A Very Purple Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day - June 2010

It's a very purple Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day this year, led off by this rambling, unnamed (but probably Jackmanii) clematis that has a few blooms with six petals, and others with just four:

The original plan was to train the clematis on the branches of the dead 'Bing' cherry tree, but you can see the problem with that plan in this photo:

Yup, 'Bing' sprung back to life!  I haven't had time to de-leaf him yet this year, but I am definitely going to do so.  He's been nothing but trouble, and the nearby 'Concord' grape (on the arbor) and the blackberry (sprawling in front with their canes weighed down by a ridiculous amount of fruit) need his space anyway, as you can see in the photo below.  Also notice that the 'Newe Ya'ar' culinary sage and the 'Caradonna' salvia nemerosa are both pretty much done blooming already, along with the chive whose spent blooms are dragging on the ground by the sidewalk:

More signs of an early summer arrival can be found all around.  Like in the brazen blooms of verbena bonariensis, which last year was my starring bloom for August not June:

In fairness, it's not all purple in the garden this month.  I have a curious large proportion of whites flowering right now--curious because I don't particularly like white flowers.  But I love the oakleaf hydrangea, and this little 'Chubby Fingers' sedum album:

But really, the June show is all about the purple.  So here's one more photo of the lovely clematis before I get to the list:

The rest of my official June 2010 bloom day list:

Shrubs, vines and tall grasses:  Oakleaf hydrangea, 'Albury Purple' St. John's Wort, lonicera sempervirens, the unnamed purple clematis, the blackberry (Yes, again. Really.  It's insane!)
Perennials:  'Caradonna' salvia, various thymes, 'Summerwine' achillea, 'Zweiweltenkind' goatsbeard, eryngium, 'Hidcote' lavender, digitalis parviflora, passalong lamium and dianthus, 'Purple Dragon' lamium, and various heucheras and hostas (until I see the stalks to cut them down!)
Annuals:  Outside of the 'Bonfire' begonias in hanging baskets and my veggie plants, only a few little portulacas have been allowed to bloom!  They are all so recently planted that I have been pinching out the blooms in order for the plants to put down good roots and get through the promised heat of summer.

That's all for this Bloom Day--for me, anyway!  To see what other colors abound in gardens around the world, visit the Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day Post for June 2010, hosted by Carol at May Dreams Gardens!