We have enjoyed a whole week of fall like weather with a bit of rain on Monday but clear bright days with cloudless skies the rest of the week. It is the kind of weather that makes you want to work outside and we have been doing just that. The cool weather and short days have slowed down the growth of the weeds but there is lots of dead heading and planning for the fall show.
There is nothing better than a good friend unless it is a good friend bearing a plant. I was lucky enough this week to be given a gorgeous canna (probably Pretoria/Bengal Tiger) a yellow crocosmia and an interesting Euphorbia. The canna is just a wee youngster but the promise of its green and yellow leaves can be seen already.
I look forward to its flower next year. It will be tangerine.
This small tyke reminds me of how much I appreciate cannas in the garden. I have several and their flowers combined with their foliage make them a real asset to my garden during most of the growing season. This canna is ‘King Humbert’ bearing orange flowers with splashes of yellow.
It is a towering variety and just what I need next to Mexican sunflower (Tithonia rotundifolia) and Zebra grass (Miscanthus sinensis ‘Zebrinus’ ).
Canna ‘Wyoming’ sports dark bronze foliage that contrast with the brilliant orange flowers.
Early in the season it was a backdrop for orange Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’ but now verbena ‘Homestead Purple’ and dark red Celosia (C. argentea var. plum
Dwarf red canna ‘Futurity’ is shorter than ‘Wyoming’ or ‘Pretoria’ and just right for a place where a towering variety won’t fit.
It is very vigorous and one bulb planted in a large pot created all these babies (with Verbena ‘Homestead purple’ and ornamental sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas ‘Margarita’)
Another dwarf is this white canna that I bought off the bargain rack last fall at Lowes.
I have it planted in my white border but need to find some good companions to complements its very clear white flowers.
Elsewhere in the formal garden the flowers of Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’ have turned shell pink and complement the more vivid pink of Aster novae-angliae ‘Alma Potschke’.
The rose red coleus serves as a nice backdrop for the dark pink flowers of the carpet rose.
A magenta phlox (Phlox paniculata ‘Nicky’) is blooming after being transplanted this spring and then nibbled by the deer. The leaves of the Lamb’s ear (Stachys byzantina) next to it soften the brightness of the color. Notice the bee that is enjoying the phlox.
Hardy ageratum (Eupatorium coelestinum) is blooming here and there throughout the formal garden. It is a vigorous grower and spreads rapidly but has a floppy growth habit that is only slightly helped by cutting it back in mid-summer. Its blue color, however, is always welcome this time of year.
The dwarf crape myrtle (Lagerstroemia ‘Pocomoke’ ) is blooming for the first time. It had a very hard winter and we thought it was dead so we are very glad to have even this scant bloom.
The giant of my garden, papas grass, is putting forth is full, fluffy flowers on its very tall stems. It grows on a bank that runs along the property line so we really cannot fully appreciate its architectural quality.
The vivid pink impatients (Impatiens walleriana) growing in a container enjoys the shade of the house. I used polymer crystals in the soil because the urn holds so little soil and plants grown in them tend to dry out easily. The polymers seemed to have worked well.
Nearby the last of my hostas is blooming. The flowers are large and fragrant and stand tall over plain green foliage. Unfortunately, I do not have its name.
Seeing the last hosta bloom is a bit sad; I have to face up to the fact that the gardening season is coming to an end. I guess I will have to start planning for next year…that’s not all bad!
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||