Garden Journal: July 19, 2009

Sun, some clouds, and a tad of rain, all with warm to hot temperatures have been good for the garden and gardener. Some flowers come into bloom while others fade, but the foliage of all keep growing and the abundance increases.

The abundance is evident in this part of the formal garden with its cone flowers, grass, loosestrife, and butterflybush, all with shades of pink.

The border also contains a pot shaped like a purse (actually two of them). I love the pots but they are a devil to plant because they take so little soil that moisture supply becomes a huge issue. This year I added the gel polymers to the soil to increase water retention and planted the very drought tolerant moss roses. They have struggled but are finally blooming, at least a little.

Dwarf fountain grass adds a bit of airiness while providing a spike-like flowers head.

Annual cleome with the grass Miscanthus ‘Morning Light’ is a new combination for my garden. Cleome is an old fashioned sort of annual that gives my border a cottage garden look that I love.

The beautiful rubrum lily blessed the garden with her presence. Her downward gaze makes her look shy and sweet while her delicate stem and foliage give her a petite look that is perfect for my pastel border.  The foliage of sedum “Autumn Joy’ provides a nice backdrop for her beauty.

In an other part of the formal garden I planted a vivid combination of Verbena ‘Homestead Purple’ and a hot pink vinca. I love the intense colors together.

The combination of purple-blue phlox flowers and the blue-green foliage of rue is equally satisfying to my eyes.

Elsewhere in the formal garden the blue of annual ageratum is lovely with the bright yellow of the golden spirea foliage.  Coreopsis ‘Moonbeam’ adds an airy touch in the backround. I like the contrast in texture of the prickly spirea and the soft wooly lamb’s ear.

The volunteer sunflower sparkles beside the salvia ‘Victoria’.

A mass of goldenrod still showing the chartreuse green of their buds creates a pleasing site.

The light blue flower heads of globe thistle are pretty nifty too. Their unique shape and a color make them a stand out in my pastel border.

In the white border the Shasta daisies ‘Becky’ are echoed by the white variegated foliage of Cornus alba ‘Elegantissima’ .

I decided to redo my daylily beds in the allee so tore out the unwanted plants and bought 30 different ones. Once I planted them, and photographed them, I had to cut them back so I made bouquets of the flowering scapes. Yes, they only lasted a day, but what a beautiful day, and the other buds kept blooming so two days later I still have lush bouquets. The fun part is that I could play with the stems to see what flowers went best with what and in that way plan for the final arrangement and planting.

The squash, tomatoes, cukes, and beans (wow, how many string beans can two people eat?) are pouring in. The eggplants slowly produces their fruit and a couple of plants have been a complete surprise; I bought a six pack of the traditional round kinds, ‘Black Beauty’, but two of the plants are producing long thin pale ones as shown here. They are green now and I am expecting them to turn white.

Gardening is certainly an adventure. You really never can count on anything. Just when I think I have it by the tail, something happens that throws me completely off course. I have to pick myself up, shake myself off, and begin again. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.