Two firsts

One is a first I have every year, but with a twist. The other is a first I have never had since I started gardening.


Every June, I hail the first of the martagon lilium. There is a nice clump still in bud in the usual side bed, but last fall I also planted some Mrs. Blackhouse (lured by end-of-season sales at Old House Gardens!) in the front hosta beds. Sure enough, here is one coming up right through a hosta (top). I love the color. They still have that … unusual martagon fragrance. I have some more but I can see they won’t put up a flower stalk this year. Martagons don’t sometimes; they like to wait.


While volunteering at Urban Roots—helping customers with plant citing and behavior advice—I got bored during the slow times and picked out 3 little heirloom tomato plants. I allowed these to languish in their root-bound state (they were leftover to begin with) and finally planted them in my rose/lily/perennial bed, pretty much at random. But here is the first little tomato. Will it thrive or perish? Stay tuned.