Garden Photo of the Day

The Birth of Bonnie’s Flower Garden, Part 1

A big, boring wall of juniper is transformed into an extension of the garden filled with flowers

By GPOD Contributor
flower garden with lots of bold colored flowers

Hi GPODers!

Last week we shared a wonderful section of Bonnie Phipps Moninger’s garden in Boulder, Colorado (Zone 4/5)—if you missed that post, be sure to check it out here: The North Side of Bonnie’s Colorful Colorado Garden. We saw the many meandering paths that lead you to the different areas of her garden and the beautiful walking circle that creates an incredible focal point. In that post, Bonnie also mentioned a flower garden that bordered the walking circle, which she would go into more detail on in a future submission. Thankfully, Bonnie did not leave us waiting for long and today we get to explore that fabulous section of flowers and how it came to be.

Bonnie broke up this submission into two parts. Below you will find photos from the first spring of the garden’s creation. Tomorrow we will be back in Boulder to see how the flower garden filled in during late summer as well as some spots Bonnie sees room for improvement.

In 2006 we built a 19’ diameter walking circle in our north side yard (pictured below.) We built it about 3’ in front of three beautiful Buffalo junipers (Juniperus sabina ‘Buffalo’, Zones 3–7) that were there when we moved in. But the junipers kept growing and eventually grew into our walking circle. I kept cutting them back each year and eventually, they became an ugly jumper wall. So, in April 2020, Raul, the gardener I work with, dug them out along with a few other plants that were there. It was amazing how much space each juniper took up. I decided to redo the whole area into a flower bed since this is one of the few areas in our yard that gets a fair amount of sun, though not exactly full sun.

empty garden bed with path cutting through
I designed the area myself and Raul did the heavy work and planting. I wanted a path that followed the curve of the walking circle that led to a sitting area. I mapped it out with a rope. Planters mix was brought in to berm both sides of the flower bed. There’s nothing like the look of a blank planting area!

garden bed with new plantings
This picture (a pano) and the next 2 are the first season’s plantings of my “Flower Garden” The hard part for me is figuring out what to plant. I’m not used to designing areas with flower plants—I find their foliage is not as lush as the part sun/shade plants. I wasn’t sure what would look good together, how tall & wide they would really be, and which ones would live. I did a lot of research the year before and had my plan.

newly planted and mulched garden bed
There’s nothing like a newly planted bed with fresh mulch!

setting stone path cutting through garden
A view from the sitting bench looking down the path. You can see the Netafim I use to water the area.

flower garden with plants filling in
The same view 2 years later and more filled in.

fairy statue in front of full bloom flower garden
One of my favorite pics of our spring Flower Garden in full bloom, in 2022.

flower garden with lots of bold colored flowers
I am constantly looking for flowering plants that have nice foliage as well as nice flowers. I especially like the foliage of peonies, geums, ligularias (in part sun), lupines, geraniums, anemones, salvia, lady’s mantle (Alchemilla mollis, Zones 3–8), oakleaf sedum (Sedum hybridum, Zones 4–10), and kniphofia. Since my flower garden doesn’t really get full sun, some of the plants I put in don’t perform at their best. I’m constantly adding or removing plants or moving them to better places. But when is any gardener ever done? The orange geums pictured here are called ‘Totally Tangerine’ (Geum ‘Totally Tangerine’, Zones 5–7).

close up of bright pink flowers
The popular Coral Charm peonies (Paeonia ‘Coral Charm’, Zones 4–8) along with lupines and geums steal the show in June.

gardeners making bouquets outside
That’s me (left) and my friend Judy having fun with the spring bounty from my garden.

bright orange and pink lupin flowers
These lupines are called Gladiator lupines (Lupinus polyphyllus ‘Gladiator’, Zones 3–9). They have pink and orange in them.

bright red and purple flowers above yellow-green foliage
Nice combination of alliums, poppies and Yellow Lace® elderberry (Sambucus racemosa ‘SMNSRD4’, Zones 3–8).

My garden is now 5 years old and I’ve been changing it every year. Some plants like Blue Fortune agastache (Agastache ‘Blue Fortune’, Zones 5–9) and asters were way too tall to be in the front area. Some plants didn’t get enough sun so they didn’t look good or died. Each year I’m trying new things.

As I mentioned in the intro, this is just part 1 of Bonnie’s submission, and we will be seeing how these plants filled in during late summer tomorrow.

In the meantime, please consider sharing photos of your garden with the blog! We’re running low on submissions, and it is gardeners like you that keep Garden Photo of the Day going. No matter where you live, how you garden, or how much you are willing to share, any submission is greatly appreciated! Check out the paragraph below for details on how to submit.

 

Get your garden featured on GPOD!

Have photos to share? We’d love to see your garden, a particular collection of plants you love, or a wonderful garden you had the chance to visit!

To submit, send 5-10 photos to gpod@taunton.com along with some information about the plants in the pictures and where you took the photos. We’d love to hear where you are located, how long you’ve been gardening, successes you are proud of, failures you learned from, hopes for the future, favorite plants, or funny stories from your garden.

Have a mobile phone? Tag your photos on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter with #FineGardening!

Do you receive the GPOD by email yet? Sign up here.

Fine Gardening Recommended Products

ARS Telescoping Long Reach Pruner

Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.

Telescopes from 4 to 7'. Cut and Hold (160) Blades. Drop forged blades for unsurpassed long lasting sharpness. Lightweight, 2.3 lbs., for continued use. Perfectly balanced for easy pruning.
Buy at Amazon

Corona® Multi-Purpose Metal Mini Garden Shovel

Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.

Longer Service Life: The blade of this round small shovel is made of carbon steel, which can effectively improve the hardness by high temperature quenching, and the surface has anti-rust coating to avoid rusting. In the process of use when encountering hard objects will not bend and deformation. Sturdy Structure: The small garden shovel with D-handle, ergonomically designed grip can increase the grip of the hand when using, the handle is made of strong fiberglass, will not bend and break under heavy pressure. Quick Digging: Well-made digging shovel has a sharp blade, and the round shovel head is designed to easily penetrate the soil and cut quickly while digging to enhance your work efficiency.
Buy at Amazon
X
View 5 comments

Comments

  1. User avater
    simplesue 03/25/2025

    Excellent!

  2. janetsydoruk 03/25/2025

    Just a fabulous garden. Thank you so much. You are very talented. To have a partner that can do the heavy lifting !!!

  3. Goodyear 03/25/2025

    Beautiful and well planned garden!

  4. btucker9675 03/25/2025

    Peonies!! Lupines!! Poppies!! This is a wonderful garden!

  5. User avater
    musabasjoosue 03/25/2025

    I have so enjoyed following along with the progression of this fabulous garden!

Log in or create an account to post a comment.

Related Articles

The Latest

Podcast: Let's Argue About Plants
Episode 179: Most Beautiful Flowers  

If your pulse quickens at the sight of a dogwood or peony in full bloom, this is the episode for you. Although a restrained, foliage-focused design is always a safe…
Design
Gardening Buyer’s Guide 2025

I don't know about you, but I'm ready to get outside and get my hands into the warm dirt. Gardening season can't come soon enough this year. In the meantime,…
How-To
Root Rot Identification and Treatment

Roots are the foundation of a plant, vital organs that anchor it in the soil, absorbing water and nutrients. Unfortunately, because roots are rarely seen in full, the problems that…

Video

View All Videos
Design

Touring an Eco-friendly, Shady Backyard Retreat

You must be careful when you enter the backyard of garden designer Jeff Epping—not because you’re likely to trip on something, but because you might be dive-bombed by a pair…
Design

4 Midsummer Favorites From a Plant Breeder's Garden
Podcast: Let's Argue About Plants

Episode 179: Most Beautiful Flowers  
Podcast: Let's Argue About Plants

Episode 178: Best Interview Moments from Let's Argue About Plants
Podcast: Let's Argue About Plants

Episode 177: Seeds We’re Starting This Year