The dwarf bearded irises are in full bloom! It's always exciting to see big bursts of color in May. Dwarf irises are a wonderful addition to any garden because they fill the bloom gap between the daffodils and tall bearded irises. I grow about ten different varieties of minis. Today I'm showcasing one named "Jazzamatazz" that came to me from my friend Sally's garden. It has a fragrance that is reminiscent of chocolate. If this showy perennial has one fault, it's that it multiplies too fast!

Jazzamatazz was hybridized by Heidi Blyth in 1986 down under in Pearcedale, Victoria, Australia, but it also grows in the U.S. Zones 3 to Zone 8b. It is very hardy here in Wisconsin. Jazzamatazz is happy in full sun to part shade. Mine is in an east-facing location. This iris is registered as growing up to 15" tall, but mine rarely gets taller than about 10." In my yard Jazzamatazz reliably blooms in mid-May every year.

While weeding I discovered four bunnies in a nest next to one of my daylilies. (In the second photo the fourth bunny is hard to see. His head is sticking out on the left, underneath his siblings.) These babies have been growing faster than weeds! I have checked on them every day for a little over a week and each day they grow remarkably larger. At first I could barely see them nestled inside their nest covered up with their mom's fur and some old grass, but now they are so big and wiggling all over that they no longer have cover. We have had some heavy rain and I worried that their nest would get soggy and they would get wet and cold. Ange came to the rescue; he put a little table above their nest so the rain wouldn't beat on them. We made sure there was ample room under the table so their mom could get to them easily in the morning and evening. And honestly, I'm not even sure why I'm so worried about these tiny stinkers -- in no time they will be roaming around my yard devouring all my flowers.

I can't carry on enough about 'Panic in Detroit.' I love this daylily! It's big and in your face -- literally. Last summer in my garden Panic grew almost 50 inches tall. I had to actually reach up to deadhead this guy. Panic in Detroit is one of those plants that you just throw into the ground, give it no special attention and it thrives, but make sure you give it some space. The large eight inch blooms are consistent, have good substance and are very showy (bud count: 21-25). When it's in peak bloom you can't miss this plant in the landscape; your eyes are just drawn to it.

Panic in Detroit is an American Daylily Society award winner having received the Honorable Mention in 2009 and the Award of Merit in 2014. These awards indicate that the cultivar is beautiful, distinctive, performs well, and grows in a wide geographic area. Hybridized in Michigan by Ric Adams in 2002, this dormant tetraploid is also desirable because it's a midseason-late bloomer. My plant bloomed a solid two months - from July 10 to September 12. Yes, really!