Then they drop everything into the pond and I have to put nets up in the fall. But I do get nice cool shade when very hot so There is good and bad, much less wind damage as well. Sometimes I do wish I had much more sun.....

 

[mtpond]

My pond is getting a little more shade then it did last year. It has shade up until about 10:30 am and then the sun shines on it until 5:30 pm. My lilies are blooming and looking good only problem is I only have two colors that have been blooming, white and pink. Going to
Start looking into getting some different colors .

 

[addy1]

My pond is getting a little more shade then it did last year. It has shade up until about 10:30 am and then the sun shines on it until 5:30 pm. My lilies are blooming and looking good only problem is I only have two colors that have been blooming, white and pink. Going to
Start looking into getting some different colors .

Wait for fall, I will be grooming lilies and sending a bunch off. Mine are all way overgrowing. Did not even feed them this year. Guess more fish = more fish poop fertilizer.

 

[CountryEscape]

I have pink and white, and then got peach, and now have another pink multi color from Addy!!! And, surprise of surprises, I have a yellow from Larkin. Sooo excited about the yellow. Oh, and have the pale blue from Larkin, too. That plant is HUGE, takes up about a 4' diameter area! And, I fertilized the GA Peach in the Goldfish pond earlier this year ... may have over did it, as the leaves are so thick the blooms are having a hard time coming up! LOL Guess there is a thing of too much food. LOL
Colleen, I agree, trees are wonderful, too. I love the shade and wind break they provide, just happy I don't have trees nest to the ponds. Well, I left that white oak right next to goldfish bog ... now wondering if I should try to move it while it MAY still be possible. It's about 10' tall, and at least 5" diameter at the base of the trunk. It's only 3' from the bog (trunk is 3' away), so not sure I could hire a tree mover to move it, but going to ask on Sat. when go to local landscape place. I don't think it will pierce the liner, as it can go under bog, then under pond, but should have moved it for the leaves and shade it will provide later.

 

[CountryEscape]

I was wondering how long it would be before a turtle showed up in one of my ponds. This guy is about 6" long, maybe little less. I'm pretty sure it's a painted turtle, but in one of the photos you can definitely see red coloring on his neck, but thinking if it was a red eared slider, it would be more up closer to his eyes. Anyhow, was fun watching him. I took a video, waiting for it to download onto YouTube, then will post it hopefully tomorrow. It's really cool video! I would guess this guy has been in my ponds before, as he was not scared of me at all, took pics from as close as 3' away, and he just kept turning and watching me. When I tossed the food out, he went right for it, no thinking about what I had thrown, went after it, climbing on the lilies. The video is him trying to do his best to get his share before the koi stole the rest. Quite hilarious, as if anyone thinks a painted turtle is a threat to their koi, this video will let you know that they came literally face to face, after the same piece of food, and still never shied away from each other. Neither were worried in the least of the other. Anyhow, here are some pics of him. First pic has a little frog sitting on the lily pads just past the turtle.

So, by looking at this next pic, is this a painted turtle or red eared slider?