This Week in the Garden – August 24

As we head well into mid-summer, I think the garden is really starting to shape up for this season. I’m still bummed about most of the garden phlox not blooming, and about the mophead hydrangeas not having any blooms this year either (too cold last winter). But I do think the cardinal flowers are really helping to distract me with so many of them.

Mid Summer View of Lower Garden Triangle

I haven’t been liking this triangular bed in the lower garden as much, but the more color it has, the more I like it. I also liked keeping some of the red shiso for the beautiful dark purple contrast, and the hot pink impatiens really pop. The cardinal flowers are just so interesting though, and they (along with all the flowers in the garden) are buzzing with all kinds of bees and other pollinating insects.

Detail of Cardinal Flowers

Also in the lower garden, I found this interesting and cool looking sedge growing. I haven’t been able to figure out the variety yet. Some people may consider it a weed, but I think it adds interest, and I’d love to have more of it.

A Sedge of some sort

And I know I posted a similar photo two weeks ago, but I absolutely love this view. It’s so nice to just sit for a spell after working in the garden. I think you really see the plants in full bloom here- the stonecrop sedum in front, the cardinal flowers and orange coneflower (rudbekia) in back.

Mid summer view from bench

This stonecrop is probably towards the height of it’s blooming right about now.

Stonecrop Sedum Flowers

Coming down the path to the lower garden, the pink hardy begonias are really getting going too- lots of little pink buds everywhere.

Pink Hardy Begonias blooming on path

And on the hillside, I found a few white hardy begonias. At first I thought they had just been bleached by too much sunlight, but after a quick search I realized they come in both pink and white.

White Hardy Begonia

This photo doesn’t really do the view justice, but I love eating out in the sky room every day to see this pretty view.

View from the Sky Room

And to the right of the Tulip Poplar:

View from the Sky room 2

It’s hard to see, but there is a light purple butterfly bush in the middle of the photo above. The butterflies and hummingbirds love it- and we saw a tiny red hummingbird go to nearly flower this afternoon. My favorite butterfly bush though is still this pretty dark purple number in the side yard.

Dark Butterfly Bush

Here’s a view of the veggie patch, which sadly doesn’t have too many veggies growing in it this year. One zucchini plant, two tomatoes, and one pepper are trying hard. It’s kind of sad with the phlox not going either. I need to do some serious trimming this winter of the Fourth of July rose too, to try to stimulate some more growth next year.

View of the Veggie Patch

Some new flowers are starting to poke out though- Chelone – or pink turtlehead is blooming.

Chelone or Pink Turtlehead

And this late blooming daylily just showed up the other day. Which looks a lot like one that was blooming way back in Spring. I will say though I’ve had a couple of weird blooms come out here and there- one was a late wisteria bloom after I chopped a bunch back, and last week a sole pink azalea bloom showed up on a bush under the deck. A purple Encore azalea has started to bloom again in the lower garden too- I thought it would come out a bit later in the fall but… oh well.

Late bloomer daylily

I’m sharing the side yard again because I’m just amazed that I get to see this whenever I go outside in the daytime.

Mid Summer View of the Side Yard

And here’s the front side yard, which is looking a little worse for wear right now- but you can see another Joe Pye Weed blooming (I think). I’m also glad they finally took away the dumpster in our neighbor’s driveway.

Front Side Bed

I don’t know for sure what the tall, dark purple flower is but I think it’s a Joe Pye Weed. If I’m wrong and you know what it is, please let me know!!

Another Joe Pye Weed

And some new additions I made in the last week is this cute little celosia. Celosia is an annual around here, but sometimes they can re-seed themselves. I’m really hoping to see some more next year…but if not it wasn’t much of an investment. And it makes me happy to add a little color to a few spots that needed it.

Celosia

I also bought a pair of big blue pots that I love the color of (and I got them on sale for $21 each!). For now, I’ve put one on the front porch with a “White Queen” Caladium sitting inside (in a plastic pot). I need to bring the caladium inside over the winter anyway, as it will not survive outside here. I plan on giving it a more permanent home (in a pot) in the spring– something that I can easily move inside and out as needed.

White Queen caladium in blue pot

And this morning, we stumbled across this big guy, who had spun a web from the corner of our house by the front door, to the caladium, overnight. I think it’s a garden orb spider.

Garden Orb Spider

I also bought and planted a smaller blue salvia, which I’m hoping will have no problem coming back next year.