ISN'T THIS TIME OF YEAR wonderful? The spring bloomers are gone now allowing me to spend time cleaning up and cutting back. I enjoy the instant gratification and sense of possibility that comes with this task. I've been so busy that I haven't taken very many photos lately. Here are a few I took a few weeks ago.
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Japanese Blood Grass, (Imperata cylindrica) likes moist soil. I've been keeping this clump watered and the results are gorgeous. |
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| Carex 'Something or Other' (my term) looks good next to the Hypericum. |
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| This Lavatera looks great for 5 minutes. Unfortunately, the old petals don't fall off so by mid-season the plant is a mess. I'm digging it out. I'll keep this nice photo as a memento of how pretty that five minutes is. |
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| My Clemmy 'Venosa Violacea' put on a stellar performance in June and July. I cut it all down yesterday. If I keep it watered, it will grow and produce a second flush of flowers. |
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| I'm loving my Acanthus mollis (Bear's Breeches) even if it's too shady for it to bloom. |
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| Oxalis crassipes likes to bend towards the sunlight and open its bazillion blossoms. |
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| Alstromeria is also on its second flush of blossoms. Note the Persicaria amplexicaulis foliage threatening to encroach. |
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| Sorry for the blurry photo but I must show off my Saponaria 'Max Frei.' Morning sun and afternoon shade seem to be the best recipe for these blossoms. |
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| Recently, I succumbed to my plant-shopping whims and purchased this tall, stately (and big blossomed) Scabiosa. I got it planted this week after taking out one of my bazillon clumps of Phlox 'David'--a plant that is planning to rule the world. |
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| I also purchased this sweet, perennial creeping Baby's Breath that I believe is Gysophila repens'Rosea' |
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| Here is a photo of the the plants when I brought them home three weeks ago. They're now twice as wide and blooming away in their new home on the side of a rock-line raised bed. |
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| This is the first flower on my Gardenia 'Frost Proof.' Last week I counted 13 blossoms! I am so pleased with this plant. I've never had a Gardenia perform so well. No bugs and loaded with blossoms. Now if it lives up to its name and survives the winter, I'll be in heaven. |
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| Finally, a little evidence of my voyeurism with nature. I caught these two lovers who couldn't seem to wait for a room. My photo is blurry but maybe it was intentional since it protects their identity. We wouldn't want to embarrass them. |
