October

At last, an entry in the correct month! This will probably be the last entry of the season too since my old fashioned mums are in full blast now and that marks the end of the season. It's been a great gardening year and I'm looking forward to an even better show next year of course.

Work left to do includes planting the 2 varieties of hardy tulips and crocuses I ordered, then dividing the huge old fashioned mums out front once they're done flowering. I also hope to finish painting the deck as the weather allows, I will do a separate picture entry for that when it's finished.

September

I really didn't do much in the gardens last month, which is evident from the pictures below! I spent a lot of time working on priming the back deck and stairs, which John sanded and repaired after we got rid of the huge broken hot tub sitting out there. We now have a wonderful "new" back deck with 2 coats of primer on it waiting to be painted. I'm hoping to get that finished once my transplanting is done over the next few weeks. I'll dig up some before pictures and post after pics once it's painted.

I put in several hours of work today clearing out beds and I transplanted most of the siberian irises from the center island to the front beds.

I've decided to scrap my plans to create a patio and walkway in the front yard - it's too much work and maintenance and I can't figure out a way to make it look natural. Instead I'm going to move the majority of the perennials to the other beds and we'll let grass grow in around the rest. The perennials will help fill in a lot of the holes in the other beds, especially the new driveway bed.

Staying in the center area will be a pine tree, a rose of sharon, the diseased viburnum (it gets one more year to recover and then it's getting pulled), the weeping cherry tree, a butterfly bush and some peonies. Also some daffodil bulbs, which I will divide next year and possibly move. All these will be mowed around.

I'll also need to find a new home for my solar fountain, possibly out on the back deck or in the pool bed.

The front gardens in September:





My beloved hydrangea:

August

I've fallen behind on my blogging and I haven't maintained the gardens the way I'd like to this year. They put on a great show for me regardless and so I'm just going to do an August picture blast.

I'm hoping to get some work done this week and then I'll do a September blast with an update on my plans for transplanting over the next few weeks.

Daylilies, coneflower, bee balm, black eyed susans and coreopsis in the pool bed:


Different variety of coneflower along the front walk:


Susans and lilies paired along the walk:


Lots o' daylilies in the front bed:


Phlox Laura, coreposis, russian sage and hyssop:


Tiger lilies:


Lavender did great this year, I'm so glad it survived the winter:


Daylily bonanza:

June & July

Picture blast, coming up. I've gotten way behind but the gardens are doing quite well. The daylilies are just about ready to put on their peak show, so I will try to follow up with more pictures.

Dianthus


Pool bed iris and rhodies:


Nova Zembla rhodie (putting on less than a stellar show this year) with coral bells


Poppies didn't bloom last year but more than made up for it with a long-lasting show this year:




New allium along the front walk


Geranium and front bed filling in


Late blooming anemone with salvia


More geranium


Woolly and creeping thyme along front walk. The woolly thyme is in flower now and smells wonderful!


First daylilies of the season


Veggie and herb garden - the swiss chard and chilis are just about ready to harvest. I've been getting fresh cilantro, 2 types of basil and mint for a while now.


Astilbe in the pool bed


Asiatic lilies in the new driveway bed


Tiger lilies - need more pics as they keep producing huge flowers


Blanket flower with rusch daisies (can't be bothered to check the spelling on the daisies right now)


Closer look at the daisies


Foxglove, finally grouped in one area


Snapdragons that re-seeded themselves from last year

May

Here we are on the eve before Memorial Day and I've let a month go by without posting! I have been busy in the gardens and have taken some pictures, I just haven't gotten around to posting. Here's a recap of what's been happening over the past month.

Lenten rose:


Anemone (better shot of color):


Front border:


Weeping cherry:


Gardenia daffodils, these smell heavenly:


Blue tulips, which I was told on a gardening forum would not return this year:


Moss phlox:


Arrangement cut today - allium, iris, wild daisies, columbine, coral bells:


I've gotten a ton of pruning and weeding done over the past week, and put down 8 bags of mulch on Friday. I have at least 8 more to go. I will get out and take more pictures over the next week, lots of stuff is in bloom.

80 Degrees

It was a beautiful summer day here, a nice bit of warmth and sunshine in an otherwise cold and rainy April. I'm a little behind on posting pictures, and quite a few things are in bloom now.

I cleared out the pool bed today and the scilia are in bloom:


Out front we have a bunch of stuff in bloom. Everything looks blue here due to the iPhone pictures in full sun. I'll use the regular camera moving forward, these are mostly purple in reality.

Grape hyacinth:


Regular hyacinth purchased at Walmart last year (not so great):


Anemone, first year for these and they're great:


Evening primrose. I planted 3 of these last year and this is the only survivor:


White daffodils in desperate need of division:


Yellow daffs near the road:


Early spring foundation border: