Today, the Fourth of July, is 250th Independence Day, so is also the sestercentennial or semiquincentennial of the United States of America.

1. Pelargonium X hortorum, zonal geranium provides an ideal red. Other cultivars here bloom white, bright pink and brighter pink. They have been reliably perennial for years.

2. Lobularia maritima, alyssum is exclusively white for its particular application within the White Garden. In the past, we had pink and purple alyssum within other landscapes.

3. Salvia has a name; but it eludes me. It is a new addition to the Blue Bed, which is next door to the White Garden, and not actually as exclusively blue as its designation implies.

4. Rosa spp., carpet rose is not blooming profusely this year, but is blooming enough for at least this picture. It grows into wickedly thorny thickets that are no fun to work with.

5. Begonia X semperflorens–cultorum, wax begonia lives with the alyssum in the White Garden. It is enjoying improved sun exposure associated with the removal of a few trees.

6. Lobelia erinus, lobelia is perched on the edge of a color bowl, but is not yet cascading over. This color bowl also contains red, white and blue petunias, for Independence Day.

Anyone who would like to participate in this meme should peruse this participant guide for Six on Saturday.

These are a few more flowers that are in bloom now.

1. Lantana montevidensis, trailing lantana in white sounds better than it looks. White is my favorite color, but I fail to be impressed. Lantana excels at other more vibrant colors.

2. Rosa spp., miniature rose is the only miniature rose here. It arrived as a cheap potted mini rose from a supermarket, which had outlived its domestic appeal before rehoming.

3. Silene coronaria, campion is such a delightful weed that we leave much of it where it appears. Most grows where it is not a problem, although this one is in the White Garden.

4. Agapanthus orientalis, lily of the Nile in white is special both because there are not so many of them, and also because only a few can bloom in their formerly shaded situation.

5. Gladiolus X hortulanus, gladiola has been reliably perennial for several years. I would like to know what is so special about their situation that allows them to perform as such.

6. This is the first new painted rock that I have found in quite a while, and the first rock I noticed with a spell check glitch. Is this really a glitch, though, or actually from Fowler?

Anyone who would like to participate in this meme should peruse this participant guide for Six on Saturday.

It is difficult to select only six flowers from the many blooming at this time of year.

1. Morea bicolor, yellow African iris is not very yellow. It is an impressively resilient and reliable perennial, though, and is quite easy to propagate. It really deserves more credit.

2. Morea iridioides, African iris is at least as resilient, reliable and easy to propagate, so is therefore very common. Whenever we have use for more, we simply split big colonies.

3. Canna X generalis ‘Mango’ canna performs very well and proliferates very efficiently. It begins its bloom before any other canna here. I just am not so keen on its floral color.

4. Echinops ritro, globe thistle looks like an Allium in this closeup picture. You might be able to guess where it is from. It is the first that I have grown since the summer of 1986.

5. Crinum bulbispermum, Orange River lily typically does not bloom quite like this. The florets should have darker pink or red centers. Could this be another species of Crinum?

6. Hemerocallis fulva ‘Flore Pleno’ daylily has been growing like a weed. We relocated a few only a few years ago, and must already relocate some of their now crowded progeny.

Anyone who would like to participate in this meme should peruse this participant guide for Six on Saturday.

Gardening is full of surprises. These are a few that I noticed last Thursday. I could have found more surprises, but that would have been more than six.

1. Jasminum humile, yellow jasmine is a real dud. It does not bloom nearly as profusely as I expected it to. Upon closer inspection, though, the flowers are surprisingly fragrant.

2. Lobelia erinus, lobelia self sowed and grew amongst weeds. However, no lobelia grew in the surrounding landscapes. The source of the seed is a mystery. What a nice surprise.

3. Digitalis purpurea, foxglove blooms either white or bright pink. Occasionally, lighter pink blooms are observed. This feral specimen, though, is surprisingly light peachy pink.

4. Aquilegia canadensis, columbine refuses to grow well where we plant it, but manages to bloom enough to toss seed to grow where it wants to. It should be no surprise but it is.

5. Dianthus caryophyllus, carnation was planted as a cool season annual a few years ago but has been retained, and surprisingly lives as a perennial as annuals change around it.

6. Camellia japonica, camellia bloomed well through winter, and then seemed to finish, just before surprising us with this last errant bloom. This is my favorite of the camellias.

This is the link for Six on Saturday, for anyone else who would like to participate: https://thepropagatorblog.wordpress.com/2017/09/18/six-on-saturday-a-participant-guide/