Nature in Bloom

Discover the Magic of Early Summer

by Justin Schmitz, Director of Horticulture

Early summer blooms in the Ornamental Garden

Summer arrives tumultuously, with storm and gale, bringing with it a riot of color and rapid growth. Looking over the landscape, the nodding blooms of roses and daylilies punctuate the coming heat, promising humid days and nights filled with frog song.

Grass grows a little greener before the dog days of summer, reaching for the sky eagerly, drinking in the rain and stretching, making the most of the long days and cooler evenings. Spiderworts bloom purple, three-petaled flowers, drawing bumblebees. Yarrows and Tickseed add warmer tones of yellows and reds, while Oakleaf Hydrangeas, with their pendulous panicles, highlight the landscape with creamy white flowers that will dry and persist all winter long.

The animals also thrive. Deer raise their fawns, groundhog pups put on weight and become more adventurous, and birdsong echoes across the land, promising companionship or conflict, and sometimes both. Glimpses of scarlet red Cardinals can be seen through green undergrowth, and hummingbirds make their hasty, frantic visits to flower after flower.

Historic London Town and Gardens plays host to all the above, and more. With over 50 years of expert cultivation behind it, the Gardens at London Town serve as a venue to showcase nature's many forms, colors, and functions. Designed as a true “Four Season Garden”, London Town offers a much-needed respite from the coming heat and the miraculous chaos we call life.