Sunny Sunday, July First

Backyard garden, July 1st, 2012

Tetraploid day lily

Lily and phlox

Pink phlox

White phlox

Six foot African daisies

Volunteer sunflower

Tranquility, before the day's heat

Bicolor day lily

Rose campion

Cleome

      It is the first of July and it should be hot and  humid.  The yard should be a monotone dull green fading to brown.  Well I can't control the weather, but I can throw color at the boring green palette.  Have a beautiful first of July!

Early May Flowers

      Yesterday's blog showed the lay out of the back yard garden, but did not include pictures of many of the plants currently in bloom.  So here are shots taken yesterday of some color spots around the yard.

Jack-in-the-pulpit and Tree Peony, 5-5-11

Tree Peony, 5-5-11

      The tree peony is in full bloom now, with each flower six inches across.  Unlike the common peony, tree peonies become a small shrub that has branches that don't die back in the winter.  They are very slow growing, and supposedly Do Not like to be moved.  So if you get one, make sure of the spot you put it in because if it likes that spot, it may well outlast you!
      The Jack-in-the-pulpit are in bloom right now, but I forgot to take their picture yesterday.  But they are multiplying out of control, so they are an entrant on the give away list.  Anyone interested?

Ajuga and Pachysandra, 5-5-11

      The ajuga or bugle weed has invaded the Pachysandra bed.  Interesting, as the Pachysandra is quite an invader itself.  I was delighted a few years back when the ajuga appeared in the garden as a single volunteer.  It generally behaves itself, staying in shady areas that don't dry to the bone in summer.  Certainly looks pretty in the bed above in the early morning dappled light.

Weigelia, 5-5-11

Looking through the weigelia, 5-5-11

 

      I like the weigelia, as it behaves and stays in bounds most of the time.  It gets pruned maybe every other year, and puts on a beautiful spring blooming session every May.  It continues to do well in a spot that gets very little, if any, direct sun light.

Bleeding Heart and Sweet Woodruff, 5-5-11

Sweet Woodruff, 5-5-11

      I bought the Sweet Woodruff from the donation tent at the Wilmington Flower Market maybe twenty years ago as a little inhabitant in a two inch pot.  I planted it under the White Ash where it took hold before its desire to wander around the yard.  Now it is in several spots, providing a beautiful delicate green back ground with dainty white flowers in early May.  In the dry heat of the summer it gets absolutely decimated and dies back to brown twigs in places.  Don't pull it out!  It will likely return to its full glory in the next damp spring.
      The shot of the Bleeding Heart above is to illustrate just how big they get, if only for a brief time.  The foliage will start to fade to pale yellow shortly, and then die back to the ground.  But they won't be dead, just resting to come back even bigger next year.  This year I probably have ten different clumps around, so please speak up if interested.

Yellow euonymus, 5-5-11

Yellow euonymus, 5-5-11

      The yellow euonymus does not flower, but obviously can add a huge blast of color.  And it sticks around permanently.  While this plant is mainly a ground cover, if not pruned it will grow into a short shrub, or even climb trees to a height of 20 feet or more.  The white variegated form I also have is much less hardy than the yellow form, so may be preferable if you fear an invasion.  All are easy to propagate from branch cuttings, so these little babies could be mailed most anywhere. 

Star of Bethlehem, 5-5-11

     I can clearly remember finding a small clump of Star of Bethlehem growing behind the hedge years ago.  Digging it up and transplanting it to a garden bed.  Proudly telling Cindy that morning that I had found a beautiful little wild flower.  For free!  Well, like the violets to the left in the picture above, we will be at war with these two wildflowers till the day we quit gardening.  Then their legions of offspring will live to battle on with the new homeowners.  I know the violets are edible, so maybe we should just start eating them.  That would stop them in their tracks.  The people at Bellevue put in a butterfly garden last year and even welcomed donations of violets.  Unfortunately, their enthusiasm waned after only two wagonsfull.  The current supply of violets popping up in the back bed makes one afraid to sleep at night lest they should try to move indoors.  I wonder if the Star of Bethlehem bulbs are edible?

Scilla, 5-5-11

      The scilla is a relative of the hyacinths, looking somewhat like a wood hyacinth, only taller.  Yep, I found this clump growing under the back privet hedge and moved it into the garden.  Unfortunately, the leaves just fall to the ground, but the flower stalks are quite lovely.  This bunch should be divided after the plant dies back.  I noticed a couple of days ago that the mother plant behind the hedge is back.  I vaguely remember having left a couple of bulbs there from my previous scavenge.  Had I intended to move the whole clump, I luckily missed some bulbs.

Daisies to bloom soon, 5-5-11

 
     These daisies are about to bloom soon.  They will be a beautiful sight.  Wouldn't you like them in your garden rather than in my bunny protected enclosure.  While we are digging them out, how many thousand raspberry plants would you like?  I really don't understand why nurseries have to grow the stuff that I can't even get rid of.  And to think the raspberries began their reign as five sticks that arrived by mail.
      Tis time to quit writing, get some breakfast, put on the gloves, and head out to battle.  Garden on.

I have another garden

      Most of my blog entries have been about my garden plot over at Bellevue State Park.  A couple of minutes ago, I took the screen out of the back bedroom window to take a few shots of the back yard garden.  Before I go off to my visit of Momma Robin.

Back yard, 5-5-11

      This shot is from of our little private garden next to the house, then off across the lawn and out to the flower and vegetable garden in back.  Our lot is 100 by 220, so almost exactly 1/2 an acre.  Enough to keep me more than busy.  The red Japanese maple is in the bottom right corner of this shot.  Hosta to the left of the maple, and the Bleeding Heart in bloom to the left of the walk.

White Ash Tree, 5-5-11

      Panning to the left a bit is the White Ash tree that casts such a pretty shadow across the lawn in the early morning.  The large Pin Oak tree in the back ground is the culprit and cause for me to seek out my addition of the park garden to get a sunny spot for squash, peppers and tomatoes.  If you remember the tomato pictures from the back yard from last August, you could question that need.  But then I don't have garden buddies and robin's nests in my back yard garden.  Just a corner of the deck can be seen in this picture.

Soon to be much enjoyed, again, 5-5-11

      Here is a shot of the deck.  Where we will be "Deckadent" on many a lovely summer evening.  Hauling the pick-em-up truckload of 12 foot boards in a 6 foot bed on I-95 in heavy traffic was not one of my more brilliant moments.  The lumber yard probably would have delivered for free if I had not had to start the project at that very moment.  A friend insisted that I buy stainless steel nails for the project.  I thank him every time I sit out on the deck and miss seeing rust spots everywhere.  Even years ago I think it was eleven cents a nail.  I banged in lots of elevens.  The picnic table used in some of the header shots of the blog is at the far end of the deck.  Just to the left of the table but out of the picture is the porch which has featured in quite a few blog posts.
  

Private Garden, 5-5-11

      Dropping back closer to the house is our little private garden, a space which we don't get the time to enjoy as much as we should.  Though Cindy enjoys this spot, as the view is right outside the window where her computer resides.  The clump of green to the left of the shot are the hellebores after finally loosing their blossoms, and the Weigelia can be seen blooming in the bottom left corner.  The hummingbird feeder has been the site of some intense aerial skirmishes.

Back Yard, 5-5-11

      And now walking out to the back, a little closer shot of the garden.  The long pile on the right is the result of running the lawn tractor repeatedly over the BIG leaf pile from the fall.  Now it needs to be used or moved to make room for the tomatoes to go in next week with more settled weather in the forecast.  The Pin Oak on the left will cast a lot of mid afternoon shade.

Back to the house, 5-5-11

 

     
      Looking back to the house from the garden you see the porch on the right side.  The neighbor's house to the right is almost due south, so the porch has a short southern side exposure, with more glass facing west.  Not ideal, but no complaints.  The large glass expanse with the glass roof to the left of the porch is the kitchen.  We knocked out an exterior wall and replaced it with a mostly glass 6 foot by 16 foot addition.  It is amazing how much light it brings in even on dark days.  Although we keep some plants inside the kitchen, it is by no means a greenhouse :-(   The deck is in front of the kitchen, looking out over the back garden.  The little "Private garden" is to the far left, to the left of the ash tree.
      Now you have had a tour of the back yard and garden.  Now I had better get to working on it! 

Veggie Starts

Plant me, Please

      Sometimes things actually work out too well.  Like when you plant lots of seeds and most of them come up!  Then grow on to when they should have been in the ground last week.  So now every day I am trying to put something in the ground.  To make way for the next wave of warmer weather seedlings.

Broccoli and Purple kohlrabi, 4/18/11, Bellevue

Broccoli in with onions

      Here it is only the middle of April, and I already have an overcrowded garden.  I walk around the garden looking for spots that some plant can go in, knowing that something else will soon come out or at least won't cast too much shade.  So these two plantings are squished in pretty tightly in a bed already planted with onions.  I think they are OK on the companion planting idea.

Purple Kohlrabi, 4/18/11

 

Back yard greens, 4/18/11

      The two frilly looking plants in the lower left hand corner are Tango lettuce from Fedco Seeds that overwintered without protection!  So did the parsley at the bottom right.  What would those do with only minimal protection?   The row right of the Tango lettuce is Tango starts and the four little seedlings next to that are Thick Stem Chinese Mustard.  The last three seedlings are Red Stemmed Dandelions, quite attractive and tasty too.  Well, at least out of the porch and into the ground.  The back yard garden gets a fair amount of shade from the large pin oak, so many of my greens seedlings should do fine there.

Bursting with Promise

     It is still cold, yet spring can not be denied.  Some day too soon, the spring blooms will be gone.

Flagstone walk, 4/2/11

Hellebores, 4/2/11

Daffodils, regular and miniature, 4/2/11

Wood hyacinth, 4/2/11

Wood hyacinth, 4/2/11

Blood Sorrel, with dried vine, 4/2/11

Harbingers, two

     More pictures of spring in the back yard.

Purple crocus, my back yard, 3-18-11

 

 

 

 

 

 

White and yellow crocus, my back yard, 3-18-11

Wood hyacinth, my back yard, 3-18-11

 

Miniature daffodils, my back yard, 3-18-11

Daffodils, still to bloom at the house, 3-18-11

Harbingers

Crocus and snowdrops, 3-12-11

Wood Hyacinths emerging, 3-12-11

Hellebores, battered but not beaten   3-12-11

Ah Spring
Oh how we wait
But at last some signs
That our spirits will now lift
Refreshed, renewed
Glad you're here
Ah Spring