Summer is flying by and August is upon us. I hope you have enjoyed your garden and summer so far.
This year my usual gardening tasks were pushed back by a few months or so because of the launch of my gardening book. Instead of my usual spring chores of edging and planting being mostly done before the heat of summer I find myself doing those things now as there’s a lull in the high temperatures. I finished cutting back all the spent flowers and reshaped anything that needed a tidying from earlier in the season. And I finally put out the last birdbath. My garden has mostly progressed as usual thanks to plant choices I’ve made over the years.
My coreopsis zagreb is blooming and needs no care from me, thankfully, other than an occasional watering. I’d love to plant more.
The black eyed susans are still looking good and have multiplied a bit since I’ve planted them. I will be planting more soon so they have time to develop good roots before it gets cold.
My hydrangeas have had the biggest blooms so far. Some blooms are three times the size of my hand! Some are shades of purple, some a little more white and lavender. But soon they’ll start to fade. They were an impulse buy some years ago but I couldn’t have been more happy with them.
The butterfly bushes are blooming like crazy and only require some deadheading occasionally. They’ve been blooming for weeks and could use a good deadheading later this week. They are visited regularly by Monarch and Swallowtail butterflies, hummingbird moths, lots of bees, and sometimes a few hummingbirds. And they’ll bloom till a hard frost- for us in NY that’s mid October. Such a workhorse of my garden.
And the Japanese anemones have multiplied since I first planted them. They have begun to bloom soft pink flowers atop their long stems and sway in the breeze and I love how they look. I plan to separate some and move them around after they finish blooming so they spread and fill an area I have planned for them. And give a few away to a nice lady that has a new garden area just waiting for something to fill it. Japanese anemone will fill in wherever you plant them! So be mindful that they spread. But sometimes you need that. They look good at any stage of growth.
The Asiatic lilies are finishing. They were beautiful! The shasta daisies were a happy bunch! The guara- both white and pink varieties are ready to be cut back so they have time to rebloom. The coneflowers are still blooming. The zinnias should be blooming soon. The marigolds are full of flowers and buds. The morning glories came up from last year’s seeds and are mingling their way all over the place ( so beware – they may become permanent )! And the 4” pot of ajuga ‘burgundy glow’ I bought is doing what ground covers do….. And I LOVE it! Eventually it’ll be a living mulch.
The few perennial ornamental grasses that I have are on to becoming the star of the show later in the season. I’m still on the hunt for a particular perennial ornamental grass that I used to have at my other house.
And my FAVORITE annual purple fountain grass is coming along nicely as expected.
I just bought a few more to perk up a few spots that just need a little ‘something’.
I have had purple fountain grass in my garden and in pots every year for as long as I can remember and love their easy care, drought tolerant habit. They are a beautiful color and add movement to anywhere I have them. They don’t need trimming, they don’t need deadheading, they don’t need fertilizing, they hardly need watering and while summer turns to fall they put out more and more purple plumes. Gotta LOVE a plant like that! They look good till frost hits. Then they’re done.…a job well done.
So enjoy your garden and the rest of all that summer has to offer.
Until September…
Happy gardening,